It’s not often that Nick Saban is the second-most-powerful man in the room. But last Thursday night in Tuscaloosa, the seven-time national championship-winning coach warmed up a crowd of graduating seniors at the University of Alabama for the President of the United States.
Since Bear Bryant is no longer with us, Donald Trump is literally the only person who could upstage — if only briefly — the G.O.A.T. in Alabama, and Saban acknowledged the pecking order, laughing that he felt like he was the opening act for the Rolling Stones.
Look a little closer, though, and it sure seems like Saban is actually the man behind the curtain, whispering in the ears of the powerful and guiding them toward his own ends.