Oats' Alabama Contract Talks Heat Up

0:00On March 26, Alabama basketball coach Nate Oat is close to signing a new contract extension with the Crimson Tide, though no deal is final yet. The team, a foreseed, faces one seed Michigan in the sweet 16 right now. Oat's got his last extension before their final four run in the 2023-2024 season and his salary jumped by 500. $1,000 on March 15. He's taking it slow because his current deal already pays well, with built-in raises each year. Oat's shared that he's had talks with Alabama, but isn't pushing hard for changes. He loves coaching there and has no plans to leave anytime soon. Fans and media are buzzing after North Carolina fired coach Hubert Davis two days ago. Oat's name popped up as a possible replacement for the big program, but he shut that down quick. His full focus stays on Alabama. Oat's keeps it real about his roots as a high school coach, making just $4,700 a year

1:00back in the day. For his first 16 years coaching, he earned less than $50,000 total. Now those big paybumps feel like a dream to this self-described glorified PE teacher. Discussions with the school continue and both sides trust each other to get it right. With the tournament heating up, Oat stays locked in on the court.