INTERESTING NEWS:The head coach of Alabama has announced his retirement today…
The recently retired coach with the most national championships in major college football history, is joining ESPN, the network announced Wednesday.
The 72-year-old will serve primarily as an analyst on ESPN’s “College GameDay” and also appear on the network’s NFL Draft and SEC Media Day coverage.
ESPN and College GameDay have played such an important role in the growth of college football, and I’m honored to have the opportunity to join their team, Saban said in a release. I’ll do my best to offer additional insights and perspectives to contribute to College GameDay, the ultimate Saturday tradition for college football fans.
Saban, who spent the last 17 seasons at Alabama, retired as the football head coach with the most national titles in the NCAA’s Division I Football Bowl Subdivision with seven – including six at Alabama.
Saban also coached collegiately at Louisiana State University (where he also won a national title), Michigan State University and the University of Toledo, where his teams went to bowls or the Bowl Championship Series title game in 25 of his 28 seasons, and he never had a year with a losing record.
Nick Saban is a singular, iconic presence in college football. He is also an extremely gifted communicator, who will immediately add even more credibility, authority and entertainment value to ESPN, including our esteemed College GameDay show, ESPN chairman Jimmy Pitaro said.
Additional details including Saban’s first assignment will be announced later, ESPN said.
Alabama named Kalen DeBoer, recently the head coach at the University of Washington, as Saban’s replacement. DeBoer this past season took the Huskies to the national championship game, where they lost to the Michigan Wolverines
The 2024 legislative session in Alabama will focus on a number of issues, including election voting, education and gaming. State Gov. Kay Ivey issued her 2024 State of the State Address, highlighting a number of important initiatives that will be among the priorities for lawmakers this year. In her State of the State Address, she showed support for an initiative that “prohibits ballot harvesting” in Alabama.
Additionally. Gov. Ivey supported an education proposal and spoke about the importance of resolving the state’s issue with gambling. Speaking about a current proposal that paves the way for the expansion of gambling in Alabama, she expressed hope that lawmakers will review it further. What’s more, Gov. Ivey vowed to monitor the progress of the proposal.
Currently, a proposal sponsored by Rep. Chris Blackshea calls for the expansion of gambling in Alabama. In reality, to do this, two different bills are needed: one that would amend the state’s constitution and another to establish gambling activities.
“This year when Alabamians make their way to the ballot box, I hope they will be voting on another issue: Gaming. I believe the current proposal being contemplated by the Legislature is good for Alabama, and I will be carefully watching it move through the process,
Per the current draft bill about the gambling expansion, the state would authorize the development of casino gambling at different locations, as well as the establishment of a lottery. The legalization of online sports betting is also part of the proposal.
The last time residents in Alabama voted on a gambling proposal was more than two decades ago. Since then, different proposals have not gained much traction. While the new bill will be reviewed by lawmakers, its future remains uncertain. This is because its success is contingent on a majority approval from the state’s Senate and House along with a green light from Alabama’s voters.
According to Gov. Ivey, the proposal will help in the fight against illegal gambling. At the same time, she said, the bill would help deliver regulated forms of gambling and this includes lottery as well. Thank you to Speaker Led better and his leadership team for their hard work on this. Now is the time for Alabama voters to have another say on this issue, added Gov. Ivey.
The gambling proposal still has a long way ahead of it. Yet, the support from the Governor sends a clear signal to the lawmakers about the importance of the matter.
