Former Alabama football coach Nick Saban (left) speaks with the media at Bridgestone Arena on December 22, 2025 after joining the Nashville Predators ownership group led by Bill Haslam (right). RUSSELL VANNOZZI/MAIN STREET NASHVILLE

For Nick Saban, investing in the Nashville Predators is not about the money.

He has plenty from leading a college football powerhouse as the head coach at Alabama, taking endorsement deals with brands like Aflac and Vrbo, serving as an analyst on ESPN’s “College GameDay” and helping grow a burgeoning luxury vehicle dealership business.

Saban views his minority stake in the Predators ownership group, purchased for an undisclosed amount alongside Dream Sports Ventures LLC partner Joe Agresti, as an opportunity to share high-level leadership lessons from his coaching days.

“It’s more about the challenge of, how can we help the team rebuild, get better and have a chance to compete for a championship?” Saban said during an introductory press conference at Bridgestone Arena on Dec. 22. “And then I think when you do that, all the other things sort of come with it. That’s the goal, that’s the excitement, that’s the reason I’m here today.”

Saban first approached Predators majority owner and former Tennessee governor Bill Haslam about being involved in Haslam’s bid for a WNBA expansion franchise in Nashville last year. Although the city was passed over by Cleveland, Detroit and Philadelphia, Saban also expressed interest in hockey.

Haslam didn’t think twice. He knew access to Saban could provide far more than monetary value for the Predators, even if the former coach had only watched the sport from a fan’s perspective.

“That’s the greatest no-brainer of all time,” Haslam said. “You have somebody who understands building a championship culture, who understands – I think better than almost anybody in sports  – the process that’s needed to get to where you can compete as a champion, and somebody who, like I do, loves sports and loves the idea of being involved.”

The Predators own 16 playoff appearances in their 26 years of existence. They nearly won a championship in 2017, galvanizing the city and fan base with an improbable Stanley Cup runner-up finish.

After winning a first-round playoff series in 2018, Nashville hasn’t come close to those heights again.

Saban admitted he won’t be able to assist general manager Barry Trotz and head coach Andrew Brunette with specific personnel decisions, draft prospect evaluations or on-ice tactics. He does know a thing or two about how to run a successful organization, evidenced by the NCAA record seven national championships he won as a coach, including six with the Crimson Tide and one at LSU.

The 2025 College Football Hall of Fame inductee gave a glimpse of how he can help when he visited Nashville’s development camp in July. He spent time with Predators coaches and imparted some wisdom on the recently drafted players in attendance.

“I challenged the team … to be a team that nobody wants to play against,” Saban said. “That was always our goal at Alabama. That’s how you compete, the toughness that you play with, the disposition that you go out there and compete with. Those types of things I’d like to continue to do. Whatever Mr. Haslam would like me to do and thinks I can contribute in a positive way, I’d like to do.”

Saban occasionally travels to Nashville to visit the dealerships he co-owns with Agresti – Mercedes-Benz of Music City and Prancing Horse of Nashville – and may be in town more often now. Haslam jokingly quipped he’d like to get Saban in the area full-time if not for Saban’s attraction to the golf courses near his retirement estate in Jupiter Island, Florida.

Since stepping away from coaching in 2023, Saban has desperately missed being part of a team. That was another enticing piece of joining the Predators ownership group.

Saban’s wife Terry, a celebrity in her own right, is fully on board.

“To be honest, Miss Terry has never asked me who won a game,” Saban said. “Last night I was looking at scores, and she asked me who won the Predators game. This runs deep in our house.”

Nick Saban said one of his biggest fears about retirement was no longer being part of a team. Given his love for hockey and @PredsNHL, he jumped at the chance to join the team’s ownership group. pic.twitter.com/qVdFmesWDV

— Russell Vannozzi (@RussellV_MSP) December 22, 2025

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