"Trust no one"

These days, in the world of sports, a promise is worth about as much as a dead squirrel.

If someone promises you something, you should assume the opposite. If someone says you can "trust" then, don't. Yes, it has come to this.

Yesterday, Nick Saban "shocked the sports world" (except that it really wasn't surprising at all) when he accepted a ludicrous eight-year, $32 million contract to coach the University of Alabama football team. Saban left behind the Miami Dolphins, who he had promised he would continue to coach.

Apparently the Dolphins believed Saban (poor guys), because in the post-"shocking decision" press conference, their owner, Wayne Huizenga, stepped into uncharted territory when he asked the media brass present for any suggestions on how to run the team. Yeah, he's desperate.

Saban, meanwhile, was long gone, having caught the first available private flight to Tuscaloosa. And it's safe to say he won't be taking any vacations in Miami anytime soon unless he's there to coach in the Orange Bowl.

Saban is just the most recent liar in the sports community. It's become a yearly tradition for coaches to declare their allegiance to a team, only to leave weeks or months later for a better-paying job.

In fact, Alabama, I'm sure, doesn't feel an ounce of remorse over stealing Saban from the Dolphins because it has been on the dark side of a coach's disloyalty. In 2002 Dennis Franchione led the Crimson Tide to a 10-3 record and insinuated to his players - and recruits - that he would return for another season. Yet when Texas A&M coach, R.C. Slocum, was fired after the season, Franchione wasted no time in not only leaving for College Station, Tex., but also taking his entire coaching staff with him.

This was especially hard on the Crimson Tide because they were suffering through NCAA sanctions and a probation period for violations committed by the football team. Throughout the season Franchione had emphasized loyalty and trust to everyone associated with the program, but in the end he was the one who didn't stick by his words, leaving the program in shreds. The Crimson Tide have had just one winning season the past four years.

When it comes to lying, players are just as guilty as coaches. Players take back their word about as often as it has snowed in Denver this winter. When a junior in college says he's coming back for his senior season, it usually means there's about a 50-50 chance he'll stay. Just two years ago UNC's Sean May said he'd return for his senior season after winning the national title. That was, of course, before (and I'm hypothesizing here) 13 agents and 20 coeds told him how great he was, and just days later he declared himself eligible for the NBA draft. Teammates Raymond Felton, Rashad McCants and Marvin Williams followed suit, leaving the Tar Heels with no key contributors left from their championship team.

At the professional level, athletes love to announce their desire to stay with their team, only to be baited in free agency by another squad just months later. Detroit Pistons fans never thought Ben Wallace would leave the Motor City. He did, after all, epitomize what the city was all about with his blue-collar work ethic. But Chicago offered him a better deal last June, and he was gone. Also, it didn’t help that Wallace and head coach Flip Saunders weren’t exactly the best of friends.

Let's face it. Money is all that matters to most professional athletes. Wave more dollars at a guy, and he'll likely leave his first team even if they treated him royally for 12 years. Players like Reggie Miller and Alan Trammell, who played their entire careers for one team, are like kids who play stickball these days - aka, very rare.

The sports world is swarming with unfaithfulness. Whether it's lying coaches or cash-seeking athletes, one thing is certain: No one can be trusted - especially if they tell you otherwise.