Nick Saban

The 2024 college football season will be the first without legendary coach Nick Saban in nearly two decades, and Colorado head coach Deion Sanders recently paid him respect.

While speaking on The Joel Klatt Show, Sanders declared that Saban, who retired in January after spending the last 17 seasons as head coach of Alabama, is the pinnacle of what college coaches aspire to become.

"First of all, let's just get this straight, he's the magna cum laude, he is it. He is what we attain to just get next to, we'll never eclipse it whatsoever," Sanders said around the 16:35 mark. "[He's the best] ever. Ever, let's get that straight."

Sanders went on to suggest that part of the reason that Saban decided to step down was due to college football's ever-changing landscape. The implementation of NIL and new transfer rules along with conference realignment have brought new obstacles for coaches to navigate through, and Sanders believes these changes drove the 72-year-old away from the game.

"I just hate it for him, because I felt as though he had so much more left, but I understand when it's not in you to do it that way, and you want to do it this way," Sanders said. "Shoot, it was like, 'Man, we lost the OG. We lost the OG.' He means so much to me personally... I hate that we lost him for college football's sake, and why. It shouldn't be that way."

Saban led Alabama to six national titles and a 206-29 record over his 17-year tenure, so he has earned the right to kick his feet up and enjoy retirement.

It will be a tough act to follow, but Kalen DeBoer was hired as Saban's replacement and will look to lead Alabama back to national championship contention in 2024.

Nick Saban, Urban Meyer and Aaron Donald headline the coaches and players eligible for the 2025 College Football Hall of Fame class.

Per Brett McMurphy of the Action Network, that trio is among the nearly 250 people on the ballot for the Hall of Fame.

Donald is one of the many notable players eligible for the first time, along with 2009 Heisman Trophy winner Mark Ingram II, Alan Faneca, DeSean Jackson, John Henderson and Manti Te'o.

Saban is immediately eligible for induction despite retiring in January because he is over the age of 70, per the College Football Hall of Fame's official criteria.

Meyer, who is only 59, is eligible for the first time because it has been three years since he last coached. He hasn't coached at the college ranks since retiring from Ohio State after the 2018 season, but he had a brief stint in the NFL as head coach of the Jacksonville Jaguars in 2021.

Coaches must have at least 10 years of experience as a head coach, with a winning percentage of at least .600 during any 100-game period in their tenure to be eligible.

Players are eligible for the Hall of Fame if they were recognized as a first-team All-American by an organization recognized by the NCAA and 10 full seasons after their last year of playing college football.

The Hall of Fame notes each candidate's primary source of consideration is their football accomplishments, but their "post-football record as a citizen" is also given weight.

Saban seems like a lock to make it in on his first appearance on the ballot. He went 292-71-1 in 28 seasons with four different schools. His seven national titles are the most in college football history.

Meyer's on-field resume would seem to make him a Hall of Famer. He owns the third-highest winning percentage (.854) of any coach in history in 219 games with three different programs and won three national titles.

There were numerous controversies Meyer was involved in, notably during his time at Florida and Ohio State. His brief tenure with the Jaguars, while not a college program, only further diminished his standing.

Donald, who just retired in March after 10 NFL seasons, was a standout player for four seasons at the University of Pittsburgh from 2010 to '13. He was a unanimous All-American selection and won ACC Defensive Player of the Year as a senior.

The 2025 College Football Hall of Fame class will likely be announced in January prior to the College Football Playoff Championship Game. They will be inducted into the Hall of Fame during the 67th NFF Annual Awards Dinner on Dec. 9, 2025.

Former Alabama head coach Nick Saban didn't hold back when discussing Cincinnati Bengals first-round pick Amarius Mims during ABC's broadcast of the NFL draft on Thursday night, questioning why the talented offensive tackle only made eight starts during his Georgia career.

"Everybody has their own opinions of me," Mims responded on Friday while speaking with reporters. "I don't really care about what he said or what he had to say, honestly. I'm just glad to be a Cincinnati Bengal."

Here were Saban's full remarks:

This guy's got all the tools—he's got great size, he's got great power. ... But it makes you wonder, how did the guy only start eight [games?] Like, in the SEC championship game, he played only the first 15 plays of the game and then he's out. Takes himself out. I don't know what he injured, what he hurt, whatever. But you've got to be a little bit more consistent in your performance if you're going to be a great player and a starter in the National Football League.

... One of the things that I see in guys—he went to a small high school. He was always bigger and better than everybody else. So do you ever really develop the traits that you need to have to compete against guys that are as good as you? He's gonna play against guys that are as good as him, now. So if he didn't develop those habits, he better focus on them now.

While Mims is focusing on his future with the Bengals and not Saban's comments, he paid his respects along the way.

"I got a lot of respect for Coach Saban, even when he said that," he told reporters. "He's one of the greatest college head coaches. It is what it is."

Mims is an interesting case. He suffered an ankle injury during the 2023 season that required "tightrope" surgery and cost him six weeks, though he was able to return to the team. He then re-aggravated the injury in the SEC Championship Game loss against Alabama.

The B/R NFL Scouting Department ranked Mims as the fourth-best offensive tackle in this year's draft and the No. 24 overall prospect, describing him as a "towering figure with a rocked-up build, big hands and very good arm length. He is an easy, smooth mover with fluid redirect skills, range and body control."

But that scouting report added that the one-year starter "needs to be coached up with his positional leverage, footwork and sustain skills before reaching his full potential."

Those factors contributed to a somewhat mixed reaction on social media after the selection, even if adding more talent in front of Joe Burrow was a need:

There's little doubt that Mims enters the NFL with some serious question marks given his overall lack of starting experience. But the physical tools are just as hard to ignore. If he reaches his upside, Burrow and the Bengals will be thrilled with the pick for years to come, doubters be damned.

Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian thought about leaving for Alabama following Nick Saban's retirement.

But not for very long.

"Naturally, I'd be lying if I said I didn't think about it," Sarkisian said Wednesday, per ESPN's Chris Low. "But it took me all of about 60 seconds to say, 'Yeah, I'm not doing that.' I had an awesome two years at Alabama and loved my time under Coach Saban, but ultimately you want to reap what you sow.

"We've poured a ton into this program for three years, and we're on the cusp, I think, of going on a run that will be epic. I believe that. Our staff does, and our players do, too, just the support we have and the culture we've created here. Why leave something like that?"

There was an obvious connection in place, as Sarkisian was the offensive coordinator for the Crimson Tide during the two seasons prior to taking the Texas job. He worked under Saban, is familiar with the program and helped guide the team to the College Football Playoff national championship during the 2020 campaign.

However, it was clearly too difficult to walk away from what he is building at Texas.

After going just 5-7 in his first season in 2021, the Longhorns improved to 8-5 in his second season and 12-2 in his third. They won the Big 12 championship and reached the CFP last season, which marked impressive improvement even though they lost to Washington in the semifinals.

Oh, and they also defeated Alabama in September.

Sarkisian will need to replace some top-level talent, as Low noted a program-best 11 players were invited to the NFL Scouting Combine this year. Still, quarterback Quinn Ewers is back, and the head coach landed a number of notable transfers.

One of those transfers was Alabama wide receiver Isaiah Bond who, like Sarkisian, chose Texas over the Crimson Tide.

There is also something to be said about the pressure of following Saban, who is arguably the greatest coach in college football history. All he did was win six national championships with Alabama and establish the program as the gold standard of the sport, so there will likely be some regression even if new coach Kalen DeBoer keeps things rolling.

For now, Sarkisian is carving out his own legacy with Texas and will be expected to contend for the expanded 12-team CFP during the upcoming campaign.

Perhaps he'll even face Alabama if he gets there.

Alabama head football coach Kalen DeBoer isn't backing down from the expectations in place at his program.

"The tradition will continue," he said during a discussion with Andy Staples of On3 (16:30 mark) when talking about the Crimson Tide moving forward after the legendary Nick Saban retired.

Continuing the tradition of what Saban built would be quite the accomplishment.

After all, he was the face of college football during his 17 years as the head coach of the Crimson Tide. It was a tenure that included six national championships and a 206-29 record with double-digit wins in every one of his seasons except the first.

Be it the BCS era or the College Football Playoff era, Saban's Alabama program continued to dominate on the recruiting trail, on the field and in the trophy case.

DeBoer has plenty of work to do to reach that level, but he impressed during his two seasons as head coach of Washington. The Huskies went 11-2 and won the Alamo Bowl in 2022 and then followed that with a 14-1 record, Pac-12 title and CFP national title game appearance during the 2023 campaign.

Washington is not exactly a powerhouse on the level of Alabama, so accomplishing that in such a short time suggests he could find some success with the Crimson Tide.

It will start on the recruiting trail, and Alabama brought in the No. 2 overall class for the 2024 cycle, per 247Sports' composite rankings. It currently has the No. 7 overall class in 2025 with plenty of time to add top-notch talent before signing day.

Even though Alabama lost high-quality players such as Caleb Downs, Isaiah Bond and Julian Sayin, among others, to the transfer portal after Saban's retirement, it should still have an excellent team in 2024 and figures to be a contender for the 12-team CFP.

September tests against Wisconsin and Georgia should hint at the overall ceiling for DeBoer's team, but he is ready to maintain the standard for the Crimson Tide.

Former college football head coach Nick Saban, who retired in January after winning seven national titles during his career, will be inducted MAC Hall of Fame Class of 2024.

Saban, who played college football at Kent State from 1970-1972 as a defensive back. He also worked as a Kent State graduate assistant (1973-1974) and linebackers coach (1975-76) to begin his collegiate coaching career.

Saban also got his start as a head coach with Toledo in 1990, leading the Rockets to a 9-2 record and a MAC title.

Saban just spent 17 years at Alabama, where he led the Crimson Tide to six national titles and 201 wins. Alabama finished in the top eight of the Associated Press and Coaches polls in Saban's last 13 seasons.

His resume also includes stints at Michigan State and LSU, where he led the Tigers to a co-national championship with USC in 2003. Saban also coached the Miami Dolphins in 2005 and 2006 in between his LSU and Alabama stints.

Naturally, Saban is well-deserving of many honors. Although he's primarily known for his time at Alabama, his playing and coaching roots are in the MAC.

Saban isn't the only person being inducted into the conference's Hall of Fame. Per a conference press release, the five others are Northern Illinois quarterback Jordan Lynch, Bowling Green women's basketball coach (and now Los Angeles Sparks coach) Curt Miller, Ball State volleyball star Sarah Obras, Miami softball star Jessica Simpson and Ohio football head coach Frank Solich.

Former Alabama head football coach Nick Saban believes NIL rules have been a detriment to college sports, and he let his feelings be known during a Capitol Hill roundtable.

"All the things that I believed in, for all these years, 50 years of coaching, no longer exist in college athletics," Saban said. "It was always about developing players, it was always about helping people be more successful in life."

Saban told a story about a recruiting breakfast hosted at his home that ended with his wife, Terry, questioning why they were still doing this.

"She said, 'All they care about is how much you're gonna pay them, they don't care about how much you're gonna develop them, which is what we've always done, so why are we doing this?'" Saban explained.

The discussion was hosted by Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas). Other participants included Saban's former boss, Alabama athletic director Greg Byrne, ACC commissioner Jim Phillips and student-athletes Haley and Hanna Cavinder. Haley is planning to return to college basketball next season with TCU.

Saban stepped down as Alabama head coach in January after leading the team to six national championships in 17 seasons.

The 72-year-old went on to advocate for a revenue-sharing model that would benefit student-athletes while also creating a better competitive balance.

"If we had some sort of revenue sharing proposition that did not make student-athletes employees ... I think that may be the long-term solution," Saban said. "You could create a better quality of life for student-athletes, you could still emphasize development, you can still create brand and athletic development with a system like that and it would be equal in all institutions. You couldn't raise more money at one school to create a competitive advantage at another."

Two months after his surprise decision to retire as Alabama's head football coach, Nick Saban has provided some new insight into what led him to walk away.

Speaking to ESPN's Chris Low, Saban lamented that his message to the players wasn't connecting in the way that it used to:

"I thought we could have a hell of a team next year, and then maybe 70 or 80 percent of the players you talk to, all they want to know is two things: What assurances do I have that I'm going to play because they're thinking about transferring, and how much are you going to pay me? Our program here was always built on how much value can we create for your future and your personal development, academic success in graduating and developing an NFL career on the field.

"So I'm saying to myself, 'Maybe this doesn't work anymore, that the goals and aspirations are just different and that it's all about how much money can I make as a college player?' I'm not saying that's bad. I'm not saying it's wrong, I'm just saying that's never been what we were all about, and it's not why we had success through the years."

Saban did note those things weren't the reason he retired, but they were contributing factors in his decision.

Low also highlighted Saban had "grown weary" of having to replace multiple assistants on his staff every year because Alabama coaches tended to be very popular for jobs around the country.

The Crimson Tide had five different offensive coordinators and four different defensive coordinators from 2017 to '23.

Saban told Low in recent years coaches being hired wanted assurances he was "going to be here for three or four years, and it became harder to make those assurances" because of his age.

Ever since the NCAA adopted the name, image and likeness policy in June 2021, it has been a controversial topic among football coaches. Saban expressed enthusiasm for it in 2022, saying he was "all for the players" being able to make money.

Coaches have put the blame on NIL and the transfer portal as the biggest reasons for roster instability.

This is, in some ways, just a correction in favor of players after coaches were able to leave one job they promised to stay at for years to land elite recruits. Now, coaches face the difficult challenge of trying to keep an entire recruiting class together and make all of the returning players happy if there's not enough playing time available.

Low said in the wake of Saban's retirement announcement in January it was a decision he arrived at because trying to do everything that being Alabama's head coach entails was becoming increasingly difficult now that he is 72 years old.

There are no underlying health issues for Saban so much as it was just a case of exhaustion at this stage of his life. He finished his career with a 201-29 record and six national titles in 17 seasons at Alabama.