Saban stays in ‘Bama – with a new team

By BRUCE LOWITT

Just three days after announcing his retirement as University of Alabama’s head football coach, Nick Saban agreed Saturday to a conditional four-year contract to become head coach of the Seattle Seahawks, the condition being that the NFL moves the team to Tuscaloosa, Alabama.

Chuck Arnold, president of the Seahawks, pointing out that Major League Baseball’s Seattle Pilots became the Milwaukee Brewers and the NBA’s Seattle SuperSonics became the Oklahoma Thunder, said he saw no reason for the NFL to prevent his franchise “from becoming the Alabama Elephants.”

“We’ll rename the team to honor coach Saban’s great college team,” Arnold said, “especially considering we’d be playing in their (100,077-seat) Bryant-Denny Stadium.” Seattle, he added, gained the Mariners in baseball’s 1977 expansion and “will be available along with San Antonio or Portland or Columbus or wherever the NFL decides to add franchises down the road.”

The head-coaching position opened when Pete Carroll agreed to become an advisor with the team rather than being fired after 14 seasons because, he mused, “Who’s going to hire an old fart head coach who’s going to turn 73 in September?”

Seattle reportedly considered pursuing Bill Belichick, who will turn 72 in April. On Thursday he left the New England Patriots after 24 seasons and six Super Bowl championships. But one Seahawks executive, speaking on condition of anonymity, said Seattle decided against “replacing a guy who cheated as a college coach with one who, ahem, cheated as an NFL coach.”

Saban, who will turn 73 in October, told a news conference in his farewell to the Crimson Tide, “Being part of the Tuscaloosa community is special to my wife Terry and me and we will always consider Alabama our home. And the stadium’s just a 15-minute drive from our house.”

“Besides,” he added, “I’d like nothing more than to burnish my NFL coaching numbers by improving on those two dismal seasons with the Miami Dolphins (15-17 during 2005-06), the only place I had a losing record as a head coach.”

Saban also briefly entertained a head-coaching offer from Washington. “I turned down the Commanders – what a dumb name – because I don’t need Congress on my ass if the team tries to leave Washington,” he said. “Besides, it’ll take a few more years to get the stink of Dan Snyder off that franchise.”