Deion Sanders Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

Stephen A. Smith: Deion Sanders should replace Nick Saban at Alabama

By Matthew Neschis | Last updated Jan 12, 2024 1:43 PM ET

As Alabama looks to fill the massive coaching void left in the wake of Nick Saban's shocking retirement, ESPN's Stephen A. Smith argued the Crimson Tide should turn to another legend in college football.

While Clemson's Dabo Swinney, Mississippi's Lane Kiffin and Washington's Kalen DeBoer have been floated as possible replacements, Smith offered a different name that's hardly received any buzz: Deion Sanders.

"The reason why I feel that way is because I’m thinking about today’s generation of players, catching the pulse of the players," Smith said on ESPN's "First Take." "I’m thinking about NIL. I’m thinking about the transfer portal, which obviously were things that Nick Saban had some degree of a problem with.

"And then I’m thinking about Deion Sanders. He’s got [a] top-ranked transfer class right now. His second year that he’s pulled that off. So when you look at it from that perspective, the ability to recruit talent, I think if you’re going to replace the greatness of a Nick Saban, it starts and ends, first and foremost, with being able to recruit. And you can’t tell me, that for a big time program like Alabama, somebody like Prime Time goes there, that you’re not going to have athletes that will not follow."

.@stephenasmith wants to see Deion Sanders replace Nick Saban at Alabama pic.twitter.com/H372NQ9gyd
— First Take (@FirstTake) January 12, 2024

Saban vehemently rejected the idea that he retired due to the rapidly changing landscape of college football, specifically the emerging importance of name, image and likeness deals and the transfer portal.

He did, however, voice his displeasure with the recent developments.

"I think everybody is frustrated about it," Saban said, per ESPN. "We had an SEC conference call, 14 coaches on there [Wednesday], and there's not one guy you can talk to who really understands what's happening in college football and thinks that it's not an issue."

Sanders, meanwhile, has thrived in this new era of college football as the coach of Colorado. After reeling in the nation's top-ranked class of transfer recruits for 2023, the 56-year-old secured 20 new commits in a 2024 transfer class that ranks second and third best, per Rivals.com and 247Sports.

Despite believing that Sanders would be a great fit for Alabama's vacant coaching job, Smith acknowledged that it's highly unlikely. The coach and former NFL star is just getting started with his rebuild of the Buffaloes and seems more than happy in Colorado.

But as we've seen from the recent unexpected turnover of coaching greats both in the NFL and college football, crazier things have happened.

Matthew Neschis

Matthew is a New York City-based sports journalist and long-suffering Mets, Jets and Knicks fan. He has seen his fair share of butt fumbles, wild boar attacks, draft busts and gridiron ghost sightings. You can find him on Twitter at @MNeschis

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