In the months leading up to the 2025 college football season, rumors swirled about a potential return to coaching for Nick Saban as the Alabama Crimson Tide entered the fall with national championship expectations. After losing to the Florida State Seminoles in the season opener, calls for Saban to replace Kalen DeBoer grew even louder.
Appearing on the Pat McAfee Show on Friday, Saban addressed all the speculation surrounding a possible return to the sidelines as a head coach.
“That came out of nowhere. I mean, Miss Terry said, ‘Where did that come from?’ I mean, she wouldn’t let me do it, number one. I’d never thought about doing it, number two. And I don’t know how somebody could just come up with this out of thin air.”
Former Alabama Crimson Tide HC Nick Saban on the rumors that he could return to coaching
Related: Week 2 College Football Rankings, Alabama Crimson Tide Plummet
- Nick Saban coaching record: 297-71-1 overall, 206-29 (.877) as Alabama Crimson Tide coach
DeBoer, one of the highest-paid college football coaches, has certainly fallen well short of meeting expectations. Coming in as Saban’s immediate successor, the former Washington Huskies coach has posted a 9-5 record (.643 winning percentage) through his first 14 games. The Week 1 loss to Florida State ended Alabama’s 23-game winning streak in season openers.
Saban went 7-6 in his first season at Alabama, but he was taking over a program that needed to be rebuilt following Mike Shula’s departure. The Crimson Tide coaching staff was also overhauled after DeBoer’s first year, with the head coach bringing in offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb.
Related: Alabama Game Today, Crimson Tide Football Schedule 2025
While fans might want Saban to return, he’ll be 74 years old in October and has made it clear that he is uninterested in coaching at a time when no control over the transfer portal and NIL money has forced head coaches to convince players to stay multiple times per season.
- Kalen DeBoer buyout: $63 million
Realistically, Alabama will give DeBoer three seasons to turn things around. Mike DuBose posted a combined 11-12 record in his first two seasons and lasted another two years. More recently, Shula went 10-15 in his first two seasons and nearly made it four full seasons. DeBoer is likely getting three years before he could be fired. By the time the job might be open, Saban will be 75 years old.
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