Nick Saban once admitted leaving LSU was a huge mistake — "We worked hard to build the program"

Nick Saban has established himself as one of the greatest college football head coaches of all time. The 72-year-old has won seven national championships, six of which have come during his time with his current team, the Alabama Crimson Tide.

Saban won his first national championship in 2003 while coaching the LSU Tigers. He spent five seasons in Louisiana before leaving the team in 2005 to serve as the head coach of the NFL team, Miami Dolphins.

Although Saban has fond memories of his time with the Tigers, the veteran coach regretted leaving Louisiana for the NFL.

In 2020, Saban was inducted into the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame for winning the national championship with the Tigers. A week after being enshrined, he spilled the beans on his decision to leave Louisiana. In an interview with the Daily Advertiser, Saban said:

"As it turns out, what I learned from that experience in hindsight was, it was a huge mistake to leave college football. And I know a lot of LSU fans think I left for whatever reasons, but I left because I wanted to be a pro coach, or thought I wanted to be a pro coach. We loved LSU. We worked hard to build the program. If there was one thing professionally that I would do over again, it would've been not to leave LSU."

Saban's reign with the Miami Dolphins lasted less than two years. He returned to college football in 2007 as the head coach of Alabama, and has held the position ever since.

Nick Saban's CFB coaching honors

Alabama Crimson Tide HC Nick Saban

Nick Saban has an excellent coaching record at the collegiate level. At the time of writing, he holds a 290-70-1 record. Along with his seven national championships, Saban also has 10 SEC titles, 11 SEC Western Division, and one MAC title.

Saban is also a five-time SEC Coach of the Year and a two-time AP College Football Coach of the Year.