Greg Byrne releases statement on coaching search following Nick Saban retirement

Alabama head football coach Nick Saban stunned the college football world on Wednesday evening, when he officially decided to call it quits. He’s one of the greatest college football coaches the game will ever see. And on Wednesday evening, the school finally made it official when they released an in-depth statement on Saban’s retirement. Alabama athletic director Greg Byrne issued a statement on the team’s current search for a new head football coach in Tuscaloosa.

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— Greg Byrne (@Greg_Byrne) January 11, 2024

“As with any coaching search, our goal is to be thorough, but expedient. Our ideal candidate will be strong in recruiting and relationship building, player development, excel in Xs and Os and have the overall ability to lead this historic program. There will be plenty of rumors out there during this process. Next time I talk publicly will be to announce our new coach. If you don’t hear it from me, don’t believe it,” Byrne said on Wednesday.

Nick Saban’s coaching resume — and tree — are among the all-time best

Saban’s storied coaching career started in 1973 when he was a graduate assistant at his alma mater, Kent State. From there, he had assistant coaching stints at Syracuse, West Virginia, Ohio State, Navy and Michigan State before he got his first head coaching opportunity at Toledo in 1990.

After just one season, though, Saban headed to the NFL with the Cleveland Browns under the legendary Bill Belichick. He worked as Belichick’s defensive coordinator from 1991-94 before becoming a head coach once again at Michigan State from 1995-99, amassing a 34-24-1 record before he took over at LSU in 2000 — where he won a national title three years later.

All told, Saban had a 292-72-1 record as a college football head coach, including a 201-29 mark in Tuscaloosa. He also had a stint with the Miami Dolphins from 2005-06 where he went 15-17 before taking over at Alabama.

Even beyond his personal success, Saban also produced one of the best coaching trees ever. Kirby Smart is among the most notable names, winning two national championships at Georgia in 2021 and 2022 — beating Saban to win the first one. Smart is just one of the current head coaches to learn from Saban, though, as he helped resurrect some careers as well.

Texas’ Steve Sarkisian, Ole Miss’ Lane Kiffin and Maryland’s Mike Locksley all worked under Saban as offensive coordinator before getting their respective head coach opportunities. Other high-profile current head coaches who worked under Saban include Florida’s Billy Napier, Oregon’s Dan Lanning and Miami’s Mario Cristobal.