Nick Saban Retirement Update: Alabama Winning National Championship Next Month May Provide Perfect Exit Strategy

Still steaming from Alabama sneaking into the four-team College Football Playoff on Sunday, soaring from No. 8 to No. 4 and leaving cleat marks on Florida State in the process?

Well, there is hope for the anti-Alabama movement and all you newbie Florida State fans, many of whom are really just Alabama haters.

Forget your faulty logic and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis' demented idea for a potential frivolous lawsuit against the College Football Playoff selection committee. He actually budgeted $1 million toward a possible lawsuit with very irresponsible spending.

The governor must not realize that much of his in-state constituency was delighted with FSU not making it. Particularly fans of the Miami Hurricanes, Central Florida and the Florida Gators. The latter's fan base - and potential voters for his presidential campaign - significantly outweigh that of Florida State's.

And DeSantis did not do his due diligence.

Ron DeSantis Missed Fine Print Concerning Florida State

The following would beat any lawsuit. The committee has long had written down in its protocol a statement that allows it to exclude a team from the playoff due to "the unavailability of key players who may have affected a team's performance during the season or likely will affect its postseason performance."

That would be Florida State quarterback Jordan Travis, who broke his leg and was lost for the season against North Alabama and missed the Seminoles' next two games against Florida and Louisville. Backup Tate Rodemaker's performance in a 24-15 win over Florida (5-7) was not close to that of Travis during the season. Nor was No. 3 quarterback Brock Glenn's in a 16-6 win over No. 12 Louisville on Saturday. Florida State is not the same team without Travis, and thus did not make the playoffs.

With Travis, Florida State is in. And Alabama is out.

College Football Playoff National Championship Game Jan. 8

But with Travis out, and Alabama beating the No. 1 team in the nation and previously 12-0 Georgia on Saturday night, Alabama (12-1) clearly deserved to be in at No. 4. Its only loss was in September to Texas, which finished No. 3 at 12-1 to No. 2 Washington (13-0) and No. 1 Michigan (13-0). And Alabama has its quarterback, Jalen Milroe, healthy and improving steadily into a very good one.

Nick Saban celebrates 27-24 win over No. 1 Georgia Saturday night in the SEC Championship Game in Atlanta. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)

Oh, and this other fantasy about the SEC colluding with the playoff selection committee and ESPN to make sure Alabama got in the four-team playoff over FSU? It is even more ridiculous than DeSantis' and Florida Senator Rick Scott's self-serving arguments for the Seminoles. Florida State's games are on ESPN, too. Hello! News flash. The ACC has a long term, lucrative deal with ESPN, just like the SEC does.

But don't fret, all you newbie Florida State fans and sympathizers, who are truly just Alabama haters. That is understandable since Alabama has only twice not made the College Football Playoff since it started in the 2014-15 season. And Alabama coach Nick Saban has won six national championships at Alabama since 2009 with one at LSU in the 2003 season for a college football record seven.

If Saban wins his eighth national title on Jan. 8 in Houston at age 72, the chances of him announcing his retirement soon after will soar. A win over No. 1 Michigan on Jan. 1 (5 p.m., ESPN), and Alabama will play on Jan. 8 in Houston against the winner of the other New Year's Day semifinal between No. 3 Texas and No. 2 Washington (8 p.m., ESPN).

Nick Saban May Announce Retirement If Alabama Wins Title

It could happen, and then it could happen.

We told you last September of a close friend of Saban saying he thought Saban may retire after this season or next.

What better way for Nick Saban to go out, but with an eighth national championship? And what a trifecta of victories he could wrap on! He would leave with wins over No. 1 and undefeated Georgia, which was 29-0 after winning national titles in 2021 and '22. That win included Saban vanquishing former pupil head coach Kirby Smart, who beat Saban in the national title game on Jan. 10, 2022.

That would be followed by a second straight win over the No. 1 team (Michigan) as an underdog. Then Saban could avenge one more loss to a former pupil in Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian, who like Smart coached under Saban at Alabama.

But hold the cellular phone.

Alabama Is 2 Wins Away From National Championship

Saban's last game would not be on Jan. 8. He could instead announce on about Friday, Jan. 12 that the 2024 season will be his last. That way he can enjoy a Kareem Abdul-Jabbar-like farewell tour through the first year of the new SEC with Texas and Oklahoma and undoubtedly make it to the postseason in the first season of the 12-team playoff.

Nick Saban talks to Alabama quarterback Jalen Milroe early this season. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

And with Milroe back, hell, he might win it again for No. 9.

Imagine the recruiting advantage for a parachuting Nick Saban. With the second national signing day on Feb. 7, 2024, Saban and his staff would have plenty of time to traverse the country saying:

"Come be a part of Nick Saban's Final Team."

I can see billboards.

And Alabama could use that again for the second window of the NCAA Transfer Portal from April 16-13.

"Transfer to History: Join Nick Saban's Final Team."

Nick Saban Could Interview Candidates To Be His Successor

Alabama athletic director Greg Byrne and company, meanwhile, would have a year to find Saban's replacement. And Saban could help.

Could you imagine Saban interviewing prospective head coaches to replace him? If they can handle that, they can handle the stress of a game against Auburn or LSU going down to the wire.

While all this is going on, Saban could be considering offers from the various networks flocking around him to be an analyst in the 2025 season.

It could happen.

The sooner Nick Saban wins another national championship, the sooner he calls it a career and exits in a crimson blaze of glory.

And if after a year, he's climbing the walls and tired of playing golf, there have been older NFL head coaches.