Nick Saban reveals biggest change for him since leaving coaching, joining ESPN

Nick Saban is once again preparing for a college football season, but his preparation is much different this year than in years past. Instead of having the stress of making sure his team is ready for the season to begin, he is now watching film so that he will be ready to talk about programs from around the country each week on ESPN College GameDay.

Saban joined The Pat McAfee Show on Friday from Dublin, Ireland and discussed how his job is different as a TV analyst compared to a coach.

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“Well, you know, it’s very different,” Nick Saban said. “It’s great to have the opportunity to see games, to be a part of football, to prepare for games. But this is the moment of truth for every college team.

“When you play your first game you’re always worried about, ‘How’s the quarterback going to play? How’s the defense going to play? What are our issues? What are our problems? What do we need to fix?’ And I don’t have to worry about that right now.”

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The former Alabama coach also admitted that it’s a little less stressful for him now as opposed to when he was running a program. Yes, he still has to be prepared, but he doesn’t have to spend nearly as many hours grinding and the pressure isn’t as high.

“I can analyze it, but I don’t have to worry about it,” Nick Saban said. “But it is something that I respect for all the coaches and all the teams out there that are concerned about how’s their team going to play in the first game and what do they have to improve throughout the season.”

Nick Saban reveals advice for Kalen DeBoer as Alabama head coach

While Nick Saban is no longer the head coach at Alabama, he is still following the program closely.

Ahead of the 2024 college football season, he shared his advice for the team’s new head coach, Kalen DeBoer.

Saban explained on The Triple Option that the pressure is mostly going to be internal. At the same time, outside noise is real and something that needs to be managed by DeBoer, particularly as the team deals with social media.

“The biggest thing, Urban [Meyer] coached at Ohio State, it’s no different there,” Nick Saban said. “When you coach at these programs that have high expectations, which is what we all want — there’s nothing wrong with that — but I think the number one thing you’ve got to do is be who you are. Focus on the things that are in front of you and don’t get impacted by external factors.”