{
  "id": 13457331,
  "title": "Nick Saban calls ESPN show he co-hosts ‘rat poison’",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/10/nick-saban-calls-espn-show-he-co-hosts-rat-poison",
  "topic": "culture",
  "section": "Culture",
  "published": "2026-10-10T16:08:45.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Yahoo Sports",
    "slug": "yahoo-sports",
    "url": "https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/nick-saban-calls-espn-show-160845007.html"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Nick Saban, a prominent college football figure, recently expressed his distaste for ESPN’s College GameDay show. Despite his current association with the network, Saban once called it \"rat poison\" during his coaching tenure at Alabama. This sentiment was echoed by ESPN's Pat McAfee, who quipped, \"You can listen to me or you can listen to the f—ing guys on ESPN!\"\n\nSaban's disdain for the show stemmed from his belief that it influenced the psychological state of his players. He explained, \"I used to hate it on Saturday morning... everybody picks us to win. And I know the players are watching that.\" This led him to question if such predictions could affect the players' performance.\n\nWhen asked if players should listen to ESPN analysts, Saban firmly responded, \"Hell no.\" McAfee, however, seemed to enjoy the recent documentary series about Saban, highlighting the disconnect between Saban's negative view of the show and its apparent entertainment value for the general public.\n\nSaban's coaching record at Alabama, with a 206-17 record over 17 seasons, suggests that his players might not have been swayed by ESPN's predictions. This raises questions about whether the show truly impacts players as Saban once feared.",
  "summary": "Nick Saban used to hate when Alabama was picked to win on \"College GameDay.\"",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 2,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "Yahoo Sports",
        "title": "Nick Saban reveals role his wife ‘Miss Terry’ played in helping shape his legendary Alabama football coaching career",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/10/nick-saban-reveals-role-his-wife-miss-terry-played-in-helping-shape",
        "published": "2026-10-10T16:38:47.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}