To answer my last question. . .yes it is.

Saban accepted Alabama's offer to be their new head coach, but at what price? Well, I've heard numbers as high as $50 million and as low (if you can call it low) $32 million. Either way, it's a high price to pay.

From what I've recently read about Saban, it seems that he is a good coach and does have a good record in college football. But I stand by my assessment that he will never live up to Alabama's standards. No coach can. Even if you cloned "Bear" Bryant and brought him back to coach the Tide today, I doubt he could live up to Alabama fans' standards. And if, by some chance, Alabama is thrilled with him, the chances seem good that he could skip out on them. The previously linked ESPN article notes:

For instance, Saban, for all his success, has found a reason to leave the last three coaching jobs he's had. At Michigan State, he didn't like being The Other School to Michigan. At LSU, he felt underappreciated after winning the national championship and he left for the money and the challenge of the NFL. At the Miami Dolphins, he didn't like the lack of control he had over his adult players. Why would he be happy at Alabama when he has had trouble being happy everywhere he has coached?

And I have to agree with how the article starts out as well.

The power of college athletics once again ran right up the middle against higher education. Alabama's hiring of Nick Saban takes everything that is skewed about college football, shines a spotlight on it and says, "Hey, watch this!"

As the wife of a professor, I'm always appalled to see how much coaches get paid in comparison to how much rank and file professors get paid. I know that athletics brings in a lot of money for universities, but as a college graduate, my donations to my alma mater has NEVER been tied to how well the football team does.

Well, at least his name isn't Mike. . .