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The Alabama Crimson Tide have reached an agreement to keep Nick Saban as their head coach through 2029. Saban has an overall record of 152-23 as the head coach of the University of Alabama's football team.
Saban will see his base salary increase to $8.425 million for the current contract year. The amount will continue to increase annually by $800,000 for 2022, 2023, 2024, and 2025.
If Nick Saban fulfills his contract, which runs until 2029, it will see Saban fulfill coaching duties at 77. Alabama has consistently scaled new heights since Saban took over. There are three primary reasons why the Crimson Tide locked Nick Saban into an extension. Let's take a look.
Why did Alabama sign Nick Saban to an extension?
Nick Saban built a dynasty with the Crimson Tide, making Alabama the favorite to make appearances in the national championship each year. They have one of the top recruiting classes in the country year in and year out. Here are three reasons why Alabama signed Nick Saban to an extension through 2029.
#1 Nick Saban has won six national championships at Alabama
Alabama has been a powerhouse of a program since Nick Saban became their head coach. Saban has a system that he instills in his players. During a press conference before the national title game, Miller Forristall explained the process that Nick Saban brings to the table.
"Everybody hears about the process, and really simple terms, it's about the ability to be excellent in everything you do one day at a time."
The Alabama tight end explained what makes Nick Saban a level above the other coaches in the NCAA.
"He attacks all the little things with the same intensity and ferocity that he attacks the big things. He is better at the little things than anybody else. Thus he's better at the big things."
Alabama Crimson Tide players buy into Saban's process because it has been proven successful time and again. Nick Saban has won seven national championships, while his other national title was with the LSU Tigers. Miller Forristall believes that "the process" is why Nick Saban has had a ton of success as a college head coach.
#3 Alabama has had the top recruiting class in the nation eight out of the last ten years
Alabama has dominated the college football recruiting scene with Nick Saban at the helm. Saban has an interesting way of sealing the deal and landing recruits. Former recruits of Nick Saban explained what it was like sitting down with him, and what swayed them Alabama's way.
"We will win championships here. You see these rings? We'll get more of those. And I will prepare you for the NFL. We've had more NFL draft picks in the last five years than anyone. Anyone. The best come here. You'll have to earn your way onto the field as well as your right to stay on it. We have a process here. It's an everyday thing. We focus on what is directly in front of us, not results. We want you, but know that we will win with or without you."
Former Alabama recruit Josh Chapman also explained how the recruiting visit with Nick Saban went way back when. Chapman had his sights set on playing football at Auburn before he met with Nick Saban. The former Alabama recruit was one of Saban's first signings. Josh Chapman said this about his visit with Nick Saban:
"I was set to go to Auburn, and then I sat in Coach Saban's office, and that changed everything for me. You just feel he's got a plan for you and that he's the guy who will get you to the NFL. And he's got a presence like no one I've ever met."
Nick Saban's recruiting approach is straightforward, and he doesn't bend the rules for any player. Saban knows that for every five-star recruit, more four-star recruits will work twice as hard.
#3 Nick Saban is a players' coach
Nick Saban has an overall head coaching record of 256-65-1 and is currently ranked sixth on the all-time win list for college coaches. He is 153 wins behind Joe Paterno, the former Penn State head coach. Paterno and Saban have a number of similarities when it comes to being a college head coach.
Penn State players enjoyed playing for Paterno, and when individuals talk about Penn State football, Joe Paterno is the first name on their lips, in the same way that Alabama players enjoy playing for Nick Saban. Former Penn State and Alabama players have often commented on why they enjoyed playing for Joe Paterno and Nick Saban.
Former Penn State football player Graham Zug played for Joe Paterno and had this to say about the legendary head coach and his recruiting visit:
"We were told he did that because everyone there was on the same level. There's no frontrunners, that's why he did it. If he would have seen negativity from them or me, then he would know we weren't the right people for Penn State. Right then, I know I was in the right place and would be taken care of."
Former Alabama running back Bo Scarbrough praised Nick Saban during an interview at the Campus Lore Championship Moments series. During the interview, Scarbrough was asked what it was like playing for the greatest college football coach of all time.
"With coach Saban, you have to know him to know what type of guy he is. But I will say that he is a players' coach. I think that people always looked at coach Saban as probably mean, always being serious or this uptight guy. Because when we stepped on the field, it was all business, and we came there to take care of business."
Bo Scarbrough also talked about Nick Saban's personality because no one got to see the fun side of Saban.
"But coach Saban joked around a lot. A lot of players like him. You can walk into his office anytime that you want to. You can talk to him about anything, and I have to say that coach Saban is a players' coach. I believe that's why we win so much is because the players like him, and players are going to play hard for a coach they like."
As long as Nick Saban remains a players' coach, Alabama will remain one of the top programs in college football.
