Lane Kiffin Sparks Speculation About Nick Saban’s Alabama Exit

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LSU Head Coach Lane Kiffin always finds a way to be in the news, even if it comes at the expense of the University of Alabama.

Aside from making several enemies in Oxford, Kiffin also managed to suggest that Alabama had played a role in Nick Saban’s retirement two years ago.

In an interview with Blake Toppmeyer of SEC Football Unfiltered, Kiffin was his usual candid self, and pulled no punches in his comments.

While talking about his ugly divorce at Ole Miss, he suggested that nothing lasts forever, even if it’s something you want.

“This isn’t a marriage that’s going to last forever, most likely, even though you think it is, where both parties are happy, and neither one wants out. You could wish it was, it’s a feel-good story, but they don’t happen, rarely ever,” Kiffin said.

“Maybe Nick Saban,” Toppmeyer chimed in.

But Kiffin brushed that off.

“I don’t even want to go into names here. Like, these are some names that you would say it happened, and I would tell you that in the coaching profession, that actually, it didn’t because right at the end, they made them retire,” Kiffin said. 

Well, that’s awfully interesting.

He didn’t outwardly say “Alabama made Saban retire,” and perhaps Kiffin had no intention of putting Alabama and Saban, a coach he worked with for two years, on blast. 

But he did, and now people are talking.

There are no legitimate reports of Saban being forced to retire by the university. In fact, Saban’s story has never changed since he retired.

"…maybe 70 or 80 percent of the players you talk to, all they want to know is two things: What assurances do I have that I'm going to play because they're thinking about transferring, and how much are you going to pay me?," Saban told ESPN in an interview two months after the retirement was official. "Our program here was always built on how much value can we create for your future and your personal development, academic success in graduating and developing an NFL career on the field.

"So I'm saying to myself, 'Maybe this doesn't work anymore, that the goals and aspirations are just different and that it's all about how much money can I make as a college player?' I'm not saying that's bad. I'm not saying it's wrong, I'm just saying that's never been what we were all about, and it's not why we had success through the years."

Since retiring, Saban has seemed like he’s been enjoying every second of life after football, whether it be entering into ventures such as becoming an analyst with College Gameday, growing his car dealership, or even owning a professional hockey team.

Whether Kiffin intended to imply Alabama forced Saban out or not, his comments sparked massive speculation on a college football legend and if his exit from the game came on his terms or not.

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