Nick Saban Says He Retired Because Coaching This Season ‘Took More Out of Me Than Usual,’ Age Was an ‘Issue’ | Video

Nick Saban explained that his decision to leave college football came at a time when he felt he could no longer perform his job at a level that met his “high” standards. The 72-year-old now-former University of Alabama coach said this last season was “grueling” for him, particularly as a man at his age.

Saban made his official retirement announcement on Wednesday. During a sit-down with ESPN’s Reese Davis on Thursday during the network’s sports news program “SportsCenter,” the football coach of nearly 30 years opened up about the reason for his exit, mentioning there’s never a “good” time to leave as a coach.

“I don’t think there’s any good time, especially when you’re a coach. Because once you’re a coach, you think you’re going to be a coach forever,” Saban said. “But I actually thought that in hiring coaches, recruiting players, that my age started to become a little bit of an issue. People wanted assurances that I would be here for three years, five years, whatever, and that got harder and harder for me to be honest about. And to be honest, this last season was grueling. It was a real grind for us to come from where we started to where we got to.”

Saban continued, clearing up the speculations that he was undergoing a health-related issue.

“Took a little more out of me than usual, and when people mention the health issue, it was really just the grind of, ‘Can you do this the way you want to do it? Can you do it the way you’ve always done it and be able to sustain and do it for the entire season,” Saban said. “And if I couldn’t make a commitment to do that in the future the way I think I have to do it, I thought maybe this was the right time based on those two sets of circumstances. Like I said, there’s never a good time, but I thought maybe this was the right time.”

He went on to say that his wife Terry Saban is also doing well, and that his departure is merely rooted in him not being as young as he used to be.

“There’s no illness. Miss Terry’s fine and I’m fine, but it was the, ‘Can you sustain the season?’ From just a mental grind standpoint,” Saban continued. “When I was young, I could work til two in the morning, get up a six and be there the next day and be full of energy and go for it, but when you get a little older, that gets tougher and I’m sure a lot of people can relate to that.”

When Reese asked Saban to share specifics on what made the season more stressful than those prior, Saban said he was tasked with juggling two different roles for his team.

“I think that my role was a little different this year. I was more involved with defense — had to be more involved with the defense. That took a little more time, put a little more stress on me, made me feel like maybe I wasn’t doing as good a job as I needed to in other parts of our team,” Saban continued. “And I just have a high standard for how I do things, and if I can’t — if I don’t feel like I’m living up to that standard I’m really disappointed. I wasn’t disappointed in the season, I wasn’t disappointed in the team, I wasn’t disappointed in the players. In fact, this team was fun to coach. They came a long way, and I was really proud of the way everybody bought in and did what they did to have the success that we had. But, at the same time, I felt like I could have done a better job if I was younger.”

Saban is one of the most beloved coaches in college football, and is well-known for his straightforward, sharp remarks in sideline interviews. While he’ll be moving from off the field, Saban could pivot into sports broadcasting, as his exit has reportedly caught the attention of ESPN “College GameDay” producers who see Saban as the “perfect” addition to the series.

The seven-time national champion joins the likes of his fellow football coaches Bill Belichick of the New England Patriots and Pete Carroll of the Seattle Seahawks, who also announced major developments in their positions. Belichick and the Patriots have amicably agreed to part ways and he is likely now the top head coaching candidate on the market. Carroll has transitioned from head coach and could move to its front office, but in the meantime, he will remain with the team in an advisory role.

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