Nick Saban not ruling out social media, focused on player development

Alabama football coach Nick Saban has been clear throughout his career that he has no interest in social media, but the growing online base of recruits and new opportunities to earn NIL deals give him pause.

The 69-year-old, seven-time national champion coach appears to have loosened his stance on Twitter, and went as far as to crack the door open on his chances of jumping online this week.

Watch Coach Saban's Fall Camp Press Conference https://t.co/RA9nsyFn7n

— Alabama Athletics (@UA_Athletics) August 11, 2021

Commitment to change

“I’ve tried to focus on two things here: How do we develop out players? And how do we bring players to our team?” Saban said in a Wednesday press conference. “Whether it’s how we evaluate them or how we develop relationships to be able to recruit them here. And so far, that’s worked ok. If any of you out there can convince me that me having a Twitter account’s going to help us do better in either of those things, then I might consider it. Otherwise, I don’t know why I’d consider doing it.”

Saban’s open invitation to pitch the merits of social media reflects his commitment to change which has kept him on top over the past decade. When offenses became more spread out, Saban hired a pair of former west-coast coaches in Lane Kiffin and Steve Sarkisian to overhaul the Alabama offense.

Despite turning 70 this season, Saban has stayed on the forefront of college recruiting, bringing in the No. 1 class in nine of the past 11 seasons.

A new era in college football

The introduction of NIL to the college landscape has once again changed the landscape of college recruiting. With the starting quarterback job at Alabama reportedly worth close to a million dollars in endorsements, there is a new wrinkle to player recruitment.

“If I thought it would enhance players chances to improve their brand, by something that I did, I would be all for it,” Saban said.

An increase in brand exposure from Saban, who already holds endorsement deals of his own with Coca-Cola, Aflac and others, could boost player value even more. While he is unlikely to match the online flair of his former offensive coordinator down the road at Ole Miss, he would certainly draw a large following on day one.

As the college football world debates about the tone of a Nick Saban Twitter account, the seven-time national championship winning coach looks for an eighth.

Alabama kicks off the season against Miami on Sept. 4 in Atlanta. The Crimson Tide plays its first home game the following week against Mercer.

Image courtesy of Alika Jenner/Getty Images