Nick Saban Reveals Reasons for Retirement (Hour 1)

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Void where prohibited. Live from the play show yet not overly ostentatious studios of CBS Sports Radio here in beautiful New York City sitting on top of the 10th floor of 345 Hudson Street. Welcome on in to a special Wednesday edition of the Zach Gelb show across all the great local CBS Sports Radio affiliates. Sirius XM, Channel 158, the free Odyssey app, and of course streaming on YouTube.

youtube.com slash CBS Sports Radio. 855-212-4CBS is numbered to jump on in. 855-212-4227.

You could always get at me on Instagram where I'm straight flexing or via the good ol' cesspool of Twitter. At Zach Gelb, that's Z-A-C-H-G-E-L-B. Got Stuart Kovacs, got Chris Hess, and got the birthday boy. Michael Sampta rocking and rolling with me all the way up until 6 p.m. Eastern, 3 p.m. Pacific. Bart Winkler gonna stop by for a little Winkler Wednesday today at 4.40 p.m. Eastern, 1.40 p.m. Pacific.

Or until he gives us this lame excuse about how his kid's daycare had the heat go out and then he had to bail last week, which I love Bart, but I kind of raised an eyebrow to whatever happened last week. But 44 years ago, I was told, I was not alive, I wasn't even a thought then, but I was told the doctor pulled Sampta out of the womb and the doctor said, today is a day that will live in infamy. So a happy birthday to Michael Sampta. How you feeling today, by the way, Mike? I feel like I'm J.R. now every day when he asks his producer, you know, hot take kicky, you know, how you doing? So I'll start you off today.

Since it is your birthday, the floor is yours. How are you feeling 44 years old now? Old. I feel very old. You don't look old. I would have never thought you were 44.

Yeah. I mean, the beard kind of gives it away with all the gray that I'm starting to get in the beard. But yeah, I mean, I guess I can have a youthful look.

Maybe it's the height kind of throws it off. But my daughter started walking the past couple of days, so I feel very, very old. Old and nervous. Very, very nervous. You got a lot of big life things that are happening right now. So, you know, you're at the age where you are the provider, let's just say, and now you got a lot of responsibility.

So it's a fun time. And yeah, you already are gray, but I'm sure you'll get grayer throughout this next year. I mean, just over the last two days, watching her walk across the hallway, the beard has gone from gray to Santa Claus. Yeah. Just wait until she starts asking Dada for money.

And then you just basically become an ATM and that's your only sole purpose of living. What money? Management. Santa could use a raise. A nice little birthday present.

Alrighty. So we have one more layer to get into from the whole Russell Wilson. I don't want to say situation. Let's just call it a disaster in Denver because the last two years you had Russell Wilson get the fact contract. And then show up out of shape and not only show up out of shape, he wasn't committed to providing a healthy environment in that locker room in year number one. Now, it wasn't all on Russ.

Let's be fair. Nathaniel Hackett was one of the worst coaching hires ever. Not the worst, but one of the worst coaching hires ever.

And that situation was just impossible to succeed in. But Russell Wilson in year one was a horrible and I don't mean only just a horrible quarterback, a dreadful quarterback, a putrid quarterback. And he went from being in a spot where he was king to a spot where he ended up being a laughing stock and a punch line to almost every joke.

And the only time he wouldn't be the punch line to every joke was if people were taking a run at Nathaniel Hackett. But there was supposed to be new life in Denver this past year. And that relationship between Sean Payton and Russell Wilson never got off the ground. And I believe Sean went into that job knowing that this was going to be one year for Russell Wilson, which ends up going down as one of the worst trades in NFL history, because you have a quarterback that not only did you trade multiple first round picks for, but you then gave him an extension when he had years remaining on his deal. And now you have to issue the largest dead cap hit in NFL history of 80 something, 85 something million dollars.

So that contract hasn't even kicked in. This deal for it to go this south and this contract to go south this quickly is one of the wildest things I've ever seen in the NFL, because it wasn't as if you were trading for a player that was based off potential. This wasn't the Niners trading up in the draft and giving all those first round picks for a player that's ever played in the NFL.

This was a guy that was a nine time Pro Bowler. So look how quickly this era ended. And quite frankly, we shouldn't even call it an era.

We should call it an era. And you go back to all the excitement and all the praise that was bestowed upon this move. And the amazing part is in less than a year, forget this past year, but in less than a year, everyone was like, oh, Denver has a problem where you thought the situations and all the other quarterbacks post number 18 were bad.

This one ended up being the worst one because of the money and the picks that you gave it away for it. And also the fascinating thing to me is, you know, skates free through all this like Russell Wilson's now out of a job. And you know, Nathaniel Hackett lost his job, didn't even make it a full year. I think Sean Payton is now on the hot seat. But what about the GM?

Does anyone ever talk about George Payton? He was the one. And I know that at the time was meant as a positive decision. He pulled the trigger on the trade and not only put the trigger on the trade, then rushed to give the contract extension. And then I know that it maybe wasn't necessarily his hire. It was the new owners that probably were able to get the deal done with Sean Payton. But now you have a legendary coach in there. And I think some of that is now people forget about the GM because they just think Sean runs the organization.

But it is wild to me how there hasn't been a lot of public bashing of George Payton. But the last few years, this has not been the only mega deal that has gone down. Sometimes they work like the LA Rams gave up two first round picks and then threw in Jared Goff to trade to the Detroit Lions and the LA Rams won a Super Bowl.

Let's see. Snead said bleep those draft picks and we're going to go win a Super Bowl. Stafford won a Super Bowl for them. You look at the Lions.

It hasn't been a disaster for them. They were just in an NFC championship game. And I don't believe anyone believes that Jared Goff is this great quarterback. But he's a good quarterback in that situation for this team. And not only do you have to look at it for the quarterback going to one spot, but you have to look at it the other team that gave away the quarterback. So in this case, with Seattle and Denver, Seattle in year one, one, they got to the playoffs.

In year two, they didn't make the playoffs. And now Pete Carroll's out of a job. So we still need to see who the next franchise quarterback is going to be for the Seattle Seahawks. But for Denver, this is now a total rebuild where you see some stuff today that maybe Courtland Sutton could be available and Jerry Judy could be available as well. Like their only player on this roster that to me is an untouchable is Patrick Sertan.

That's the only player that I look at and I go, all right, you could win with that player. I'm not saying there aren't other winning players on the roster, but there's not a lot of other you got to have them players on this team. So not only did you swing a miss on the contract, not only did you swing a miss on the player and not only did you swing a miss on the trade, this whole organization is in a brutal spot. But we then mentioned the Stafford and Goff trade that has worked out. There's also two other quarterbacks that have been on the move that so far, one trade, I'm not going to say it's a failure.

The other one, though, has been extremely disappointing. And that's Deshaun Watson. The Deshaun Watson one has been extremely disappointing. And you look at all the first round picks, the three that they gave up to go get Deshaun Watson, you knew the first year he was barely going to play because of the suspension. And then this year you look at Deshaun Watson when he was on the field, he never really played a good game.

And the game where he got injured and then was out for the season, that was probably like his best game in Cleveland. And so far through two years of Deshaun Watson being on this team and you see the way that this has gone down, it's not only OK, Deshaun Watson hasn't done his job, but the guy you gave up on him, Baker Mayfield, goes to Tampa. And I know that there was a stop in Carolina and L.A. as well in one year, but he goes to Tampa and he takes a team that doesn't have as much talent as the Cleveland Browns. I know they play in a garbage division, but they did go to the playoffs this past year and not only go to the playoffs, they won a playoff game. And I go into this upcoming football season, there is an enormous amount of pressure on Deshaun Watson because Santer said it the other day. Deshaun Watson at one point was perceived to be a quarterback that was on his way to being an elite quarterback in the NFL, like his final year playing in Houston. He put up great numbers on a garbage team in a toxic situation and you knew that Bill O'Brien just messed up that team. And I know a lot of ugly things have followed Deshaun Watson since then, but that final season of 2020, where they won like four or five games, he threw for nearly 5000 yards. He had 33 touchdowns and seven interceptions on a team that didn't have a ton of talent and he completed 70.2% of his passes. But then he sat out the entire 2021 season.

2022, he only played a grand total of six games coming off the suspension and he was only able to play six games this past year. So this is now what it feels like is a make or break season into Deshaun Watson's career. And you look at Russell Wilson, we went into the season. Can Russ just go back to being a serviceable quarterback? Can he just go back to being a good quarterback? Russell Wilson was serviceable this year, but it still wasn't enough where Denver was going to say, all right, we're going to guarantee his 37, 38 million dollars a year from now if we play him this year.

And they elected to get rid of him for Deshaun Watson. After this year, you got some years left on this contract. You have two years left on this contract after this season. So there's three total years left on this contract.

And here's the difference. I know Russ got a ton of guaranteed money. Deshaun's contract is fully guaranteed.

And I look at this Denver team or this Cleveland team. I know Nick Chubb is coming off an injury, but you got talent on both sides of the ball. Amari Cooper is such a criminally underrated wide receiver in this league. He's a stud.

Elijah Moore came on at the end of the season a little bit for the Browns, too. On defense, you got a phenomenal piece in the secondary. And then you have one of, if not the best defensive players in the game in Myles Garrett.

But I go into this season and I'm a what have you done for me lately type of guy, where sometimes you look at a player and you go, oh, he's a great player and you never change your opinion. But not playing in 2021, then getting suspended and barely playing in 2022 and now coming off injuries and only playing six games in 2023, we're talking about four years ago when the season starts, the last time Deshaun Watson was looked at and we could say great quarterback. And I know now Deshaun is still young. He turns 29 in September.

So there's still some youth in that body. But when you are that far away removed from being a great quarterback, I just think your ceiling for the rest of time is just going to be a good quarterback. And just being a good quarterback in the AFC won't work. Like if you were in the NFC. Yeah, that could work.

That could be fine. But in the AFC, you have Mahomes, you have Burrow, you have Josh Allen, just for starters, standing in your way. And isn't it crazy where we knew that Deshaun was done even before all these allegations in Houston?

But who do they end up with? Not only do they end up with CJ Stroud on offense, but on defense, they ended up with Will Anderson Jr. So it's kind of crazy when you go through this and you look at the Broncos and the Seahawks. The Seahawks now are in a better spot than the Broncos. You then see the Browns and the Texans.

The Texans are in a better spot than the Browns. And then you have Aaron Rodgers getting traded from Green Bay to the New York Jets. And I know Rodgers had the Achilles injury this year, which was so unfortunate. But going into this season, I think Rodgers individually can perform well, but the Jets don't have an offensive line. And I know there's still an offseason to rebuild that offensive line. But Joe Douglas now has had like four or five years to rebuild the offensive line, the Jets' general manager, and he hasn't done it. So that's just wild when you look at it, where this league is all about franchise quarterbacks, franchise quarterbacks, and great quarterbacks.

And you see the three big moves that have been made, and I don't think you could call the Jets move a failure. I don't because they basically swapped first round picks and gave up a two to go get Aaron Rodgers. And Zach Wilson stinks anyway.

You take Aaron Rodgers seven days a week and then twice on Sundays anytime over Zach Wilson. But the point I'm making here is all the big quarterbacks that went on the move with Russell Wilson, Deshaun Watson, and Aaron Rodgers, the teams that got rid of those big quarterbacks are in a better situation now than the teams that traded for those quarterbacks. Like right now, the Broncos have no future.

They have no future whatsoever. The Cleveland Browns, I don't think this is ever going to work when we look at Deshaun Watson as a great quarterback again, and I know that they just made the playoffs this past year. And I would love to see Joe Flacco go back to Cleveland. Deshaun Watson struggles the first three, four games of the season, and then fans get antsy, and they want to see Joe Flacco back in there. And then you look at the last one, Green Bay looks to have their guy in Jordan Love, and with the roster that still has work to do, they just made the playoffs and you're number one with Aaron Rodgers. Samter, it's crazy because even I know people who call me up at 855-2124 CBS, 855-212-4227 and say, well Zach, the Rams got Stafford, and the Lions got Goff, and the two first round picks, the Rams won a Super Bowl. But right now, it's not like the Lions or Joe Schmohawk, they just beat the Rams in the playoffs and they got to an NFC title game.

That's crazy to me, Samter. In a league where it's, do you have the quarterback? Do you have the quarterback?

Do you have the quarterback? There have been multiple instances in recent history where a team gets rid of via trade. Not like a quarterback just leaving because the Patriots have been a disaster ever since Brady left. But these teams trade away their franchise quarterbacks for whatever the reasons are, and the three teams that have done it most recently, and the Browns who got Watson, the Texans, the Seahawks, and the Packers are all in better positions than where they were when they traded their franchise quarterback.

It's kind of crazy. The only one would be the Jets and the Packers. They're about even right now, depending on how Rodgers is when he comes back. Now, future, the Packers have a better future, I guess.

And that's why I would push back on it. Like, you just reset at the most important position with a young quarterback in Jordan Love, there could be a five-year plan there. The Jets, I know Rodgers talks about playing two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten, 27 more years. But does anyone think in this loaded AFC, the Jets could go win a Super Bowl next year? No way. They can. No, they can't. They have no offensive line.

We've discussed this. They're going to sign someone a free agency. They've got young talent at guard and tackle. They're going to draft somebody number 10 overall.

If not, move up. They'll be fine on the O-line. It's just a matter of whether they'll be fine on the O-line.

This GM hasn't got the O-line right now for four years. Well, they have a top 15 pick in a guard and Elijah Veritak, who when he's healthy is very good. They just drafted a center in the second round, who's been great. Highest-rated rookie center that's been around a while when he plays, but he was hurt a lot last year. And then they're going to draft a tackle in the top 10.

There's like four or five. And hope he's not Makai Becton. Well, Makai Becton was fine until he got hurt. And then he just, with that body frame, he could never recover. Well, he was out of shape and then got back into shape. There's four or five, like really good tackles in this draft.

There's, I mean, there's four or five guys, Joe Altiff, he falls. There's a bunch of guys whose names I can't pronounce that are going to be fantastic on the offensive line. But as long as Rogers comes back with that defense and all the weapons that they have, they'll be fine.

But you can say at least in the present, they're about equal. The Packers future is better. Well, here's why the Jets won't be fine. Just real quick. Okay. Maybe at most they make the playoffs.

That's what I think their apex is. Rogers was in Green Bay in a weaker conference. And you could argue had more talent at times in Green Bay on the offense side of the ball. Davante Adams is better than Garrett Wilson. I like Garrett Wilson a lot. He had Aaron Jones. I know Breece Hall is a very good young up-and-coming running back in this league, but there was a bunch of names there in Green Bay and the dude was never able to get back to another Super Bowl.

Now you go into an AFC where there's Patrick Mahomes and there's Joe Burrow just for starters. Yeah, I like Rogers. I think Rogers can win will win Comeback Player of the Year next year, but that jet team me buying stock in them.

I don't think so. I mean just the coach stinks to know and you're right, but I mean this Rogers did go 15 and one with some of those guys. He won multiple divisions. They faulted in the playoffs for sure. And as a jet as a former jet fan, I'm confident that Rogers will falter again in the playoffs, but the idea that they could win 11 12 13 games with the healthy Aaron Rogers and that roster is believable. I guess my point is though that the Jets and the Packers their their current situations are about even but the odd thing is like you said not only is the Broncos future screwed up and the Seahawks future looks better, but the Seahawks present is better than the brown.

Yeah, the test I've been closing is better than the Browns present. So forget about what the future looks like with getting all the picks and trading away the star player, but their presence are actually better also which is incredible that their future and their present is better and maybe this is a road map. Maybe this is kind of a starting point for other teams who have star quarterbacks who are maybe hitting an apex or you know have hit the apex or maybe have a year or two left of that of that apex and getting rid of them and you know, bringing the draft picks in this might be kind of the new blueprint for how teams advanced with kind of an aging but still quality quarterback. Well, I'll tell you why that's not going to be the case necessarily because all three of these guys gave their team's reasons or signs to move on like a Josh Allen in three four years from now is not going to give a reason for the Bills to move on but I didn't think that about about Deshaun Watson.

Well, hold on hold on hold on hold on Wilson Deshaun Watson. No one could have predicted what happened to him off the field my point but but hold on even before that Bill O'Brien was the reason why and deservedly so and Jack Easterby who we thought was the creep at the time and then end up being Watson was the creep. They gave Watson a reason to want to move on and then Watson gave the organization a reason to want to move on.

Russ became too big for his own britches with his with his ego. They gave him a reason to want to move on. So and Rogers heck it was clear. He gave him enough for it when you're not talking to the coach.

You give enough reasons to want to move on. Yeah, and hindsight's 20 20. But what I'm saying is four years before these guys wanted out. There was no indication that they would ever be gone for when Russ wanted out of Seattle like holy crap. Are you crazy? Are you kidding me?

Yeah, and then when it happened, we're like, yeah, I guess that makes sense. I'm just saying you don't know about Justin Herbert in four years. Maybe Justin Herbert and Jim Harbaugh clash and Herbert's like I need to be out of here. Maybe Josh Allen's like, you know what Buffalo is not the place for me. I need to be somewhere else. I just don't know what's going to happen in four years. Jalen hurts Dak Prescott Jordan love maybe maybe Jordan loves like, hey guys, thank you for the opportunity. But like you kind of sat me around Rogers.

You you screwed me around for a while. I want I want elsewhere, but here's the difference. It all comes down to individual ego. Rogers has an insufferable individual ego. Russell Wilson has an insufferable individual ego. Josh Allen doesn't Justin Herbert doesn't as well. It is a Zach Gelb show on CBS Sports Radio. We'll take a break.

Here's a crazy sentence. Alabama spring practices are already underway and they're led by Kaylin DeBoer. What are the expectations for the new Crimson Tide for this upcoming season?

We'll answer that on the other side when the whole family comes together to watch the game. Nobody wants to miss a second of the action to run to the grocery store with instacart. You can get all your weekly groceries in as fast as an hour less time. Shopping means more game time. Let's go visit instacart.com to get free delivery on your first three orders offer valid for a limited time.

$10 minimum per order additional term supply. Oh, should we start this show? Yeah, I'm down just buying a car in Carvana first. Oh for real. Yeah, it's super convenient. I already got pre-qualified in two minutes.

All I had to do is answer a few questions. Oh, that's helpful. And now just customizing my down and monthly payments. Oh, that's a very fair deal.

Yep. Boom just bought a car and you get to take me to the Carvana vending machine in a couple days to pick it up. Ooh, I'm kind of busy visit Carvana.com to finance your next car.

Financing subject to credit approval for the past 20 years. You've enjoyed the refreshing tropical lime flavor of Mountain Dew Baja Blast. So in celebration of this milestone, we're bringing Baja Blast in stores nationwide and for a limited time with every purchase of Baja Blast.

You can collect coins for a chance to get Baja gear or a Taco Bell deal. 2024 is the year of Baja Blast in stores now, no purchase necessary open to US residents 18 plus subject to official rules at Baja Blast.com and 615 24 void were prohibited. Alrighty Rock and Rollin' Zach Gelb shows CBS Sports Radio the Buffalo Bills. They are releasing safety Jordan Poyer after seven seasons with the team.

So an end of an era for Jordan Poyer with the Buffalo Bills is the Bills have to read to a little bit of their roster because of salary cap reasons and that's one of the players that they're electing to move on from as the Bills try to take advantage of this championship window with Josh Allen as their quarterback. It's also crazy because it feels like it was just yesterday that we were on the air and we were starting the first two hours of the show talking about Pete Carroll basically getting fired by the Seattle Seahawks and no longer being the head coach. And then right towards the end of the 4 p.m. Eastern Time Hour, Samter just was like we got breaking news we got breaking news and it was that Nick Saban was walking away as the head coach of Alabama. Now Chris Lowe did a feature today on Alabama's decision with Nick Saban and Nick Saban retiring in the replacement of Kalen DeBoer and it was with people on the record talking about this.

The two candidates for the job were Mike Norvell who's actually going to join us tomorrow as we're going to start our college football fix feature and then Kalen DeBoer and obviously DeBoer ended up getting the job. And if you recall there was a lot of talk about Dan Lanning and it gave a little insight in this article not only about that but the decision by Nick Saban to actually walk away and just to give you a little bit of the notes here and some excerpts. It was I thought the most interesting thing the thing that I learned the most about was Saban was really disappointed in the way that his players acted after losing the Rose Bowl. He said you got to win with class.

You got to 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. Now a lot of people just believe and I was one of them that Saban walked away because of NIL the transfer portal and all the changes in college football. He did acknowledge those did play a reason but Santa I found it very peculiar that Nick Saban and I know he said this wasn't the reason he walked away, but we know how careful Nick Saban is and how meticulous he is with his words. That was a compelling statement by Saban that he went out of his way to say this isn't the reason but then gave a reason and he was disappointed with his team's decorum and the way that his team acted after losing the Rose Bowl to the eventual national champions in the Michigan Wolverines.

I'm not buying it. There's no way that you're walking away from a legendary career because you're upset with guys and how they acted after an emotional game. These are kids. He's used to working with kids and kids especially college athletes show emotion whether it's responsible or not. They show emotion and there was nothing that came out. I mean unless something happened after that game that we don't know about which could be a case certainly could be something locker room. Maybe for sure, but like nothing came out from that game that indicates that like anything untoward happened other than maybe guys just throwing helmets.

But like if a coach quit every time a player threw a helmet in the coaches, every coach would be gone act would be leaving CBS Sports Radio to be the next head coach of Alabama. I threw two helmets at you this morning. I mean it just happened you throw a helmet at me.

Yeah, you don't remember you must have not had a lot of force behind that helmet because I don't remember it was very hard for me to get it all the way up that high. So I may have hit your knee. So so Sabin I I don't want to say I fully agree with you. I don't think it's the main reason but for him to say it in the article.

I just kind of raised an eyebrow and said it's so peculiar and it's so bizarre that it had to play some factor in it. And you know, Sabin is an old-school guy and I know that they didn't win a national championship with Bryce Young, but Bryce Young and Will Anderson. It was like when they lost that championship three years ago to Georgia. It was the most praise I've ever heard Sabin give and it came after a losing effort. So maybe it's because some of the players that replace those two guys, maybe they weren't up to par on the Sabin standard and remember there there were some bizarre things with Sabin this year. Like I don't think he honestly wanted to bench Jayla Milro when he did and I think he allowed for the first time in his career the outside pressure to get to him after that Texas game and look Milro was only benched not even for a full game. It was like half a game before they went back to him. So maybe it was a build-up of things and a few years ago, right? He's at the small business conference and he goes after Jimbo Fisher basically to implore the small business owners to spend more money on NIL and all that.

But here was the back end of this and he made it clear. I thought we could have had a hell of a team next year and then maybe 70 or 80 percent of the players you talk to. All they want to know is two things. What assurances do I have that I'm going to play because they're thinking about transferring and how much are you going to pay me? Save and recounted to ESPN our program here was always built on how much value can we create for your future and your personal development academic success in graduating and developing on your NFL career on the field.

So I'm saying to myself, maybe this doesn't work anymore that the goals and aspirations are just different and that is all about how much money can I make as a college player? I'm not saying that's bad. I'm not saying it's wrong. I'm just saying that's never been what we were all about and it's not why we had success through the years. So maybe the actions after the game were then followed up by these requests from maybe players that Saban said you don't have the right right now to where you perform to act this way. Like if it was coming from Jalen Milro, I'm not saying it was. Well, he was your star quarterback.

You know, he salvaged that season at the end of the season. So he gets a little bit more leeway. But if some of these actions are maybe coming from a second team or that Saban didn't think put in the work, maybe that was the driving factor why he went away.

So maybe it's a mixture. And I do think it's mainly rooted in the NIL and the transfer portal, but then the actions by the guys that were asking for money and asking for playing time and it was the backups that maybe he didn't like the way that they handled themselves after the game. And here's what I say all the time. I don't think coaches should complain about NIL and the transfer portal. These coaches make a ton of money. College football makes a ton of money. Players deserve to have a seat at that table. Now, it's the wild wild west with NIL.

It's the wild wild west with the transfer portal right now. And you never know if players are making the right decisions, but I do like that the players have the power to make these decisions. But when you are the king of the sport and we've seen it in basketball with Coach K, with Roy Williams and many others like Chris Peterson, right, he joined us right before the Washington National Championship game. And even he went out of his way and said, I have no desire to come back to this version of college football.

So when you know something one way for so many years and then it changes, it's someone not wanting to adapt to the times because it makes it harder. And Saban in his 70s, I don't fault him for one second, the most accomplished college football coach of all time and one of the most accomplished coaches period in whatever sport for him saying, I don't need to put up with this crap. I'll go live my remaining 25, 30 years of life being on TV, being on college game day, and not having to deal in what is supposed to be an amateur sport with it now being a professional sport.

I want to touch more on this. We'll do so on the other side. What are the expectations for Kalem DeBoer year one at Alabama? And also could Nick Saban ever make a return to coaching?

I don't think he could will ever make a return to college coaching, but maybe, just maybe, you could see him back on a sideline in one particular place. I'll give you that on the other side. Update time first. Here is the Ackman Rich Ackerman. Yep, or wherever you get your podcast.

You'll be glad you did. All right, he's at Gelb show CBS Sports Radio. It's time to ask the pros where you the listener gets asked us a question and it's brought to you by our friends at O'Reilly Auto Parts.

Simply tweet your question at CBS Sports Radio or at Zach Gelb using the hashtag ask the pros be listening later in the show when we might answer your question think O'Reilly Auto Parts for all your car care needs get guaranteed low prices and excellent customer service from the professional parts people at O'Reilly Auto Parts O'Reilly Auto Parts continuing the Alabama conversation. I will get to expectations for Kalem DeBoer in just a second. But after Nick Saban today to Chris Lowe pretty much made it clear that the changes in college football is why he walked away from Alabama. Is there a chance we ever see like a year from now Nick Saban say hmm. I miss coaching and return to football return to coaching football. I think there is a 0% chance that Nick Saban is ever going to return to be a college coach because there's not a program out there outside of Alabama that Nick Saban would consider.

I just don't think it's possible and also if you were annoyed with the NIL and the transfer portal then it's only going to grow more and more and more and I don't think you'll get any more clarity until they try to control the wild wild West and I don't think there is a solution to control the wild wild West anytime in the near-term future and it's not as if Nick Saban is 4550 walking away. He's 72 and he turned 73 in October, even though I will say Nick Saban looks very good for his age. You would not think Nick Saban is on the verge of turning 73 years old. Like he is kind of Pete Carroll like that.

He is a younger looking person in their early 70s, but I'll just toss this out there. You know how much of a competitor Nick Saban is Saban has done everything there is to accomplish in college football and then some the one thing that he did not do well at was being an NFL head coach. And I know there's always that great what if and it's one of the best what ifs in sports history. What if Nick Saban actually signed Drew Brees and they didn't listen to the doctors because not only would that impact Sean Payton with the Saints and who knows what Sean would have been it impacts that entire organization and maybe it impacts Alabama as well because if Drew Brees and I know Drew Brees only made the Pro Bowl once at the time when he was a free agent and he elected to sign with New Orleans, but if he goes to Miami, maybe they're able to win a Super Bowl and maybe maybe it doesn't work and Drew Brees doesn't go on to be one of the all-time greats and maybe that's the one guy that puts a dent into the Patriots dynasty with actually having a threat inside the AFC East. So there's like four or five or maybe even six what ifs from Drew Brees if he would have signed with the Miami Dolphins, but that was the two-year stretch where Nick Saban as a coach wasn't successful and he then quickly went back to Alabama after saying he's the coach of the Dolphins. He won't be the coach of Alabama blah blah blah.

Now he did go 9 and 7 and then he went 6 and 10. So it wasn't like he was a failure but for Saban's standards he failed and I wonder still to this day how much of an NFL itch is there and he could have left for the NFL any other time but when you were at this job at Alabama and you're an immortal, I don't think you'll walk away, especially when you were popping off championship after championship after championship and it was humming every single year you were there. Like Alabama loses one game and it's like, oh my God, the sky is falling. Has Nick Saban, has he lost his Magic Touch 8-5-5 2-1-2 for CBS 8-5-5 2-1-2 42-27 and in most years they always found a way to get the train back on the tracks. So the only way I see Saban coaching again would be he still wants to scratch that NFL itch.

Two reasons why though I don't think it will happen. I believe he's going to love this new gig with ESPN and he still gets his college football fix and I think he's going to be spectacular on television where he could really let his guard down and he doesn't have to worry about being careful with everything he said. And the other part too, Sam, through I don't think he'll ever return to the NFL, even if he wanted to.

Who's going to give him the opportunity? Like we are now in a league where the greatest comparison to Saban is Belichick and Bill Belichick just got passed over in this hiring cycle. I do think Bill will return again, but that's the other part. If you're thinking about giving Saban a job, why wouldn't you just give the job to Bill Belichick? Who what Nick Saban was to college football is what Bill Belichick is to the NFL and you also have now the current day of football where we talk about this all the time. Player coaching and being a player's coach is important, but you can't be a doormat and there's a lot of doormats in the NFL. Now, I'm not saying Nick Saban can't be a player's coach in the NFL. Like I think now knowing the second time he would adjust a little bit, but I don't believe that a lot of teams are going to take that risk, especially when Urban Meyer, not that long ago, legendary college coach, got to Jacksonville, had a desperate owner in Shaad Khan, and that didn't even last the full season. So even if Saban wanted to get back into it, and if he wanted to go to the NFL, I just think there's too many roadblocks now with time ticking on Nick Saban for him to ever make a return to coaching in the NFL.

You're probably right, but hearing his disdain for the whole NIL transfer portal conversation, it almost feels like in the past it felt like college was kind of maybe a little bit easier. Like you had these young kids you recruited. Coaching in the NFL now is easier. Yeah, and you had control over the whole program.

Now it feels like it's just a wild, wild west. Well, hold on, not to cut you off, but like Jeff Haffley, he was the head coach. I know BC is not this prestigious college football program, but it's a power five head coaching job, and he left to become the defensive coordinator of the Green Bay Packers.

Yeah, and we're going to hear from Chip Kelly later on in the show. When he was talking at his introductory press conference, I think there's a lot of these coaches who are head coaches, and they're just like, it's just the juice isn't worth the squeeze. No, you want to pay me eight million dollars, I'll deal with all the headaches. All right, you know what though, if you can make two million dollars as an assistant for the Buckeyes, versus eight million with all the headaches of NILs and job security and stress and all these different things, or you can go to the NFL and make a million and a half dollars as an offensive coordinator of DC. I mean, maybe at the end of the day, and Boston College, how much is a guy at Boston College really making two million a year? A million five?

Maybe more than that. I don't know what the half the contract was, but it's become a very lucrative market. Yeah, so I think at the end of the day right now, I could see Saban getting back into the NFL before getting into college, just because he has no interest in getting back into that Wild Wild West, and at least with the NFL, you know what you're getting yourself into.

On his latest extension at BC, Halfley was making around four million dollars per season. He ain't making that at the NFL, I can tell you that, but he'll still make good money, and it's going to be less individual stress on him, and then also if he wants to have aspirations of being an NFL head coach, well, when you're on the NFL sideline, makes it easier to do that as well. Now, real quickly, just because Alabama spring practice is already underway, the Nick Saban era is over, even though he's still a part of the university, but now the Kaelin DeBoer era starts. There's going to be a contingent of Alabama fans that will do the whole woe is me, you know, we miss Saban, anything short of a national championship is a disaster. For over a decade, Alabama fans had the expectation and the fair expectation of championship robust. You should not go into this season as a Crimson Tide fan saying this is a championship robust season. For Kaelin DeBoer, and I know it's a low standard, and I believe in Kaelin DeBoer, I love Kaelin DeBoer, I think his home run higher, I think he will win a national championship at Alabama one day, but in year one, taking over for the legendary Nick Saban, the GOAT of college football, one of the greatest coaches of all time, I think all you could expect is just making the college football playoff. And I know that doesn't have the same meaning as it did when there was only four teams because they expanded and they're ruining college football going to 12, but for DeBoer to have a chance to succeed at Alabama and to quiet down some of the Alabama fan, that's like, oh, this is this outsider, oh, we only want Nick Saban, we can't believe Nick Saban isn't coaching, you need to make the college football playoff. Bare minimum, you need to make the college football playoff.

Because if you don't, then the pushback and the outrage that you hear now is going to just get bigger and bigger and bigger and just grow exponentially, and then I don't know if you're going to be able to recover from that. This dude, though, has won everywhere he's gone in Kaelin DeBoer. He just took Washington to a national championship game.

Now with the resources at Alabama and the prime real estate of Alabama, there's no doubt in my mind that he could succeed, but in year one, you got to have fair realistic expectations and you can't ask what you asked out of Saban out of DeBoer in year one. Zach Yelp shows CBS Sports Radio, we'll take a time out when we come on back. Zion Williamson speaks on the dunk contest.

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