Bill Goldberg's son Gage was this close to playing for the Crimson Tide ... but the high school football player tells TMZ Sports he changed his mind once Nick Saban retired!
Cue Gage's WWE legend dad, who called Deion Sanders -- his former teammate with the Falcons in the early 90s -- and next thing ya know, Goldberg's on his way to Colorado!
Gage, a 205-pound middle linebacker out of Boerne Champion High School in Texas, spoke with us days after he announced he'd be playing for the NFL Hall of Famer as a preferred walk-on with the Univerisity of Colorado.
GG revealed his commitment came down to the wire ... as he was very close to committing to Alabama until Saban unexpectedly retired last week.
"My top schools were Alabama, Duke, UCF, NC State. Those were my four," the 17-year-old said.
"Then [dad] reached out to Deion and then the coach called him. The opportunity came up for a [Preferred Walk-On] at Colorado and I committed on that."
It's a significant change for the Goldberg family. In fact, Bill was already looking at property in Tuscaloosa.
I have just edited my senior season highlight tape, and here is the new version! https://t.co/7LwBcvYe1d
— Gage Goldberg (@gage_goldberg1) December 11, 2023
But, things have changed, and despite Goldberg having wanted his son to play for Saban (arguably the greatest CFB coach ever), he's happy he'll be coached by Prime.
"Deion and I are great friends. I love the man like he's my brother," Bill said.
"It's just a huge decision. It's not based on who's got the coolest uniforms. It's based on who's gonna take care of you the most and where you have the best opportunity, both on and off the field."
Bill added, "I'm gonna continue to sing his praises but after I speak so highly of this person, why would I not want this person to be the head coach of my son?"