Former Alabama Crimson Tide head coach Nick Saban is enjoying retirement, but the way his players reacted to the Rose Bowl loss has continued to leave a sour taste in his mouth.
According to Chris Low with ESPN, Saban had already planned on retiring following the 2023 season. However, following a disappointing showing against the Michigan Wolverines in the Rose Bowl, the legendary head coach claimed that the way his players reacted played a part in his decision to move on from the program.
"I want to be clear that wasn't the reason, but some of those events certainly contributed," Saban told ESPN. "I was really disappointed in the way that the players acted after the game. You gotta win with class. You gotta lose with class. We had our opportunities to win the game and we didn't do it, and then showing your ass and being frustrated and throwing helmets and doing that stuff ... that's not who we are and what we've promoted in our program."
The Crimson Tide fell 27-20 in the College Football Playoff semifinal, despite multiple opportunities to turn the game around while shutting down Michigan's offense in the second half. Jalen Milroe particularly struggled to be the dangerous dual-threat quarterback he had been previously, averaging just 5.0 yards per pass attempt while being sacked six times.
Now, things are expecting to look significantly different for Alabama in 2024 and beyond. Former Washington Huskies head coach Kalen DeBoer has taken over for Saban, while the former head coach has taken a job with ESPN and College GameDay to serve as an analyst alongside the likes of Kirk Herbstreit and Lee Corso.
DeBoer is working hard to retain players and handle the mass exodus of transfers, but it won't be easy filling the shoes of Saban, who is still recovering from a disappointing loss one game away from the national championship.
