Nick Saban Responds to CFB Rumors, Says He 'Never Thought About' Return to Coaching

College football coaching legend Nick Saban has "never thought about" making a return to the sideline after retiring in January 2024.

Appearing on The Pat McAfee Show, Saban said Friday he hasn't the slightest idea why any rumors about a comeback surfaced:

It doesn't take much for the rumor mill to kick into gear when it comes to a notable coach who's out of work. Season fans will remember Jon Gruden getting linked with Tennessee. For years, Urban Meyer was the go-to pick for any prominent program that had fallen on hard times.

ESPN's Greg McElroy, one of Saban's former players at Alabama, in July cited "a very much in the know person" who suggested the 73-year-old had some unfinished business in coaching.

Saban refuted that notion earlier this month and quipped McElroy "would have gotten his ass kicked" if, when he was a Crimson Tide player, he had done something as bad as fanning the coaching flames.

Some coaches struggle to stay away forever, no matter how little they have left to achieve.

Beyond Saban's age, though, college football has evolved so much and only increased the demands on coaches at the highest level. The dawn of the NIL era has leveled the playing field a bit in terms of recruiting, while the portal forces a coach to recruit his best players all over again.

For an older coach with decades of experience, retirement has never looked so good.

With Saban specifically, his general attitudes toward the transfer portal and NIL were evident when he called out Texas A&M and then-head coach Jimbo Fisher in 2022. He said at the time the Aggies "bought every player on their team."

The seven-time national champion wasn't taking a principled stand so much as he was venting about Alabama no longer enjoying the advantages it once had.

It's hard to see why Saban would want to welcome all of that stress back into his life.