It's hard to believe that Greg McElroy didn't know the storm he was stirring up by telling the world on Mac and Cube on Monday that he had heard from a person in the know that Nick Saban may not be done coaching.
The last two days have been a whirlwind, and the Saban rumors have taken over SEC Media Days. The rumors have also added unnecessary pressure to Kalen DeBoer to win now, if there wasn't enough pressure that comes with the Alabama job to begin with.
On Tuesday, McElroy told On3's JD Pickell that he didn't believe the rumors himself, and seemed surprised that what he said on Monday had grown such legs. As if insinuating there is a possibility that the greatest coach in the history of the sport, who abruptly retired in January of last year, might return to the sidelines is no big deal. A minor story, that.
“I don’t think he’s coming back, so we’ll start with that,” McElroy told Pickell. “I don’t see that as a likely possibility at all. I think he’s fully content doing what he’s doing.”
It's not hard to believe that Saban still has the itch to coach. His retirement, albeit eventually inevitable, seemed to come almost out of nowhere. It didn't feel like the end for Saban, but it does now. He seems fulfilled doing what he's doing with College GameDay and the NFL Draft, and all the extra time he has to play golf and do chores for Miss Terry.
McElroy not knowing his comments would create a media firestorm is not believable
Greg McElroy is a smart guy. He's worked in the media for too many years now not to know that what he said would blow up. He's also a former Alabama QB, spending five years in Tuscaloosa. He knows how things work. So, forgive me if I don't buy this quote:
"All it is is like, ‘People in the know tell Greg McElroy Saban’s open to returning to the sideline,’” McElroy said. “Like, ‘No, no, I didn’t say that!’ … It was literally like a throwaway line and none of us thought it was gonna take off the way it (did).”
In no way is saying you are hearing that NICK SABAN, of all people, might be interested in a return to coaching, a throwaway line. Maybe McElroy underestimated the reach of his show with Cole Cubelic, but that would be foolish considering the digital age we live in.
Of course, as much a he tried to walk back his comments, he couldn't help himself when it came to further speculation, either:
“Hypothetically speaking, Andy Reid retires and they want Nick Saban for the Kansas City Chiefs, how do you not take that call? Don’t rule it out, I guess is kind of how they phrased it." McElroy said.
The whole thing feels like a walking contradiction. And a media-trained former Alabama quarterback should know better.