Paul Finebaum is clearly tuned into the world of SEC football and especially so when it comes to Alabama football. He appeared on the USA Today Football Four podcast and said that one legendary coach was considering hanging up the whistle for good after the 2015 season.
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Nick Saban has had a pretty great career complete with 191 wins as a head coach and five national titles. The 64-year old has been coaching football in some capacity since 1973 so it only makes sense that there would be retirement talk this late in his career. Well, Finebaum is convinced that Saban almost gave it all up after winning his fifth title to ride into the sunset and retirement.
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On the podcast, Finebaum told Dan Wolken what he believed was going through Saban's mind and ultimately why he didn't decide to retire:
"You start wondering I think when you get to his point, 'What am I really doing now?' I thought he should have retired. Again, I made that pretty clear. I believe he thought about it ... I think he nearly did. I think he gave serious though to walking away and he just couldn't pull the trigger."
The Crimson Tide and Saban were coming off a 45-40 win over Dabo Swinney and Clemson in the National Championship Game and that might have helped him stay put and play out the rest of his contract, which runs through 2022. He is the highest coach at any public university earning $6.9 million annually. Beating the "next great coach" could have helped too according to Finebaum.
"When you make that kind of money, you hate to leave it on the table. I think Saban looked around college football. With all due respect to Dabo Sweeney, I think he said 'I just beat Dabo Sweeney, I can do this again, and again, and again, and again.' "
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Saban losing his right hand man in Kirby Smart could have put him over the edge on his decision, but I think college football is better off with Saban staying and coaching a Crimson Tide team everyone will hate no matter how good or bad (yeah right) it might be over the next few seasons.
[h/t SEC Country]
