Report: Alabama Boosters Paid For Nick Saban’s $3M House

By Cory Buck | Oct 27, 2014

Oct 25, 2014; Knoxville, TN, USA; Alabama Crimson Tide head coach Nick Saban during warm ups prior to the game against the Tennessee Volunteers at Neyland Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jim Brown-USA TODAY Sports /

The Huntsville Times reports that University of Alabama boosters paid for Nick Saban’s house after Alabama routed Notre Dame in the National Championship in 2013.

A private foundation tied to University of Alabama athletics reportedly paid for football coach Nick Saban’s $3 million home after Saban’s Crimson Tide beat the Notre Dame Fighting Irish in the 2013 National Championship. The deal is not only allowed by the NCAA, but has also been replicated elsewhere.

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Kent Faulk at the Huntsville Times writes, ‘The home, which Saban and his wife, Terry, bought in 2007 when they came to the university, was purchased by the Crimson Tide Foundation in March 2013. The Sabans continue to live in the 8,759-square-foot home, and the foundation has paid the property taxes on the home since the purchase.’

Wait, is this the same NCAA that doesn’t allow foundations or boosters to pay for simple things for students like food or other basic amenities? But these same boosters can buy $3 million homes? That’s exactly the case, per the foundation itself.

“It’s not all that unusual in the world for universities to provide the housing,” said Scott Phelps, assistant secretary of the foundation. “We want to keep him happy. We think he is the best coach in America.”

Phelps notes that Bear Bryant had the same deal as Saban, but Saban’s deal didn’t come into place until after another championship. So was this a reward for Saban or something different? Given that the University of Texas was heavily rumored to be offering Saban a nine-digit contract to coach their football team, paying for the house could have been reflexive on the foundation’s part in order to keep the highly coveted Saban happy.

Faulk also notes, “A spokeswoman for the NCAA said a coach’s compensation package is determined by the university, and a university foundation is allowed to be a source for coach compensation.”

It’s good to know that a guy who gets paid nearly $7 million annually can have someone pay for his house and his property taxes. We can’t think of anything better this foundation could do with $3 million. As is always the case, not just in ‘Bama but in all of college football, the rich get richer while the poor are banned from receiving gifts of any kind, lest they be suspended even if they’re drafted by the NFL. Keep on keeping on, NCAA.

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