Nick Saban: College is my legacy

NEW ORLEANS -- With three NFL head coaches getting the ax on Monday and San Francisco 49ers coach Jim Harbaugh moving on to coach at the University of Michigan, it seemed only natural that Alabama's Nick Saban would be asked about his potential interest in the four vacancies.

On Tuesday morning, the back page of the New York Post featured a photo of Saban wearing a white New York Jets pullover with the headline: "Pick Nick!" The Jets are searching for a replacement for Rex Ryan, who was among Monday coaching dismissals after going 46-50 in six seasons. Jets owner Woody Johnson also fired general manager John Idzik after his team went 4-12 this past season, its worst finish since 2007.

During an interview at Tuesday's Sugar Bowl media day at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome, where No. 1 Alabama will play No. 4 Ohio State in a College Football Playoff semifinals game on Thursday, Saban was asked whether an NFL job that would allow him to coach and oversee personnel decisions would be tempting.

"Let's start with the fact that I'm not really interested in any situation in the NFL," Saban said. "Rex Ryan is a great friend of mine, who I have a tremendous amount of respect for. We're hopeful that he gets an opportunity that's helpful to him, in terms of what he wants to do. We have a tremendous amount of respect for the New York Jets.

"As I've talked about before, I think sometimes you've got to pick what you want your legacy to be. Where do you get the most positive self-gratification from, what you want to be and where you think you have the best impact on people. We're extremely happy with being a college coach and what we've been able to do as a college coach and the challenges we have in trying to continue to do it."

Saban, 63, is the highest-paid coach in college football, making $6.9 million annually in a contract that was approved by the school in June. His new seven-year contract runs through the 2021 season.

Saban was an NFL coach for two seasons, going 15-17 with the Miami Dolphins in 2005-06, before taking the Alabama job.