Nick Saban’s exit from Alabama is setting off a very expensive domino effect across college football. … The NFL is perhaps seeing a changing of the guard with several of its most popular teams out of the playoffs. … And the Australian Open’s efforts to liven up its atmosphere and draw more fans are working—but they aren’t necessarily sitting well with some players.
Nick Saban prevented plenty of coaches from winning more games during his career. At least now he’s paying them back: The domino effect on college football from his retirement last week is getting more expensive by the day. The departure of the seven-time national championship winner has generated at least $100 million—and potentially much more—in new contracts, extensions, and buyouts.
Alabama’s swift and decisive move to replace Saban with Kalen DeBoer cost at least $12 million up front, in the form of the latter’s buyout fee at Washington. The terms of DeBoer’s contract at Alabama have yet to be released, but it is widely believed the Crimson Tide could be spending $11 million or more in annual salary.
After DeBoer’s exit, Washington quickly pounced on Arizona coach Jedd Fisch, spending $5.5 million to buy him out and committing $54 million in salary over the next seven years. And now the Wildcats are reportedly hiring San Jose State coach Brent Brennan, who has a buyout fee of $1 million, to replace Fisch.
The financial impact of Saban stepping down extends beyond Alabama and Washington. Florida State coach Mike Norvell and Texas coach Steve Sarkisian—believed to have been potential options to replace Saban—each received contract extensions, with raises reportedly pushing them past $10 million in annual salary. Norvell had been making $7.3 million a year, while Sarkisian had brought in $6 million.
The NFL has enjoyed a steady run of success in its 2023 season, including banner regular-season TV ratings and attendance, plus a beginning to its postseason that included a U.S. streaming record and Fox’s best wild-card audience since 2015. But the league now moves to its divisional playoff round without several of its most popular franchises.
Losses by the Dallas Cowboys, Pittsburgh Steelers, and Philadelphia Eagles over the league’s Super Wild Card Weekend left the NFL without its Nos. 1, 3, and 4 most popular teams, as measured by social media followings. Three of the four most-watched individual NFL games during the 2023 regular season also involved the Cowboys or Eagles.
In their place are a series of upstart teams:
- The Detroit Lions hosted and won their first playoff game in 30 years, beating the Super Bowl LVI champion Los Angeles Rams, and they will now host another postseason game on Sunday against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
- The Houston Texans advanced to the divisional round for just the fifth time in franchise history, thanks in part to rookie quarterback C.J. Stroud.
- And a post-Tom Brady Buccaneers team is riding a new wave of success with journeyman quarterback Baker Mayfield.
The NFL is hardly hurting for star power among its remaining playoff teams. In particular, the Kansas City Chiefs and their Taylor Swift-influenced following will face the Buffalo Bills in a divisional-round rematch of their epic overtime playoff game two years ago, with CBS gaining the coveted late-Sunday broadcast slot. The Green Bay Packers also enjoy one of the league’s broadest bases of fan support, ranking fifth among NFL teams in social media followers. But the remaining teams still showcase something of a changing of the guard from some of the most iconic franchises.
