Is Nick Saban close to retiring? Alabama football players don't think so
LOS ANGELES — Alabama football defensive lineman Justin Eboigbe can still remember other teams telling him during recruiting that Nick Saban was going to walk away.
Eboigbe joined the Crimson Tide in 2019.
And Saban, 72, is still coaching Alabama in 2023. He's set to lead the Crimson Tide in the Rose Bowl on Monday (4 p.m. CT, ESPN) in the semifinals of the College Football Playoff.
The question has always lingered: When will Saban retire? It hasn't happened yet, and the players haven't gotten any indication it will happen soon.
Include Eboigbe in that mix. He said no when asked if he had seen anything in Saban this year that indicates he's close to walking away. Saban is in his 17th season coaching the Crimson Tide, having won six national championships at Alabama with seven total in his career.
"He always says, 'why would I walk away, and do what?'" Eboigbe said. "First day I came in he still has the same fire and passion that he does now."
Cornerback Kool-Aid McKinstry agreed with Eboigbe.
"I don't see no thoughts of just seeing him in general that this may be it for him," McKinstry said. "This is new to me now. It never crossed my mind before."
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Defensive coordinator Kevin Steele was asked a similar question, and he said that is always going to be out there.
"I will tell you this: Nobody knows that answer except him," Steele said.
Then a reporter asked Steele what Saban would do all day otherwise.
Said Steele: "That's a good question." .
Saban has spoken on the topic multiple times, including in September during his weekly appearance on the Pat McAfee show.
"It's kind of laughable," Saban said of retirement talk to McAfee. "I would ask you, when's the first time you heard that I was going to retire? That started about five years ago. I think that might create some advantages for people or whatever it might be. I love what I'm doing. I'm focused on the challenge. I've always said I don't want to ride the program down. I don't want to do this if I can't do it anymore, but I feel great right now. I love it. We got lots of challenges this season. I'm looking forward to it and we're all in."
Nick Kelly is the Alabama beat writer for The Tuscaloosa News, part of the USA TODAY Network, and he covers Alabama football and men's basketball. Reach him at nkelly@gannett.com or follow him @_NickKelly on X, the social media app formerly known as Twitter.
This article originally appeared on The Tuscaloosa News: Nick Saban retirement: Players haven't gotten indication it's close
