Nick Saban has been in Bill Belichick's shoes before.
Despite the fact that North Carolina (2-3) is currently resting on bye, Belichick was the biggest story of the past week in college football, as speculation emerged that his time in Chapel Hill could be coming to an end sooner than later. Belichick and the North Carolina athletic department combatted those rumors with statements confirming their commitment to one another, but as we know in the sports world, when there's smoke, there's often fire.
Saban, however, believes Belichick deserves more time.
"Every coach needs to have the opportunity to establish his culture and also to recruit his kind of players," Saban said on Saturday's episode of College GameDay from Eugene, Ore.
Saban went on to tell a story about his tumultuous first season at Alabama in 2007 when the Crimson Tide went 7-6. On Nov. 17, 2007, the Crimson Tide dropped to 6-5 with an ugly 21-14 upset loss to Sun Belt program Louisiana-Monroe. After the game, Saban stopped by a gas station to fill up his car when he ran into a passionate Crimson Tide fan.
"I used to wear my LSU national championship ring," Saban said. "I pay for the gas. The guy says, 'Hey, what is that?' I say, 'It's a national championship ring; we're going to do the same thing here.' He said, 'We'll never do that as long as Nick Saban is the coach.'"
An Alabama fan really told Nick Saban he'd never coach the Tide to a title 😂
— College GameDay (@CollegeGameDay) October 11, 2025
This story is so funny six championships later 💍 pic.twitter.com/9bM1pcdqlA
Saban, of course, went on to lead Alabama to a national championship two years later—and then another five titles after that. Moral of the story? Don't give up on Belichick just yet.
"Good coaches coach good players to play well," Saban said. "That's what good coaches do. So, you've got to give people an opportunity to get the type of players they want in the program, then see if they can develop them and play the way they want. And then it's fair to make an evaluation."
But as Pat McAfee brought up on the broadcast, what if Belichick is patient with the wrong group of players?
"S--- out of luck," Saban said with a deadpan face.
Well said, coach.
Through five games, North Carolina has just two wins to its name over lowly Charlotte and Richmond. The Tar Heels were blown out 48-14 by TCU to open the season, and have lost 34-9 to UCF and 38-10 to Clemson in the last two weeks.
Talent on the Tar Heels' roster clearly is an issue, but North Carolina hasn't appeared to have the coaching edge in X's and O's that many assumed Belichick would bring to the college level.
"There was an acclimation for Bill. I know how organized he is," Saban said. "Probably misjudged, a little bit, the timing of the first portal window, so they probably didn't get an opportunity. When you change coaches, you're going to lose players. So you've got to replace those players. I think they missed the window, which is probably affecting this year. But they won't miss it next year, and they're doing a great job recruiting."
North Carolina returns to the field Friday night for a matchup against Cal. Even if that game is another blowout loss, Saban is preaching patience for both Belichick and the North Carolina program.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Nick Saban Voices Opinion on Bill Belichick's Future With North Carolina.
