This is a cool opportunity for Mark Ingram II. The New Orleans Saints running back is a legend among the star-studded alumni of the Alabama Crimson Tide, but he’ll play a big role in Alabama’s upcoming Sugar Bowl matchup with Kansas State at the Caesars Superdome on Saturday (kickoff is scheduled for 11 a.m. CT), broadcast on ESPN.
Ingram has been tabbed as the Alabama radio broadcast’s sideline reporter, per AL.com’s Michael Casagrande. He’ll be responsible for working the field during the game and interviewing Alabama head coach Nick Saban at halftime. A number of former players including Cory Reamer and Christian Miller have cycled through the role this season, so it isn’t unusual for Ingram to step in like this.
And he’s interviewed Saban before; Ingram co-hosts the Truss Levelz Podcast with his Saints teammate Cameron Jordan during the offseason, where they’ve spoken with a variety of big names from around the NFL and college football landscape, including Saban and former Saints quarterback Drew Brees. Ingram and Saban have a strong relationship owing to his history at Alabama — Ingram helped lead the Crimson Tide to their 2010 BCS National Championship win, becoming the first player in school history to win the Heisman Trophy along the way.
But the focus will be on the game between Alabama and Kansas State, and Ingram knows that. Still, this is big for his career after football. Ingram hasn’t indicated that retirement is on his mind, but he’ll be a free agent in the spring and he owns almost every Saints rushing record in the team history books. It wouldn’t be a shock at all to see him bow out on his own terms and begin working in the media like many of his former Saints teammates. Roman Harper, Jonathan Vilma, and Ben Watson have all found success on the other side of the microphone. Maybe Ingram joins them. If you’re in the area, you can catch Ingram and the Alabama radio coverage team on Tide 100.9 FM and their local affiliates.
