Why does Alabama HC Nick Saban love The Rolling Stones? Taking a closer look at the legendary head coaches long standing relationship with Mick Jagger
Nick Saban is widely considered one of the greatest college football coaches of all time. Off the field, the Alabama Crimson Tide coach is a big fan of the legendary band, The Rolling Stones. While his fandom dates back to the early 1960s, Saban first saw The Rolling Stones live in the 1970s during his time as a defensive back for the Kent State Golden Flashes.
Speaking on Hey Coach & The Nick Saban Show, he shared how lead vocalist Mick Jagger played a role in Pro Football Hall of Famer Jack Lambert's legendary career. Lambert, who was Saban's teammate at Kent State, played defensive end over his first two seasons of college football. The Golden Flashes' would often work security at concerts as a way to earn money and watch concerts for free.
Saban shared:
"[Bob] Bender’s on the stage, Mick Jagger comes off. Somebody tries to throw something at him and Bender knocks it out of his hand, and Jagger calls him in and hires him as the bodyguard. He was the Mike linebacker, not Jack Lambert, on our team."
He continued:
"Bender doesn’t show up for fall camp, so Don James says, ‘Well, we’ve got to have a middle linebacker, that’s the most important thing.’ We played a 4-3 defense in those days, so he moved Jack Lambert to middle linebacker and the guy made like All-American."
Check out Nick Saban's comments on Mick Jagger and Jack Lambert below (starting at the 1:07:25 mark below):
While Saban stopped short of crediting Jagger with Lambert's success, he did note that the circumstances helped his career. Prior to the positional switch, the Pro Football Hall of Famer had been studying to be a veterinarian. Instead, he is considered one of the greatest linebackers of his generation.
Nick Saban praises The Rolling Stones' success
Nick Saban has been very open about his fandom of The Rolling Stones. Speaking with Alan Siegel of The Ringer in 2019 in a piece dedicated to his love of the band, Saban praised the success and longevity of the band, stating:
"It’s no different than a player who has passion for what he does and perseverance to sort of overcome and change with the times. They have an exceptional ability to deal with success and maintain a high standard of how they do things, even when they’ve been successful for a long time. Which is a little unusual. But it is what it is."
Saban noted that his son, who was 32 at the time, plays guitar and The Rolling Stones music is among his favorites.