Back when Nick Saban stepped away from Alabama after a staggering 201-29 record, six national titles, and two undefeated seasons, he was determined to leave the program in steady hands. Several big names floated around in the early conversations before Alabama ultimately landed on Kalen DeBoer, fresh off a national title game run at Washington. It was a logical hire at the time, but it still invites the question of whether Dabo Swinney, an Alabama alum with multiple championships of his own at Clemson, might have been the more natural heir Saban had quietly hoped for.

But appearing on the Beat Everybody podcast, On3’s Chris Low peeled back the curtain on how the conversations actually went down and why they never gained traction. “ Nick called Dabo the next morning, those guys ar

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