Alabama Football: Is Nick Saban Already the Best Coach in Alabama History?

I realize what I am about to write will probably be considered sacrilegious, blasphemy or even borderline lunacy.

With this full disclosure in mind—a crazy thought entered my mind and managed to get through the filters, urging me not to transcribe the thoughts to the keyboard.   

After what Nick Saban has accomplished during his five years in Tuscaloosa, should he already be in consideration for being the best coach in Alabama history? 

There is a one word answer to why such musings are almost criminal: Bear. 

Growing up in the state of Alabama, I was not alive when Paul “Bear” Bryant was coaching in Tuscaloosa.

With that said, his image is still burned freshly into the fabric of the state 30 years after his passing, and his legacy is iron-clad as one of Alabama’s most polarizing figures and one of the greatest coaches in the history of college football. 

Bryant’s list of accomplishments at Alabama is stunning:  six national championships, 13 SEC titles and nine SEC coach of the year awards (he earned another at Kentucky in 1950), and he was named national coach of the year three times. 

More than that, his signature houndstooth hat still resonates as a symbol for Crimson Tide supporters today. 

Even after his death, Bryant’s presence loomed over every coach who had the nearly impossible task of living up to the standards he set. 

While Gene Stallings, a Bryant disciple, was able to win a national title in 1992, guys like Ray Perkins, Bill Curry, Mike DuBose, Dennis Franchione and Mike Shula were mostly overwhelmed by the pressure of leading the Crimson Tide back to the ranks of college football’s elite

This makes what Saban has been able to accomplish in Tuscaloosa even more remarkable. 

Not only has Saban restored Alabama’s football program, he has managed to escape the shadow of the Bear while carving his own niche and rewriting the Crimson Tide football history books. 

Surely, Saban’s body of work in Tuscaloosa is limited, with only a five-year window to evaluate against Bryant’s 25-year tenure that was nothing short of a dynasty. 

However, the SEC was not nearly as strong in Bryant’s run as it is today. 

Saban has won big in an era where the SEC is a juggernaut filled with championship-caliber powerhouses like LSU, Florida and Auburn, amongst others. 

Saban’s run is just beginning, with two titles in the last three years, and considering how hard it is to stay on top in modern times, his stamp on the program will be further immortalized if Alabama keeps its place as the marquee program in the sport today.

Bryant currently has the edge due to the length of his tenure, but if Saban continues to pile up championships at his current pace, there will soon be room at the table of iconic Crimson Tide head coaches for two.

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