Mark Ingram made his debut Saturday on the “Big Noon Kickoff” show, and the former running back got a heartfelt message from his college football coach.

Ingram, the former Heisman Trophy winner from Alabama, got a vote of confidence for his broadcasting career from Nick Saban on Saturday.

“You know, Mark, they’re trying to get me to give you a hard time about something,” Saban said. “If it was (Tom) Rinaldi or one of these other guys I’ve had some experiences with, it’d be very easy to do. But for you, it’s really hard because you’ve always been a model citizen to me. I’d like to congratulate you on a great career and congratulate you on the opportunity you have as a sports broadcaster. We appreciate you, we love ya, you’ve been a great ambassador to the University of Alabama and God bless you.”

While it was believed that Ingram had retired from football, he recently planned to play in the 2023 NFL season – and he hasn’t ruled it out entirely yet even though he’s preparing for Week 1 of the college football season as a member of FOX Sports’ “Big Noon Kickoff” program on Saturday.

During an appearance on “The Marchand and Ourand Sports Media Podcast” on Wednesday, Ingram said the decision to step away from the NFL after 12 seasons for the media opportunity came down to weighing three years against 20 because he “100 percent” could have continued playing.

Mark Heim is a reporter for The Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter @Mark_Heim. He can be heard on “The Opening Kickoff” on WNSP-FM 105.5 FM in Mobile or on the free Sound of Mobile App from 6 to 9 a.m. daily.