Jimbo Fisher on Nick Saban: ‘Maybe Somebody Should Have Slapped Him’

Fisher: ‘You can call me anything you want to call me, you don’t call me a cheat.’

Jimbo Fisher didn’t soften his words when responding to Nick Saban’s comments, calling them “despicable” and the Alabama coach a “narcissist.”

“You can call me anything you want to call me, you don’t call me a cheat,” the Texas A&M coach said. “I don’t cheat. I don’t lie. I learned that when I was a kid, if you did, your old man would’ve slapped you upside the head. Maybe somebody should have slapped him.”

Saban said Wednesday that Texas A&M “bought every player on their team,” in reference to the program’s Name, Image and Likeness deals. Texas A&M finished the 2022 recruiting season edging out Alabama for the top spot, landing eight five-star recruits and 19 four-star recruits, per 247 Sports. Fisher strongly denied the accusation. 

This is not the first time Fisher has addressed these pay for player rumors; he also commented on the rumors that Texas A&M had bought the No. 1 recruiting class back in February. 

“It’s a shame that we have to do this. It’s really despicable,” Fisher said Thursday. “It’s despicable that somebody can say things about somebody and, more importantly, 17-year-old kids. You’re taking shots at 17-year-old kids and their families. That they broke state laws, that we bought every player on this group. We never bought anybody. No rules were broken. Nothing was done wrong.”

He later added, “Some people think they’re God. Go dig into how God did his deal, you may find out about a lot of things that you don’t want to know. We build him up to be the czar of college football. Go dig into his past.”

Fisher was Saban’s assistant back at LSU in the early 2000s, but Fisher said he did not answer the Alabama coach’s call, saying, “We’re done.” 

“He showed you who he is. He’s the greatest ever, huh? When you’ve got all the advantages, it’s easy.” 

• All Aggies: Nick Saban Rips Aggies, Says Team Bought No. 1 Class

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