Seven-time national-championship winner Nick Saban retired on Wednesday, ending one of the most impressive runs in college football history. The 72-year-old spent the last 17 seasons at Alabama, winning six national titles to match legendary Crimson Tide coach Paul "Bear" Bryant. Saban is the only coach to win national championships across three decades and is the only coach since the inception of the AP Top 25 (1936) to win national titles with two separate FBS programs. Alabama is now tasked with replacing Saban.
According to our insiders, the search may only last a few days. Oregon head coach Dan Lanning already announced that he is out of the running and staying with the Ducks, but there are still some big names in the mix for the job. Who will Alabama athletic director Greg Byrne consider for the vacancy and who are some of the names in the Alabama coaching rumor mill that you can rule out? If you love the Crimson Tide, or just want to know if your coach is the next target, be sure to see what the proven team of insiders are saying at Bama247, the 247Sports site that covers Alabama.
The team of insiders at Bama247 are providing on-the-ground updates on every development in the football coaching search, including insights from Matt Zenitz, John Talty and Mike Rodak - who have more than 25 years experience covering the Crimson Tide. The trio has deep-rooted ties inside and around the Alabama community, and Talty wrote The Leadership Secrets of Nick Saban, a Wall Street Journal and Publishers Weekly bestseller. And right now, Bama247 is offering 60% off annual subscriptions*, so now is the time to sign up.
The team at Bama247 already has a list out of potential candidates and there are some surprising names on the list. Head to Bama247 now to see them all.
Top Alabama head coaching candidates
One potential candidate is Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian. The former Washington and USC head coach spent a season on the Alabama staff in 2016 after being terminated by the Trojans for off-the-field issues and the time under Saban helped him revitalize his career. He'd go on to serve as the Falcons offensive coordinator and then returned to Alabama to call plays in 2019 and 2020 before accepting the job at Texas.
Sarkisian has slowly built the Longhorns into a national title contender over the last three seasons, leading Texas to the College Football Playoff this season before losing in the semifinals to Washington. Saban is said to be extremely fond of Sarkisian's abilities and there's the potential that Sarkisian may be able to lure former five-star recruit Arch Manning to join him in Alabama after Quinn Ewers announced he'd be returning to Texas for another season on Thursday.
A name on the list is a familiar one to the coaching carousel and to SEC fans. Ole Miss head coach Lane Kiffin spent three seasons as the Alabama offensive coordinator (2014-2016) after having previously been the head coach of the Oakland Raiders, Tennessee Volunteers and USC Trojans. Kiffin was a finalist for the Broyles Award in 2014, which is given to the top assistant coach in college football. He went on to have a successful three-year stint at Florida Atlantic before taking his current position as the head coach at Ole Miss ahead of the 2020 season.
Kiffin led the Rebels to a 10-2 record in 2021, an 8-5 mark in 2022 and an 11-2 campaign in 2023. It was the first 11-win season in school history, capped off by a dominant performance against Penn State in the Peach Bowl. Kiffin's history of success and ties to Alabama makes him one of the top candidates on the Bama247 hot board. See more candidates at Bama247.
How to get insider Alabama coaching search updates
Other names to know include multiple coaches who just led their teams to New Year's Six bowl games, including one surprising candidate with no ties to Nick Saban or Alabama. See who it is at Bama247.
Who are the top names in the Alabama coaching search as the Crimson Tide look to replace Nick Saban and which surprising coach could get the nod? Go to Bama247 to see their hot board and more, all from a team of reporters with decades of experience covering the Crimson Tide, and find out. As a reminder, Bama247 is offering 60% off an annual VIP membership as a coaching search special, so subscribe now before it's too late.
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