Former Alabama coach Nick Saban, who earned approximately $11 million in his final season leading the Crimson Tide, appeared before a Senate panel Tuesday morning to discuss the state of athletes’ earning power in college sports.
However, one quote in particular stood out in the midst of his kvetching.
Saban told lawmakers that his wife, Terry Saban, suggested to him before his retirement that modern college football players only care about money.
“Why are we doing this?” the coach recalled Terry telling him, per Ross Dellenger of Yahoo Sports.
Saban retired from Alabama on Jan. 10, nine days after the Crimson Tide lost 27-20 to Michigan in the Rose Bowl. Since then, the legendary coach has cited a range of factors from age to player empowerment as reasons for his departure.
Alabama went 12-2 in Saban’s final season, losing only to the Wolverines and another College Football Playoff qualifier in Texas.
Saban appeared at the Senate hearing Tuesday alongside Crimson Tide athletic director Greg Byrne, ACC commissioner Jim Phillips, TCU basketball player Haley Cavinder, ex-Miami basketball player Hanna Cavinder, and others.
