Paul Finebaum explains why Alabama will be an 'impossible job'

The retirement of Nick Saban is the end of a dynasty in Tuscaloosa and an era in college football. Now, in the opinion of Paul Finebaum, he is saying a prayer for the man that has to follow in those impossible footsteps at Alabama.

Finebaum addressed the Crimson Tide’s opening during an appearance on the SEC Network after the announcement that Saban had called it a career. To him, taking over that job is going to nearly be unthinkable for anyone for more reasons than one. However, having to replace a figure, icon, and success like Saban as one of the best to ever do it in sports, on top of being the best in his sport, is at the top of that list.

“I’ll try not to be a cliché machine here but it’s nearly an impossible job,” said Finebaum. “There are just a handful of people like him in the history of sports. I had a front row seat to watching a number of coaches try to replace Paul Bryant. Nobody could replace John Wooden at UCLA. And I really think that Saban and Wooden on are on a similar level. I know Mike Krzyzewski is in that conversation.”

“It’s not about the wins and losses, although, ultimately, that’s what is the determining factor. It’s just the fact that everything is different,” Finebaum added. “You’re so used to seeing the G.O.A.T.. You’re so used to everything around him, the aura.”

There’s just no way to follow the path that Saban built over his near two decades in Tuscaloosa. You can just go down his resumé there since 2007 and there are just achievements upon successes that almost no one will be able to duplicate.

That just starts, bare minimum, as his persona as the definition of winning. Of his 297 wins within his 0.806 winning percentage, 206 of those have come while at Alabama for a winning percentage at an unbelievable rate of 0.877.

That includes six SEC Championships and six national championships. He was consistent in his title success too with three BCS Championships and three in the College Football Playoff. That’s not even including his extra title that he had while at LSU in 2003.

After that, you can go down to his development of players into picks for the NFL while also achieving so much off the field as well.

Again, anyone who gets this opportunity may barely know where to start once his boots hit the ground. Still, no matter what they do first, it may never matter in the end considering the shadow in which they’ll be working under.

“Whoever the next guy is? He’ll be good. He won’t be Nick Saban,” said Finebaum.