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With the LSU athletics department in peril, NBA Hall of Famer Shaquille O’Neal is ready for his alma mater to take a big swing when they hire their new head football coach. “I heard through the grapevine that they were having conversations with Nick Saban,” O’Neal, 53, revealed in an exclusive interview with Us Weekly and while promoting his partnership with Lilly’s Don’t Sleep on OSA initiative. “That’d be awesome if we can bring Nick back.” Saban, 74, was the head coach in Baton Rouge from 2000 to 2004, before he left to coach the NFL’s Miami Dolphins for two seasons. He returned to the college ranks in 2007, coaching the University of Alabama Crimson Tide until he retired from coaching after the 2023 season. LSU fired head coach Brian Kelly on October 26, in the middle of his fourth season at the helm. Us has reached out to the LSU athletics department for comment about the Saban rumor. Saban addressed chatter about him potentially taking the LSU job on ESPN’s College Gameday over the weekend. “You’ve got all these external factors that are constantly changing,” Saban said on Saturday, November 1. “Whether it’s the transfer portal, how much you can pay guys, revenue sharing, what kind of collective do you have? So, traditionally, how have you been able to adapt to that? And my point about tradition is, some of the traditional jobs, like LSU, that people always looked at as one of the best jobs, have they adapted to all these things like they need to to be able to continue to be one of the best jobs in the country?” Whether it ends up being Saban or somebody else, O’Neal preached patience and optimism about LSU’s eventual decision. “We’re just gonna sit and see who they choose,” said O’Neal, who played basketball at LSU from 1989 to 1992. “I know it will definitely be a winner and I know it’ll be somebody that’s in line with our culture. I know it’s somebody who’s going to bring us back to winning. We realize if you lose more than two games, we don’t get a significant bowl game.” Kelly, 64, finished with a 34-14 record during his time at LSU, but the team only made one SEC Championship Game during his tenure. After a 49-25 beatdown at the hands of Texas A&M on October 25, LSU Director of Athletics Scott Woodward announced the change in leadership. Woodward resigned from his position on Thursday, October 30, after Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry said Woodward would not be in charge of the search for a new football coach. “In Baton Rouge, that culture is all about winning,” O’Neal said. “I love Coach Kelly. He’s a fabulous man. But down there in Bayou Land, it’s all about winning. It’s all about winning the national titles.” LSU’s three previous head football coaches — Ed Orgeron, Les Miles and Saban — all won national championships during their time at the school, something Kelly failed to accomplish. As the college football coaching carousel continues on, O’Neal has partnered with Lilly to raise awareness about moderate-to-severe obstructed sleep apnea. “I was diagnosed in 2011,” O’Neal explained. “After being diagnosed, with my superhuman attitude, like most men I was like, ‘Whatever, whatever.’ But at night I’d be gasping for air and I’d wake up tired. It just started to take a toll on me. I want to be on a crusade of urging people and really telling people to please get with your doctor, please get checked out.” O’Neal added, “I never thought something like snoring or gasping for air in the middle of the night was that big of a deal. But you know, it really is. It just exhausted me during the day. It made me say that no one is untouchable and it’s OK to ask questions and get help.” For more on Lilly’s Don’t Sleep on OSA initiative, click here.
