Ex-Alabama star believes Nick Saban will return to coaching

Nick Saban stunned the college football world when he stepped down as the head coach at Alabama two years ago, but fans are suddenly buzzing about the idea of the seven-time national champion making a return.

Former Alabama quarterback Greg McElroy shared a major rumor about Saban during the latest episode of the “McElroy and Cubelic in the Morning” podcast, which was released on Monday. McElroy said he recently spoke with a “very-much-in-the-know person” who is convinced Saban will return to coaching. McElroy said the person, whom he described as “notable,” was “adamant” that Saban will be back on the sideline.

“This is a little bit out of left field, but the question was asked of me … a very much in the know person that I have a lot of respect for and have spent a lot of time around and just really, really admire, they seem to think Nick Saban’s not done coaching,” McElroy said, as transcribed by Nick Schultz of On3. “I had a similar reaction. He’s pretty adamant that he thinks Nick Saban will be coaching again. … Look, if it wasn’t someone notable, I’d never say a word.”

McElroy was speaking with fellow ESPN analyst Paul Finebaum, who was a guest on the show, at the time. Finebaum gave a stern “no” when asked if he believes there is a chance of Saban coaching again.

“Greg, you know Nick Saban better than I do, but I ran into somebody the other day who spends time with Saban in Florida — you can imagine where — and said that he is literally having the time of his life,” Finebaum said. “And why wouldn’t he? I’m much closer to Nick Saban’s age than you are and I can assure you, when you have everything you want and you start playing golf at the best golf clubs in America and you start making friends who belong to even better golf clubs and you make a lot of money for doing very little work on TV, the interest in doing what he walked away from is not very high.”

Saban seems to be enjoying his gig with ESPN’s “College GameDay.” The 73-year-old is widely considered to be the greatest college football coach of all time and has won titles with multiple schools. It is hard to imagine an opportunity that would entice him to return to an incredibly demanding job at this point in his life and career.

Saban has found a way to remain involved in college football and remains a very influential voice. If he wanted to continue coaching, he probably would have never left Alabama in the first place. It is unlikely that he will have a change of heart.