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Colin Cowherd Says Nick Saban Was ‘Afraid’ of One College Football Powerhouse

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Brendan Howe | Last updated Jul 18, 2025 7:37 PM ET

Steve Sarkisian and the Texas Longhorns waited no time to kick in the SEC’s door. Before joining the conference last season, Matthew McConaughey’s favorite team entered Tuscaloosa and defeated Nick Saban’s Alabama Crimson Tide.

Quinn Ewers and his teammates snapped Saban’s 21-game home winning streak that night. Fox Sports’ Colin Cowherd believes the legendary college football coach saw the writing on the wall and decided to head to television instead.

“Remember Nick Saban started complaining about — he was very vague — but he started complaining about NIL?” Cowherd said recently. “He saw it coming. Alabama’s money, Alabama’s economy is not Texas’ economy. … There’s a lot more money in Texas than ‘Bama and Nick Saban saw it and got out.

“Nick Saban was afraid of what he saw at Texas.”

For good reason. The Longhorns reached the SEC Championship game last season, narrowly bowing to Kirby Smart and the Georgia Bulldogs. For the second season in a row, Texas barged into the College Football Playoff semifinal.

Almost certainly in part because of the financial backing Texas that Cowherd alluded to, the Longhorns sport 247Sports’ No. 6 recruiting haul in the Class of 2026. That group includes three five-stars — quarterback Dia Bell, linebacker Tyler Atkinson and athlete Jeremaine Bishop.

“Texas is the most well-funded program right now in the country. They’ve got more money than anybody,” Cowherd declared before reminding listeners that he predicted when the Longhorns were approved to join the SEC that they would flip the conference on its head.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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