Greg McElroy dropped a bombshell Monday, revealing that his former coach, Nick Saban, might not be done coaching just yet.
Since then, speculation has run wild about what the future could hold for the former Alabama head coach.
“A very much in-the-know person that I have a lot of respect for and have spent a lot of time around, and just really, really admire — they seem to think Nick Saban is not done coaching,” McElroy said. “He’s pretty adamant that he thinks Nick Saban will be coaching again.
“If it wasn’t someone notable, I would never say a word. He is of firm belief that Nick Saban will coach in college football again.”
Saban, 73, is about to enter his second season since stepping down as head coach of the Crimson Tide, where he won six national championships in 17 years.
While this is likely nothing more than rumor and speculation, the idea of where Saban could land is certainly intriguing. CBS Sports’ Tom Fornelli believes one possible destination — believe it or not — is North Carolina, where his longtime friend Bill Belichick is set to enter his first season.
“The first thing people say to discount the idea that Nick Saban would return is that he’s too old. He’ll be 74 this October. Well, so what? North Carolina hired Bill Belichick this offseason, and he turned 73 in April.
“We can elect a 78-year-old man to be President of the United States, but a 74-year-old can’t coach a college football team? Granted, coaching a college football team is far more important a job than president, but regardless, I won’t stand for these ageist notions. I say that with advances in medical science, 74 is the new 64, and if Nick Saban thinks he’s still got it, he’s still got it.
“So, why not take over at North Carolina next season when Bill Belichick returns to the NFL? I mean, the last two coaches they’ve hired in Chapel Hill had an average age of 70.5 when hired. Saban’s right in their wheelhouse.”
But not everyone is buying into the idea of a comeback — at least not in the current college football landscape. On3’s Andy Staples believes that until there’s greater structure across the sport, Saban is likely staying retired.
“I don’t believe that Nick Saban is going to come back to college football until there’s a firm set of rules, which is not going to happen before he turns 80, probably,” Staples said.
Still, talk about a wild couple of seasons in Chapel Hill if UNC went from firing a national championship-winning coach in Mack Brown after six years, to the circus of Belichick for one season, to Saban — who would have expectations soaring to an all-time high.
Of course, this would all depend on new UNC athletic director Steve Newmark, who will take over for Bubba Cunningham in 2026. But if given the opportunity to hire Nick Saban — 74 years old or not — one would think he’d jump at the chance.
