MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. — On the morning of Nov. 28, Nick Saban put on a gray suit and a red tie to prepare himself for the Iron Bowl rivalry game against Auburn. But he never left the house.
Saban had tested positive for COVID-19—for the second time, actually, with the other being a false positive one month earlier. This time it was real, and the 69-year-old legend-in-residence at Alabama would miss the game that always matters most to Crimson Tide fans. This was the 2020 college football season in a nutshell: anyone could be sidelined at any time.