Texas A&M's Jimbo Fisher 'Done Talking About' Feud with Alabama's Nick Saban
Texas A&M head football coach Jimbo Fisher said Wednesday he's "moving on" from his feud with Alabama counterpart Nick Saban.
Fisher told reporters his focus has shifted to college football's "more pressing needs" as it tries to evolve in the name, image and likeness (NIL) era:
The verbal exchange began May 19 when Saban said "A&M bought every player on their team" since NIL deals became available following a Supreme Court ruling last June that barred the NCAA from limiting payments to student-athletes.
While it was just the latest in a long line of comments the longtime Bama coach has made questioning the direction of college sports in the NIL era, it was also his most direct rebuke of any program's specific use of collective pools—each program's money available for endorsement deals—to attract recruits.
It drew a strong response from Fisher, who described Saban as a "narcissist" and urged people to dig into Saban's past.
"Some people think they're God. Go dig into how God did his deal, you may find out about a guy that a lot of things you don't wanna know," Fisher said. "We build him up to be this czar of football. Go dig into his past or anybody that's ever coached with him."
SEC commissioner Greg Sankey issued a public reprimand against both coaches, saying they didn't meet the "established expectations for conduct and sportsmanship."
On Tuesday, Saban apologized for singling out Texas A&M in his prior remarks, but he didn't retract the allegations and instead refocused his ire toward the NIL environment.
"I didn't say anybody did anything wrong," Saban said.
The situation generated ample headlines not only because the coaches are currently rivals in the SEC, but also because they worked together at LSU in the early 2000s.
Saban was the head coach of the Tigers from 2000 through 2004, and Fisher was his offensive coordinator for all five of those seasons.
Brody Miller, Bruce Feldman and Matt Fortuna of The Athletic reported there were a lot of issues between the pair during those years despite the on-field success, which included the 2003 national championship.
"There was [friction] all the time," one source told The Athletic. "Will [Muschamp] and Kirby [Smart] and all the defensive guys all bowed down to Nick, but Nick depended on Jimbo a lot. But Nick is so hard on his [offensive coordinators]. They were always at each other's throats."
Another added: "Oh, it ain't like Nick and Kirby. There is no love lost between Nick and Jimbo—at all."
Two decades later, those lingering frustrations appeared to re-emerge in recent weeks.
Fisher's comments Wednesday may push the tension to the back burner for awhile, but the topic is sure to return ahead of the Oct. 8 clash between the Aggies and Crimson Tide.
