Love Him or Hate Him, 3 Reasons Why Nick Saban Is College Football's No. 1 Coach

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Any lingering doubt before the national championship about Nick Saban being the best coach in college football was laid to rest as his Crimson Tide thoroughly dominated LSU in New Orleans.

Alabama has had some great coaches come through the program including the legendary Bear Bryant and while no one will replace or make people forget about him, Saban has etched himself into college football history with his team’s performance last night.

Here are three reasons why he is the best coach in college football right now.

National Championships

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Since coming to the SEC from Michigan State, the only recruiting class Saban brought in that didn’t win a national championship was the 2004 LSU class and that was arguably just because he left Baton Rouge to coach the Miami Dolphins at the end of that season.

He won the 2003 title, the 2009 title and the 2011 title. Most coaches spend their entire careers trying to win a national championship and Saban has done it three teams in the past decade. That is simply incredible.

Gets Players to the NFL

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Once he took over at Alabama in the 2007 season, a whopping 13 players have been drafted in the first three rounds. He also had six players drafted in the first three rounds while head coach at LSU.

Moral of the story? If you stand out on Nick Saban’s team, you will get drafted and you will make a lot of money right out of the gate in the NFL. College is a stepping stone for many players, especially in the modern era of football, and not only does he succeed at the college level but he gets his players to the next one.

Recruits Love Him

One of the biggest differences between college and NFL is how teams get their players. The NFL can pick and choose which players it wants through the draft and free agency but college coaches have to go out and get high school kids who’s minds change every other day on the idea of spending the next four years at a specific college.

Saban is one of the best recruiters in the business. Per Rivals.com rankings, he hasn’t had any class rank lower than tenth nationally including four rank first. While at LSU, he had at least three rank in the Top 15—the rankings only go back to 2002.

When you can combine that level of coaching with the ability to get the best players into your program and ultimately into the NFL, you’ve earned yourself the title of best college football coach in America.