Former Alabama Coach Nick Saban Joining ESPN’s ‘College GameDay’

Nick Saban, who just ended his high-profile run as head football coach at the University of Alabama, is headed to ESPN.

The championship-winning coach will become a regular on the network’s popular show College GameDay and is also slated to appear on coverage of the NFL Draft this spring.

Disney CEO Bob Iger announced the Saban signing and a slew of other news during the company’s fiscal first quarter earnings call.

Saban is already a recognizable figure on ESPN, which has run commercials for insurance firm Aflac in which he appears. Prior to Alabama, Saban coached at Toledo and Michigan State before winning a national title at LSU. The 72-year-old sideline presence is best known for capturing six more titles in a 16-year run at Alabama. has come to be seen as essentially college football’s version of NFL coach Bill Belichick. Strikingly, both all-time greats found themselves out of work at the start of 2024 for the first time in decades and neither is likely to take the field as a coach in 2024.

GameDay, which is a foundational part of ESPN’s high-rated college football broadcasts, added Pat McAfee to its on-air lineup last season.