Jimbo Fisher waited so long for his pregame handshake with Nick Saban

Jimbo Fisher and Nick Saban had a public conflict play out through the summer, and their teams had a chance on Saturday to settle things on the field. But before the game, things remained awkward between the men.

CBS showed a video of the two coaches hanging out near midfield before the game. Fisher had been waiting to shake hands with Saban. CBS’ announcers said that the two coaches had their backs to each other for six minutes before someone told Saban that Fisher was waiting to shake hands. After being alerted, Saban turned around and shook Fisher’s hand. The two visited for a bit.

Nick Saban and Jimbo Fisher shared a pre-game handshake prior to kickoff. pic.twitter.com/iWOfBI6Sd6

— CBS Sports College Football 🏈 (@CBSSportsCFB) October 9, 2022

Both coaches tried to downplay their offseason beef in the week leading up to Saturday’s game between the Aggies and Crimson Tide. But there is little doubt things were hot between them.

Saban accused Fisher of buying the No. 1 recruiting class and going against the spirit of NIL rules in the process. Fisher, a former Saban assistant at LSU, hinted that he had some dirt on Saban that the coach wouldn’t want out there.

Last year, Fisher became the first former Saban assistant to beat the master when his Aggies upset the Tide at College Station. The beef between the two men goes all the way back to their roots in West Virginia.