Meyer vs. Saban: Breaking Down the Coaches Before the SEC Championship Game

The Florida Gators and Alabama Crimson Tide will meet in the SEC championship game on Dec. 5th. As my B/R friend Bobby R Engle put it, let's all crow Cock-a-doola-doo.

In preparation for that game, I'd like to look at how Urban Meyer and Nick Saban, the coaches of these two SEC powerhouses, match up head-to-head.

I'll look at three areas—recruiting, big game play and strategy—and see if I can't call the winner ahead of time.

As Recruiters

Urban Meyer and Nick Saban are practically rewriting the book on recruiting in the South (although Nick Saban's book is running 20 pages past the allotted limit).

Let's break down the recruiting head-to-head over the past three years:

2007 : Florida's class ranks No. 1 overall to Rivals, with the signing of four five-star players and 16 four-star players; recently hired Alabama coach Nick Saban impresses, bringing in the 10th overall class, with 10 four-star players and 16 three-star players, despite being on the job for less than a month.

Notable recruits: Meyer picks up the Pouncey brothers, currently anchoring the Florida O-line, while Saban lands LB Rolando McClain (a likely All-American this year) and WR Marquis Maze, both Alabama natives.

2008: In their first true year recruiting head-to-head, Saban outduels Meyer, signing three five-star players and a whopping 19 four-star players to post the nation's No. 1 class; Meyer signs a terrific, four five-star player, 12 four-star player class, good for third overall to Rivals.

Notable recruits: Saban lands Julio Jones and OL Tyler Love, while Meyer pulls in RB Jeff Demps, the nation's fastest player, along with starting DB Janoris Jenkins and five-star DT Omar Hunter.

2009: Alabama continues its dominance with an unprecedented second-straight No. 1 overall class, signing four five-star players and 14 four-star players.

Florida slips to No. 11 overall, signing three five-star players and nine four-star players, but signing only 17 players overall. Winning a national championship does keep one busy.

Notable recruits: Saban woos five-star defensive back Dre Kirkpatrick away from his Arkansas verbal and the USC Trojans, while Meyer lifts stud linebacker Jelani Jenkins from his native Maryland.

2010: Alabama currently leads Florida with two five-star verbals and 10 four-star verbals to Florida's one five-star and 11 four-star verbals.

Notable recruits: Saban strikes it rich, shoring up an already-formidable defensive backfield with verbals from five-star DBs Keenan Allen and DeMarcus Milliner, both Alabama natives. Meyer plunders Georgia for two four stars, DE Neiron Ball and RB Mack Brown.

It's hard not to say that Saban is winning this one from a numbers perspective. But recruiting goes beyond pure stars. Saban has recruited terrific defensive players and offensive linemen, but his struggles in landing dynamic offensive players—specifically quarterbacks—make for a significant caveat.

The good news is, Star Jackson, the fifth overall pro-style quarterback in the 2008 haul, currently resides behind Greg McElroy, a fourth-year senior and a three-star overall to Rivals from the 2006 class, on the depth chart.

That's a good sign for Jackson, an Army All-American stud

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