Nick Saban's daughter clears the air amid swirling rumors about potential coaching return
But his daughter is shutting them down.
On Thursday, Kristen Saban posted a video to her Instagram Story of her father's walkout during his time coaching at Alabama with the caption: 'Damn, I miss this.'
Some Crimson Tide fans took that as a sign of a possible return to coaching football. However, Kristen shut down the speculation with a quick response post.
'Apparently, some of y'all feel trolled by my last story of Nick's walkout… he's not coming back to coaching, hate to break it to you,' Kristen said in a follow-up story. 'You had your time.'
3 Kristen Saban shot down the coaching rumors involving her dad.
Kristen Saban/Instagram
The rumors began circulating in earnest on Monday after former Crimson Tide quarterback Greg McElroy said on 'McElroy and Cubelic in the Morning' that he was informed by a trustworthy source that Saban — who now works as a panelist on ESPN's 'College GameDay' — would return to coaching in the future.
ESPN's Paul Finebaum, who was also on the podcast, thought the rumors were bogus.
'Greg, you know Nick Saban better than I do, but I ran into somebody the other day who spends time with Saban in Florida — you can imagine where — and said that he is literally having the time of his life,' Finebaum said.
3 Alabama head coach Nick Saban looks toward the Texas A&M side in warmups before an NCAA college football game, Saturday, Oct. 8, 2022, in Tuscaloosa, Ala.
AP
The Saban speculation was brought up at this week's SEC media days, and Kirby Smart, the head coach at Georgia and former Alabama defensive coordinator, said he believes that Saban's coaching days are past him.
'I don't think Nick's coming back,' Smart told reporters at SEC's Media Day. 'I think he's too happy where he is. I think y'all were lacking buzz and they needed some buzz yesterday… I talk to Nick pretty regularly, and I don't see it. It's one of those things that if he wanted to, he'd be unbelievable at it.'
3 Alabama Crimson Tide head coach Nick Saban and Georgia Bulldogs head coach Kirby Smart shake hands after the 2022 CFP college football national championship game at Lucas Oil Stadium.
USA TODAY Sports
But one of Saban's former offensive coordinators, Lane Kiffin, said he wouldn't be surprised if the iconic coach decided to come back to the sideline — either in the pros or college.
'I kind of always thought that was going to happen. I kind of thought it would happen after one year,' Kiffin said. 'And I say that just because even seeing recent stuff with him and talking. To him on the phone — I have no knowledge that he's coming back. I don't think anybody does… I just think he'll be back, whether it's NFL or college.'
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