Nick Saban Rejects the Gerontocracy

Nick Saban, Bill Belichick and the rare dignified exit in sports

There are many well regarded historians who believe George Washington’s voluntary retirement to be the literal most important decision in American history. Fans of the Crimson Tide might beg to differ, ranking Nick Saban’s exit above any and all events that preceded it.

It’s not difficult to explain why Washington’s choice was massively important, though. Without Washington’s resignation as commander-in-chief and retreat to life as a private citizen, we are ruled, indefinitely, by unaccountable kings, decaying into error, one after the other. The choice by Washington to surrender his army back to the government, to give up power, was a shocking one at the time. It’s been celebrated through the ages, but perhaps not enough. We haven’t really made a cultural virtue of exiting when you could still plausibly rule, of clearing a path for future generations rather than decline as an obstacle. And we should. We should celebrate it as much as we can when it happens.

I say that because it appears as though we are now ruled by a gerontoracy, especially in the political realm. We’ve become used to it. Few senior citizens voluntarily give up their high status positions these days.

Quoting, well, me:

The elderly remain in power, as something of a generational bottleneck. As I’ve noted, this issue is clearly most visible in our politics:

I’d probably be less critical of this dynamic if we didn’t see the gerontocracy issue so clearly in our politics. Our senators freeze on stage and appear incapable of performing basic duties. The next presidential race is probably going to be a rerun of the last one, featuring two guys who were both far sharper decades ago.

Results are more tangible in sports than in politics, which acts as a check on gerontoracy. Bill Belichick (age 71) and Pete Carroll (age 72) were both nudged out of their respective teams last week. They are legends, but they weren’t winning enough.

The truly rare ouster, this day and age, is the self ouster. This why Nick Saban, the greatest college football coach ever, shocked the sports world Wednesday when he announced his retirement at age 72. Alabama appears to now be in shambles over this, but it’s also allowed for an outpouring of gratitude from students and fans alike. Saban left at what looked, from the outside, to be the top of his craft. Alabama was achingly close to making a title game they would have been favored in. But despite the outstanding results from a relatively less talented Alabama team, Nick did not feel like he was in top form. As he explained to ESPN’s Rece Davis:

In hiring coaches and recruiting players, my age started to become an issue. People wanted assurances I’d be here, three years, five years, and it became harder to be honest about it. And to be honest, this last season was grueling. It was a real grind for us to come from where we started to where we got to. Took a little more out of me than usual. When people mention the health issue, it was really just the grind of, ‘Can you do this the way you want to do it? Can you do it the way you’ve always done it? And be able to sustain it for an entire season?’

I’m impressed by how self aware Saban is here and he went into further detail about his issues in the interview. In summary, it was a life force problem. I can understand it even if I’m not a college football coaching God and I’m roughly half as old as Saban. When my first son was born, it was difficult to be up at all hours, but survivable. When my second son was born, I could barely function. The crucible of infant care revealed that I had aged, just a bit, over time. I’m a long ways from retirement, and I’m perpetually galvanized by what I’m lucky enough to call a job, but yes, I am aging, and there are consequences to that.

Age takes a lot from us as a precursor to taking everything from us. It’s an uncomfortable topic. I know I have older subscribers, so I want to be precise with what I’m saying here. I believe seniors can and do thrive in many occupations. Experience is a virtue. The wisdom that comes with time is a virtue. But, to run a massive institution, you need a certain amount of sheer energy, in addition to a vision that remains sharp.

There are caveats here, in the sports world. Andy Reid is officially a senior citizen and I’d trust him to continue running the Kansas City Chiefs. That’s a situation he’s built around himself and his habits. But would I trust him to take over a new situation and mold it similarly? Someone would certainly pay him a lot to try, as I’m sure Belichick will get to. But I’d advise against making such a hire. Call me an ageist, but I’ve seen enough legendary coaches fail in their final act. Football coaching is, increasingly, a younger man’s game.

As I’ve written, I feel similarly about the senior aged CEOs tasked with running multinationals during this turbulent time. Bob Iger, in his 50’s, makes for a great CEO. Bob Iger, now at age 72, attempting to navigate an industry ravaged by disruptive technology? No thank you.

At a certain point, you lose the juice required to overcome and manifest. I am very thankful to anyone in power who admits it, especially if toughness and refusal to give in had previously fueled their rise. There’s a replenishing gift in leaving, and allowing someone else to build on what you’ve done. Maybe the next Alabama coach, an age 49 Kalen DeBoer, will fail. Maybe there will never be another college coach quite like Nick Saban. But decaying in public is the worst outcome. That’s not safeguarding tradition. That’s an act of denial. It’s a denial of your decline and, yes, eventual death. It’s also a denial of opportunity to anyone rising and hungry for the chance.

As Louis CK, of all people, has harped on, the root word for “president” is “preside.” You are a caretaker, for awhile, until someone else is caretaker. The job does not end with you. You are here to pass it on, in good condition, with some instructions. You are not here to pretend you’re here forever. Nick Saban’s victories are impressive, but it’s his early admission of defeat that is virtuous.