SEC INSIDER

Saban back at work following hip surgery

Field Level Media

April 24, 2019 at 4:55 pm.

Alabama football coach Nick Saban returned to work on Wednesday, less than 48 hours after hip replacement surgery.

Alabama athletic department spokesman Josh Maxson confirmed Saban’s return to ESPN.

Saban, 67, had the surgery on Monday, and a statement issued later that day said the operation was a success and he would be back at work “in the very near future.”

Doctors might not have counted on it happening this soon.

“I did some rehab at home (on Tuesday) and threw away the walker after one day,” Saban told ESPN. “I’ve got a cane, and I’m rolling now.”

He returned to the office with his wife’s blessing, apparently.

“She was glad to get rid of me,” Saban said of his wife, Terry. “She had to take care of me for one day and that was enough. She said, ‘Go for it.’

“I was home for six hours (Tuesday), and I was ready to jump off a bridge. Doing nothing was like torture. I don’t know how people do it.”

Saban told reporters earlier this month that his hip had bothered him throughout the spring.

“I want to get it fixed because I don’t want to coach for one more year — I want to coach for a lot more years,” Saban said. “So, whenever things like this come up, I want to be aggressive and proactive to get it taken care of. We’ll certainly do that, and we have really good people to do it and I don’t think it should be a big deal.”

The Crimson Tide, winners of five championships during Saban’s 12 seasons at the helm, open their season on Aug. 31 against Duke in Atlanta.

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