One of the most prominent voices in college football shared his opinion of conference realignment over the weekend.
Seven-time national champion head coach Nick Saban was asked about the rapid changes in college football at Alabama Media Day on Sunday. He lamented the loss of historic rivalries and traditions that will be forgotten as schools leave their current conferences for another league.
"There's a lot of traditions that we've had for a long time in college football," Saban told 247Sports. "I think we're in a time of evolution for whatever reasons. Some of those traditions are going to get, sort of, pushed by the wayside, I think. It's sad."
In the summer of 2021, the SEC kicked off the current expansion run when it announced Texas and Oklahoma would become member schools. The next summer, the Big Ten followed suit with the additions of USC and UCLA, and the Big 12 secured BYU, Cincinnati, Houston and UCF. Last week – as the SEC stood pat – the Big Ten added Oregon and Washington, and the Big 12 added Arizona, Arizona State and Utah.
In each instance, Saban believes the region-based conferences that existed with former iterations of the ACC, Big Ten, Big 12, Pac-12 and SEC were overlooked, as well as the overall well-being of student-athletes in football and other sports.
"Whether it's good, bad or indifferent for college football – I guess you have to define what is good and bad for college football," Saban said. "I think one thing I would just hope that we would keep in mind in all the choices and decisions we make relative to what we do in college athletics is the student-athlete."
For Saban, the college experience for athletes should never be forgotten.
"They're here to get an education. We try to help them develop careers on and off the field," he said. "Hopefully, some of the choices and decisions that we make for college athletics in the future will impact them in a positive way. I hope that we can keep that a priority in terms of whatever we decide to do in the future with college football and college athletics."
