“I will not be sad, I will be celebratory”: When Greg McElroy made his thoughts clear on Nick Saban’s retirement decision

Greg McElroy held an emergency edition of his “Always College Football” show in January 2024 following the sudden retirement of Nick Saban. A couple of days after Alabama's Rose Bowl loss to Michigan in the College Football Playoff, Saban decided to end his coaching career.

Speaking on the show, McElroy noted that the day shouldn't be a sad one. McElroy, who started as quarterback for Alabama in the 2009 and 2010 seasons, believed it was a time to celebrate all the coach achieved.

“He changed my life,” McElroy said (Timestamp 1:12). “And he will forever alter the way I navigate through everything. But I know I speak on behalf of thousands of Alabama players that have come and gone under his tutelage.

"They were always positively impacted by what he taught them in the time that they spent there in the program. I will not be sad today. I will be celebratory, much like everybody in Alabama's gigantic fan base. We should be celebratory. I will say that."

Saban led Alabama in one of its most dominant eras in college football. Under his guidance, the Crimson Tide won six national championships and nine SEC titles. The program also produced a lot of top-quality players for the NFL during his tenure, including four Heisman Trophy winners.

Greg McElroy commented on the impact of Nick Saban at Alabama

Speaking further on the emergency edition of “Always College Football,” Greg McElroy commented on the giant stride Nick Saban made during his tenure at Alabama. The coach inherited a struggling program when he came in and transformed it into the most dominant in the realm.

“Nick Saban changed the outlook of the program starting in 2007 when he got there,” McElroy said (Timestamp 1:48). “He put us through the wringer. Four or five or six consecutive weeks of the fourth quarter program, the toughest conditioning program I've ever been through, in an effort to test us both mentally and physically.

“We didn't win that year, but we knew that at that point he was laying the foundation. And here we are, 16 years later, six national championships later, countless massive victories against top-10, top-five teams, and a handful of college football playoff appearances.”

Nick Saban finished his career at Alabama with a 206-29 record. He was also 16-7 in bowl games and the CFP. Overall in his college football coaching career, he hauled a 297-71-9 record.