Is Nick Saban leaving Alabama for a $30,000,000 ESPN contract? JJ Watt turns to Pat McAfee regarding Crimson Tide's HC future plans

Nick Saban's exit from Alabama was a topic on a recent episode of "The Pat McAfee Show." It all started when former Houston Texans defensive end J.J. Watt brought up the discussion. McAfee and A.J. Hawk were stunned when Watt asked the question.

“Is Saban leaving? Do you guys have any insight?” Watt said.

Expressing their shock at the question, both McAfee and Hawk asked where Watt saw the news. The Wisconsin alum cited a post on X (formerly Twitter) made by an account named "Message Board Geniuses," which he said had brilliant reviews from fans.

“It's on Twitter," Watt said. "I mean X or whatever. It was like a deep 'message board,' and they were like this guy has been right about a bunch of stuff in the past, which I'm assuming means like private jet tracking. It says Saban is on his way out for like a $30 million ESPN contract.”

Is Nick Saban leaving Alabama for a $30,000,000 ESPN contract?

There are no indications that Nick Saban is ready to retire or leave Alabama for somewhere else after concluding his 17th year in the program. Neither are there reports that have suggested nor confirmed that ESPN is trying to bring him on board as an analyst on such a massive contract.

Rumors of the coach leaving the Crimson Tide have become a regular occurrence at the end of the regular season in the last few years. Saban's achievement at the program is beyond legendary, and there's always this belief he will bow out before being chased.

However, it doesn't appear like we've reached that time yet. His appearance on "The Pat McAfee Show" has obviously brought about rumors of retiring to become a television analyst just like Urban Meyer. McAfee, who is with ESPN, answered the question asked by Watt by explaining he has no clue of anything like that.

"I'll tell you I appreciate the journalism and trying to guess a deal's worth is like a walk up to the club," McAfee said. "There's been a lot of people doing that, speaking matters of fact as opposed to asking questions. That's real, though? I don't know."

Nick Saban is pursuing his eighth national championship and seventh with Alabama this season. The fifth-ranked Crimson Tide (12-1) are set to face top-ranked Michigan (13-0) in the semifinals of the College Football Playoff. A win in the contest would see them play either third-ranked Texas (12-1) or second-ranked Washington (13-0) in the championship game.