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Nick Saban opens up about what keeps him going, why he isn't thinking about retirement

ns_headshot_2024-clearby:Nick Schultz•10/20/22•

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Nick Saban turns 71 years old on Oct. 31. Halfway through his 49th year as a football coach, including his 15th at Alabama, questions about retirement seem unavoidable — even after the crowd at Baumhower’s Victory Grille sang “Happy Birthday” to him Thursday night.

But one thing’s for sure. The week-to-week grind doesn’t get old, and he’s showing no signs of slowing down.

Saban opened up about what keeps him going as he and the Crimson Tide get ready to take on Mississippi State this week. As much has he loves coaching in the game, the preparation is his favorite part of the week. If he retires, that weekly grind would go away. That’s why he reiterated he doesn’t know what he’d do if he retired.

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“I get asked that a lot, especially by recruits and their families,” Saban said during “Hey Coach and the Nick Saban Show” on Thursday. “But I feel the same way. I get concerned, and you’ve heard me say this before, ‘What are you going to do if you do?’ You enjoy what you’re doing now, you enjoy the grind. People always ask me, ‘How [do] you keep going?’ I kind of enjoy the grind of the week and preparing for the game, getting ready for the game, setting up the game plan, doing all that just as much as the game itself.

“I can’t answer that. I really can’t. You know, I certainly would never want to ride the program down if I didn’t feel like I was doing a good job or whatever.”

Every week, the Crimson Tide Radio Network brings a “media guest” to Saban’s radio show. This week, local meteorologist James Spann joined the program. That led to a fun interaction with Saban, who joked about a potential plan if the Crimson Tide don’t get back to their winning ways.

“If we don’t start playing better, I was going to see if you had any openings over at your place if you needed an assistant,” Saban jokingly told Spann. “I have watched the Weather Channel, so I feel like I’m an expert after all these years.”