Nick Saban Coaching Tree Rankings: Are Curt Cignetti and Mario Cristobal Top 1 & 2?
The GOAT college football coach now sits center stage for ESPN's College GameDay every week during the season, but analysis is far from the only thing Nick Saban provides college football. His legacy lives on in the men who learned under the legend.
Saban's coaching tree has flowered brilliantly lately, and it took center stage during this College Football Playoff as his fingerprints were all over the brackets in the form of the men leading the programs.
The final two coaches standing—Indiana's Curt Cignetti and Miami's Mario Cristobal—learned, built their resumes or resurrected their careers under Saban.
He may have retired a couple of seasons ago, but the man has been around long enough to produce waves of college coaches. That got us thinking, who are the best? While everybody's rankings should have the same top Saban disciple, those below will vary.
Taking into consideration national championships, winning percentage, legacy vs. ceiling and trying to remove even a dash of recency bias, we tried to rank these dudes based on this question: "Who would you want coaching your program in their heyday?"
Some of these rankings may surprise you, but here are the strongest branches of the Saban Coaching Tree.
10. Charles Huff, Memphis Tigers Head Coach
1 of 10
The first potentially controversial pick on this list sits at No. 10, and while you may not think Charles Huff belongs, his rising star proves otherwise.
The 42-year-old, who coached running backs and served as associate head coach under Nick Saban at Alabama in 2019-20, got his chance to lead Marshall's program, leaving Tuscaloosa and never looking back.
While presiding over the Thundering Herd, Huff produced a 32-20 record, four bowl wins and grabbed the Sun Belt title in 2024 before moving onto Southern Miss where he turned around that program in one year, leading the Golden Eagles to a 7-5 record and a bowl win over Louisiana-Monroe.
Now, while it's not exactly a "big break," Huff gets a shot at a more nationally known program, taking over at Memphis for Ryan Silverfield, who left the Tigers to be the head coach at Arkansas.
Huff should lead a program that can contend for the American Athletic Conference title every year, and the next step is a Power Four program. He is on that trajectory, for sure.
9. Billy Napier, James Madison Dukes Head Coach
2 of 10
One coach who already excelled in the Group of Five before getting his shot at the big time is Billy Napier. Though he's coming off a forgettable tenure at Florida, he still has plenty left to prove and time to do it.
The 46-year-old will begin his career resurrection at one of the nation's premiere lower-tier programs.
James Madison is coming off its first-ever College Football Playoff appearance where the Dukes acquitted themselves decently in the second half of a lopsided loss to Oregon. Coach Bob Chesney then left for UCLA.
Now, Napier takes over the Dukes, who are on a coaching heater with Chesney and Curt Cignetti.
Before Napier's wildly successful career at Louisiana launched him to the job at Florida, he was known as a dynamo recruiter under Saban, coaching at Alabama in 2011 and again from 2013-17. He took over the Ragin' Cajuns after an offensive coordinator stint at Arizona State and led them to a 40-12 record.
A brutal 22-23 run in Gainesville did include one winning season, and while Napier must improve his Xs and Os, he can recruit. The guess here is he will do well at JMU.
Maybe that's his ceiling, or maybe Napier will get another shot at the big stage. Regardless, he belongs on the list.
8. Brent Key, Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets Head Coach
3 of 10
Despite overtures from several blue-blood programs this offseason, coach Brent Key decided to stay at his alma mater of Georgia Tech.
That's big news for a Yellow Jackets program that has thrived under the 47-year-old, as he rebuilt the mess left by Geoff Collins, who had to revamp the roster following Paul Johnson's triple-option days.
Doing what Key has done is far from an easy job, but he took over as the interim head coach when Collins was fired, and he did such a good job, they kept him on board. After a 4-4 season as interim in '22, Key had back-to-back 7-6 years before going 9-4 in 2025.
Without quarterback Haynes King, it won't be easy next season, but Key's teams always play tough, they always seem to win games they shouldn't, and if he can keep this upward trajectory going, they'll get players in the recruiting hotbed of Atlanta.
In three-and-a-half seasons, Key is 27-20 at Tech, which is his only head coaching experience.
He coached under Saban at Alabama in 2016-18 before heading to Georgia Tech, and his offensive lines with the Crimson Tide were always among the nation's best. There's a lot to love about the beginning of Key's career.
7. Steve Sarkisian, Texas Longhorns Head Coach
4 of 10
You may think a coach many believe is near the top of his profession right now is ranked too low, and you could probably make a decent argument—but Steve Sarkisian is right where he belongs on this list.
Unlike the next guy, he's simply not broken through to get to The Big One yet. This, despite coaching 12 years at three major Power Four programs.
There's nothing wrong with Sarkisian's 149-94 (.631) career record. After starting his career with four winning years in five seasons at Washington from 2009-13, he got his big shot coaching USC, where he'd been exceptional in helping Pete Carroll to a national championship as offensive coordinator.
Sarkisian's time with the Trojans ended abruptly in his second season after some personal struggles. Saban brought him on at Alabama as an offensive analyst in 2016 before he left for the NFL's Atlanta Falcons for two years. He returned to Tuscaloosa to lead record-setting offenses in 2019-20.
The 51-year-old got another huge break when he replaced Tom Herman at Texas, and he has gone 48-20, brilliantly leading the Longhorns to a 35-7 mark over the past three seasons.
Every year, the 'Horns have a ton of talent, and it seems like a matter of time before Sarkisian has them center stage in a national championship game.
6. Lane Kiffin, LSU Tigers Head Coach
5 of 10
There was no more hotly coveted coach than Lane Kiffin, who flirted with Florida, hem-hawed about staying at Ole Miss and then ultimately bolted for LSU, burning every bridge imaginable while doing so.
If you want controversy, the brash, outspoken, social media-savvy Kiffin is your guy. But make no mistake—he's been pretty darn good on the sideline, too.
Kiffin coached the NFL's Raiders at 31 years old, left Tennessee like a thief in the night after just one year in 2009 for his "dream job" at USC, where he promptly crashed and burned.
Joining the Saban Rehabilitation Program, Kiffin thrived as Alabama's offensive coordinator from 2014-16, butting heads with the head coach along the way. After building Florida Atlantic in three years, he left for Ole Miss.
Oxford is where Kiffin's coaching star took off, leading the Rebels to double-digit wins in four of his six seasons. He won at a place that's been extremely difficult to win at for four decades.
The 50-year-old always has been known as a beast recruiter, and he only got better once the transfer portal came along. The Rebels were contenders every year, finally breaking through to the playoffs.
Now, he's got unlimited support at LSU, tons of talent and the college football world at his fingertips. He's fifth on the list now, but there's dynasty potential in his coaching ability, if he can just stay out of his own way.
5. Mario Cristobal, Miami Hurricanes Head Coach
6 of 10
Yes, we realize Mario Cristobal is coaching in Monday night's national championship game, and, in doing so, he's reached heights that one other ahead of him on this list hasn't as a head coach.
We're taking nothing away from the incredible job the 55-year-old has done with Miami this year. He's amassed talent, and the team has caught fire at the right time.
But you can't just thumb your nose at some of the gaffes, time-management fiascos and end-of-game shenanigans that had Miami (and Oregon) fans shaking their heads at Cristobal's game-day acumen.
Let's get one thing straight, though: Few assemble talent like Super Mario. He was among the nation's best recruiters at Oregon, opening a California pipeline that had the Ducks thriving.
Then, he returned to his alma mater, and while he had two rough years (12-13 record) to start, portal magic with Cam Ward and Carson Beck have led to a 10-3 season and now a 13-2 mark that could end in a natty.
Cristobal's career winning percentage of just .554 is a mark against him, but those early years at Florida International were rough. After serving under Saban from 2013-16, his career took a turn. He built a .729 winning percentage in five years at Oregon, and after the slow start, he's now 53-35 in Coral Gables.
Win Monday night, and he skyrockets up this list.
4. Jimbo Fisher, Former Florida State and Texas A&M Head Coach
7 of 10
When I first hashed out these rankings, Jimbo Fisher was slotted at No. 3. But I just can't justify having him that high on the Nick Saban tree when his time likely has come and gone.
So, my reasoning for him landing here is something Curt Cignetti would scold me for: You never let potential outweigh production. But, in this case, I am. Because I doubt Fisher ever wins another national title, and I think the top three on this list could win several.
Of course, so could Mario Cristobal, Lane Kiffin and Steve Sarkisian. But something has to be said for Fisher's terrific career and .727 winning percentage over 14 years.
Fisher was the first great Saban coaching disciple. He was his play-calling protege at LSU back in the day before heading to Florida State where he eventually took over for Bobby Bowden in 2010.
Fisher's national championship came back in 2013 with Jameis Winston playing quarterback, and after piling up a .783 winning percentage in eight years in Tallahassee, he jumped for a huge contract at Texas A&M.
Fisher never won big like they were paying him to do in College Station, though, going 9-4, 8-5, 9-1, 8-4, 5-7 and 6-4 before getting fired in 2023.
On one hand, Fisher's national championship is a feat just one other coach on this list has accomplished, and at 60 years old, he could have another coaching run in him. But will he ever spend any more time at the top? That's debatable, and it's why he's here.
3. Dan Lanning, Oregon Ducks Head Coach
8 of 10
Is Dan Lanning high on this list full of marquee names? Yes, he is. Does he belong here? Sure, he does.
You know how I know? If you asked every fan if you could pick one man to lead your team for the next 20 years, his name would top the list. He's young, he gets it, and all he does is win.
All that's standing in Lanning's way of the pinnacle of college football is time. He's proved he's among the very best at the ripe, old age of 39. In four years at Oregon, he's a stunning 48-8 (.857 percent). His low-water mark is 10 wins.
Last year, the Ducks were the College Football Playoff's No. 1 seed before running into buzzsaw Ohio State. They were back this year.
Lanning is a monster recruiter who connects with kids, and in the NIL era, he is a powerhouse in the portal game, too.
How about hiring assistants? Well, the Ducks had Kenny Dillingham as offensive coordinator before he left for Arizona State. Dillingham's latest two coordinators—OC Will Stein (Kentucky) and DC Tosh Lupoi (California)—just got head coaching gigs.
Back when Lanning was cutting his teeth as a graduate assistant under Nick Saban at Alabama in 2015, he was a rising star. He thrived under Kirby Smart as Georgia's defensive coordinator, and Oregon made the bold move gambling on his future.
It's paid off. He's the best young coach in the game.
2. Curt Cignetti, Indiana Hoosiers Head Coach
9 of 10
No matter how much you try to poke holes in Indiana football and no matter how you try to make sense of just how quickly and wholly second-year Curt Cignetti turned arguably history's worst Power Four football program into a national title contender, it defies odds.
So, while he isn't a spring chicken at 64 years old, and he's really only been in the national spotlight just a couple of seasons, I'm comfortable putting him all the way up at No. 2 on this list.
What Cignetti has done in Bloomington just hasn't been done before at this level. He doesn't have a roster loaded with 5- and 4-stars. He doesn't go out and get the guys at the top of the transfer portal rankings. But the Hoosiers win, and they win big.
Simply put, as Cignetti famously said at his introductory press conference, "I win. Google me."
Indeed, he does. He was essentially a career assistant who was with Nick Saban at Alabama from 2007-10 as wide receivers coach and recruiting coordinator. He got his chance to be a head coach and thrived.
He did at Indiana University of Pennsylvania, and he did at Elon. In two years at James Madison, he was 19-4. Since coming to IU, he's 26-2 in two years, won the Big Ten and surpassed powerhouses Ohio State, Michigan, Penn State, Oregon. Overall, he's 145-37 with a .797 winning percentage.
He's a brilliant Xs and Os guy, he's a master motivator, and he obviously develops talent with the best of them. It's really just a bummer we're only getting to witness his coaching greatness relatively late in his career.
Maybe we'll get to see him dominate for 10 more years.
1. Kirby Smart, Georgia Bulldogs Head Coach
10 of 10
In this day and age of college football, it's going to be extremely difficult to build a dynasty. What Kirby Smart has done at his alma mater of Georgia is as close as you're probably going to get to what Nick Saban accomplished at Alabama.
Smart, of course, was a huge part of that run with the Crimson Tide, architecting Saban's defense from 2007-15. When he got the chance to jump to the Bulldogs and replace Mark Richt, he did.
The rest is history.
The 50-year-old is an amazing 117-21 in Athens, a ridiculous .848 winning percentage. Even though the Bulldogs have been on a bit of a drought since winning back-to-back national championships in 2022-23, they're still 23-5 over the past two years.
If that constitutes a dry spell in this day and age of the sport, every other team in the nation would be OK with it.
Smart doesn't love the transfer portal, but he's still done a good job of outfitting his roster with players. It's tough for the Bulldogs to do, though, considering that Smart is the best recruiter in the sport and always builds top-tier classes.
Each year, UGA has a championship-caliber defense, and the Bulldogs are a threat to win the national title every single season. When it comes to wins, recruiting, national championship potential and age upside, Smart is far-and-away the top coach from the Saban tree.
.png?w=600 "Who Will Panthers Take at No. 9 ? 🤔")