Ex Alabama Coach Gets New Job After Retiring

Nick Saban has joined ESPN’s college football crew.

Nick Saban has a new job. The former Alabama football coach will now be an analyst on ESPN’s College GameDay program. Saban will share his football knowledge on ESPN, including visits at the NFL Draft and SEC Media Days. Saban will join the College GameDay team, which includes Rece Davis, Lee Corso, Kirk Herbstreit, Desmond Howard, and Pat McAfee.

“ESPN and College GameDay have played such an important role in the growth of college football, and I’m honored to have the opportunity to join their team,” Saban stated in an e-mail. “I’ll do my best to offer additional insights and perspectives to contribute to College GameDay, the ultimate Saturday tradition for college football fans.”

“Nick Saban is a singular, iconic presence in college football,” ESPN chairman Jimmy Pitaro said. “He is also an extremely gifted communicator, who will immediately add even more credibility, authority and entertainment value to ESPN, including our esteemed College GameDay show.”

Saban, 72, announced his retirement from coaching in January after 17 seasons at Alabama. Saban won the SEC nine times and six national championships while coaching the Alabama Crimson Tide. He was also the head coach at LSU from 200 to 2004, when he won the SEC title twice and the national title in 2003. Saban began his coaching career at Toledo in 1990, where he led the Rockets to a 9-2 record in just one season. In 1995, he took over as head coach of the Michigan State Spartans, where he went 34-24-1 in five seasons.

Saban also had experience in the NFL. In 1991, he became the Cleveland Browns’ defensive coordinator, working under Bill Belichick, who went on to win six Super Bowls with the New England Patriots. In 2005, Saban returned to the NFL as the Miami Dolphins’ head coach. He was only there for two seasons and had a 15-17 record.

Saban’s college coaching career had 292 wins, 71 losses, and one tie. He never had a losing season, and his lowest seasons came at Michigan State in 1996 and 1998 (6-6 each).