When Alabama kicks off the Kalen DeBoer era on Saturday night at Bryant-Denny Stadium, two freshmen—wide receiver Ryan Williams and cornerback Zabien Brown—have a legitimate shot at starting.
However, after Nick Saban’s unexpected retirement in January, Alabama risked losing both of these five-star recruits. Williams initially decommitted just hours after Saban’s announcement, only to later re-commit to the new coaching staff and sign his letter of intent. Brown, too, was uncertain about staying but was eventually persuaded to remain, according to a new book co-authored by CBS Sports and 247 Sports national college football writer John Talty.
In “The Price: What It Takes to Win in College Football’s Era of Chaos,” released earlier this week, Talty and co-author Armen Keteyian reveal that Alabama benefited from a “Saban discount” in its NIL program, where players accepted less money to play under Saban’s guidance.
This was the case for Brown, who graduated early from Mater Dei High School in California and joined Alabama for Rose Bowl practices in December.
“Could Zabien have gotten a lot more money? Absolutely,” said Brown’s mother, Courtney Brown, in the book. “But if that’s not important to him, then it’s not important to me. He chose the school because of the coaches, because of Nick.”
Talty and Keteyian note that Alabama’s NIL funding fell behind that of some of its top rivals under Saban, with one source attributing it to donor complacency due to Saban’s consistent success. When Saban retired, that advantage vanished, and Alabama had to quickly work to keep its players as other schools presented larger NIL offers.
Brown, who had previously focused more on the long-term benefits of playing for Saban rather than NIL money, reconsidered after Saban’s unexpected departure. “I knew if we went elsewhere, we’d be negotiating for a much higher NIL deal,” Brown said.
Alabama was determined to prevent that from happening. Shortly after leaving his position as Buffalo’s head coach to become an assistant at Alabama, Mo Linguist flew to California to meet with Brown and other parents to pitch the vision of the new coaching staff. Ultimately, this effort convinced the California five-star to stay at Alabama.
Brown, who was named to the Shaun Alexander Freshman of the Year watch list, took many first-team reps during fall camp and is now competing with Wake Forest transfer DaShawn Jones for a starting cornerback spot opposite USC transfer Domani Jackson.
