Coming off a 5-7 record in Year 2 under Hugh Freeze and riding a five-game losing streak in the Iron Bowl, Auburn fans have gotten so desperate that they’ve resorted to Nick Saban fan-fiction to give them hope about the future.
Former Alabama quarterback Greg McElroy ignited the rumor mill this summer, floating the idea that Nick Saban could be interested in a return to the sidelines. While that doesn’t seem likely for the 73-year-old seven-time national champion, it’s even less likely that his return would be on the other side of the Iron Bowl.
Yet, multiple writers have connected Saban to Auburn, including Hunter Cookston from the Sporting News, who wrote, “The idea of Saban accepting a job at Auburn seems unlikely—but not impossible. If Freeze can’t deliver results this season, Auburn may look to make a change, potentially opening the door for Saban to make a shocking return to the sidelines.”
Auburn fans aren't the only ones without with dreams of Nick Saban on the sideline
Cookston wasn’t alone in his speculation. However, that’s all any of this is: speculation. Theories about how Freeze is much more likely to lose his job than Kalen DeBoer, and how that could make Auburn a fit for Saban if he is, in fact, itching to return to coaching.
An even more outlandish theory than Saban coaching Alabama’s arch rival also emerged on Wednesday, and it had to do with the legend coaching a different Arch, Arch Manning.
Colin Cowherd’s theory is that the Cleveland Browns are looking to pair Saban with Manning for the 2026 season, which would be an incredibly difficult needle to thread even if Manning had shown any indication that he’d enter the 2026 NFL Draft. However, Manning will likely return for his redshirt junior season at Texas that season.
Saban's NFL coaching career faltered because he didn't have a quarterback in Miami, so you can see how Cowherd would connect those dots to Manning, but it still feels like a major stretch.
If Saban did return, the NFL certainly makes more sense than anywhere in the SEC, especially at Auburn. It would be a major surprise for a coach who will turn 75 during the 2026 football season to take over a program or franchise that needs a multi-year rebuild. Most likely, he stays retired and keeps cashing checks from ESPN, but stay dreaming, Tigers fans.