Bama’s Oats on UNC job: ‘No reason to leave’

CHICAGO — Alabama coach Nate Oats has “absolutely no reason to leave” his current role, despite being mentioned for other opportunities, and said he has had initial discussions with the school about a new contract.

Oats, who leads the No. 4 seed Crimson Tide into a Sweet 16 matchup Friday against No. 1 seed Michigan in the Midwest Region, said he’s flattered to be mentioned for other jobs but isn’t looking to “jump around.” The seventh-year Alabama coach has been mentioned as a potential candidate for the vacancy at North Carolina.

Oats is 170-72 at Alabama and has reached the Sweet 16 or better in four of the past five seasons, with a Final Four appearance in 2024. He previously coached at Buffalo.

“They’re doing everything they can to make sure that we’ve got a competitive program,” said 51-year-old Oats, who praised athletic director Greg Byrne and their working relationship. “And as long as we’re able to compete to win championships here, SEC — national championships, we haven’t done that here yet — I’d love to be the coach to bring us our first national championship. We got to a Final Four. To me, there’s absolutely no reason to leave here.”

Oats received a new contract in 2024 before the team’s Final Four run, which runs through mid-March of 2030 and increases his salary by about $500,000 every March 15. He would owe Alabama $18 million if he leaves for another job, although the payout drops to $10 million after April 1.

“I don’t have an [Alabama] offer in hand, but we’ve had some discussions, and it’s probably getting close,” Oats said. “We’ll see where it takes us. I’m, I feel like I’m probably too honest with everybody. … I’m probably too honest with the administration. I’m not looking to leave. They don’t need to be in a huge rush to fix a really good contract that I’ve got right now.”