No. 2 Alabama vs No. 22 South Carolina, "The Head Ball Coach" vs "The Sabanator"

(Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)

In a day gone by this matchup between Steve Spurrier and Nick Saban would have been a classic showdown between two coaches at the top of their game.

For all intents and purposes, Steve Spurrier was the Nick Saban of the 1990s. He was one of the hottest names in college football, and he and his Florida Gators terrorized the SEC for most of a decade.

When he arrived in Gainesville to take over the reins at the University of Florida, there really wasn't much hoopla from the rest of the SEC. Spurrier was known for running some kinda gadget offense call, Fun and Gun?

It sounded like something from another planet to SEC fans, and everyone was sure the Fun and Gun would just be one and done in the SEC.

It wasn't long before SEC fans realized just how wrong they had been. Within a few years Florida was making the rest of the teams in the SEC look like they were running in slow motion.

Spurrier and his Gators won the SEC championship in his second year. He then proceeded to win five out of six SEC Championships.

The Gators actually won the SEC Championship in Spurrier's first year as well, but were ineligible due to NCAA sanctions.

His only miss in the following five years was in 1992 when the soon to be National Champions, Alabama Crimson Tide, edged out the Gators in the inaugural SEC Championship Game that was, at that time, held in Birmingham, Al.

That was just a bump in the road for Spurrier as the Gators went on to win the next four in a row, which culminated with Florida winning its first National Championship in 1996.

Spurrier was arrogant and cocky back then, but he could back up almost everything he said on the football field on Saturday. He was probably the most hated rival coach in NCAA football.

Nick Saban splashed on the SEC scene in much the same way Spurrier did some 10 years earlier.

Saban came to LSU form Michigan State, and pretty much took the SEC by storm the same way Spurrier did at Florida. The only difference was that it only took Saban three years to win his first National Championship, it took Spurrier six.

Spurrier and Nick Saban have something else in common, they both left their successful situations to try their hand in the NFL. Both men's formula for success in college football did not translate to success in professional football.

You see, their real talent was in convincing great athletes to come and play for them, and in the NFL your hands are tied and someone else decides who plays on your team, not you.

Spurrier had been one of the hottest names since he returned to NCAA football. He was rumored to be courted by almost every team in the SEC, at one time or another, after he left the Washington Redskins in 2003.

He chose the University of South Carolina for his return to greatness, and after almost five years, he now seems to be only a shadow of his former self.

You're currently logged into Facebook

Do you want to share your Bleacher Report activity on Facebook?