“He is going to be an advisor for us,” Byrne said. “He’s been awesome. He and I talked during the coaching search. I mean, somebody asked me, was he involved? Man, I’m not very smart, many people know that, but I’m smart enough to know when you have a chance to have Nick Saban involved with talking about coaching and football and decision making and leadership, shame on me if I don’t take advantage of that.”
Saban’s departure opened up a 30-day window for Alabama players to enter the transfer portal. The Tide has seen some notable departures so far, with offensive tackle Kadyn Proctor and safety Caleb Downs moving in that direction on Wednesday.
According to Byrne, Saban has been helping stay in contact with some of the roster.
“He and I talked this morning,” Byrne said. “He’s been very helpful trying to talk to the young men that he recruited here and again say, ‘We’re in a really good spot going forward.’ And he’ll continue to be here and be part of our program and we’re very happy for that. And I’ll tell you, I’ll give coach DeBoer a ton of credit, he’s embraced that, as he should.”
The first game of DeBoer’s tenure as head coach is scheduled for Aug. 31 at Bryant-Denny Stadium against Western Kentucky.
