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Nicholas Lou Saban Jr. (; born October 31, 1951) is an
American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with ...
coach who has been the head football coach at the
University of Alabama The University of Alabama (informally known as Alabama, UA, or Bama) is a Public university, public research university in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Established in 1820 and opened to students in 1831, the University of Alabama is the oldest and la ...
since 2007. Saban previously served as head coach of the
National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...
's
Miami Dolphins The Miami Dolphins are a professional American football team based in the Miami metropolitan area. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member team of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. The team pla ...
and at three other universities:
Louisiana State University Louisiana State University (officially Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, commonly referred to as LSU) is a public land-grant research university in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The university was founded in 1860 nea ...
(LSU),
Michigan State University Michigan State University (Michigan State, MSU) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in East Lansing, Michigan. It was founded in 1855 as the Agricultural College of the State of Michigan, the fi ...
, and the
University of Toledo The University of Toledo (UToledo or UT) is a public research university in Toledo, Ohio. It is the northernmost campus of the University System of Ohio. The university also operates a Health Science campus, which includes the University of T ...
. Saban is considered by many to be the greatest coach in
college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...
history. Saban led the
LSU Tigers The LSU Tigers and Lady Tigers are the athletic teams representing Louisiana State University (LSU), a state university located in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. LSU competes in Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) as a ...
to the BCS National Championship in 2003 and the
Alabama Crimson Tide The Alabama Crimson Tide refers to the intercollegiate athletic varsity teams that represent the University of Alabama, located in Tuscaloosa. The Crimson Tide teams compete in the National Collegiate Athletic Association's Division I as a me ...
to BCS and AP national championships in 2009, 2011, 2012, and
College Football Playoff The College Football Playoff (CFP) is an annual postseason knockout invitational tournament to determine a national champion for the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS), the highest level ...
championships in 2015, 2017 and 2020. He has won seven national titles as a head coach, the most in college football history. He became the first coach in college football history to win a
national championship A national championship(s) is the top achievement for any sport or competition, contest within a league of a particular nation or nation state. The title is usually awarded by contests, ranking systems, stature, ability, etc. This determines the be ...
with two different
Football Bowl Subdivision The NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS), formerly known as Division I-A, is the highest level of college football in the United States. The FBS consists of the largest schools in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). As ...
(FBS) schools since the inception of the
AP Poll The Associated Press poll (AP poll) provides weekly rankings of the top 25 NCAA teams in one of three Division I college sports: football, men's basketball and women's basketball. The rankings are compiled by polling 62 sportswriters and broadca ...
in 1936. Saban and
Bear Bryant Paul William "Bear" Bryant (September 11, 1913 – January 26, 1983) was an American college football player and coach. He is considered by many to be one of the greatest college football coaches of all time, and best known as the head coach of ...
are the only coaches to win an SEC championship at two different schools. Saban's career record as a college head coach is 279–69–1. In 2013, Saban was inducted into the
Alabama Sports Hall of Fame The Alabama Sports Hall of Fame (ASHOF) is a state museum located in Birmingham, Alabama, dedicated to communicating the state’s athletic history. The museum displays over 5,000 objects related to athletes who were born in Alabama or earned fame ...
. Saban has coached four
Heisman Trophy The Heisman Memorial Trophy (usually known colloquially as the Heisman Trophy or The Heisman) is awarded annually to the most outstanding player in college football. Winners epitomize great ability combined with diligence, perseverance, and hard ...
winners at Alabama:
Mark Ingram II Mark Valentino Ingram II (born December 21, 1989) is an American football running back for the New Orleans Saints of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Alabama, where he was the first Alabama player to win the Heis ...
(2009),
Derrick Henry Derrick Lamar Henry Jr. (born January 4, 1994) is an American football running back for the Tennessee Titans of the National Football League (NFL). His imposing rushing game and larger stature than the average running back earned him the nickna ...
(2015),
DeVonta Smith DeVonta Smith ( ; born November 14, 1998) is an American football wide receiver for the Philadelphia Eagles of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Alabama, where he recorded over 1,800 yards with 23 touchdowns as a ...
(2020), and
Bryce Young Bryce Christopher Young (born July 25, 2001) is an American football quarterback for the Alabama Crimson Tide. He holds the record for most passing yards in a single game by an Alabama quarterback (559) and was the recipient of the 2021 Heisma ...
(2021).


Early life and education

Saban was born in
Fairmont, West Virginia Fairmont is a city in and county seat of Marion County, West Virginia, United States. The population was 18,313 at the 2020 census. It is the principal city of the Fairmont Micropolitan Statistical Area, which includes all of Marion County, a ...
, to Mary and Nick Lou Saban, Sr. He grew up with a sister, Dianna, and graduated from Monongah High School in the small community of
Monongah, West Virginia Monongah is a town in Marion County, West Virginia, United States, situated where Booths Creek flows into the West Fork River. The population was 972 at the 2020 census. Monongah was chartered in 1891, based on Chapter 47 of West Virginia code. ...
, about 25miles (40 km) southwest of Morgantown. Saban is of Croatian ancestry. His paternal grandfather, Stanko Saban, was born in 1895 in
Gospić Gospić () is a town in the mountainous and sparsely populated region of Lika, Croatia. It is the administrative centre of Lika-Senj County. Gospić is located near the Lika River in the middle of a karst field ( Ličko Polje). Gospić is the ...
, in the
Lika Lika () is a traditional region of Croatia proper, roughly bound by the Velebit mountain from the southwest and the Plješevica mountain from the northeast. On the north-west end Lika is bounded by Ogulin-Plaški basin, and on the south-east by ...
region of
Croatia , image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg , anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland") , image_map = , map_caption = , capit ...
. Stanko emigrated to
Portland, Oregon Portland (, ) is a port city in the Pacific Northwest and the largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon. Situated at the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers, Portland is the county seat of Multnomah County, the most populous co ...
, in 1908, when he was 13 years old. He later married Anna Mihalic, of Croatian-American heritage. Saban played quarterback on the 1968 West Virginia state championship team. Among his teammates were
Kerry Marbury Kerry Marbury (March 21, 1952 – June 23, 2019) was a Canadian football running back in the Canadian Football League who played for the Toronto Argonauts and Ottawa Rough Riders. He played college football for the West Virginia Mountaineers. H ...
, who went on to star for the
West Virginia Mountaineers The West Virginia Mountaineers are the athletic teams that represent West Virginia University, an American university located in Morgantown, West Virginia. The school is a member of National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I. The Moun ...
and play in the
Canadian Football League The Canadian Football League (CFL; french: Ligue canadienne de football—LCF) is a professional sports league in Canada. The CFL is the highest level of competition in Canadian football. The league consists of nine teams, each located in a ci ...
. On December 18, 1971, Saban married Terry Constable, also from West Virginia. In 1973, he graduated from
Kent State University Kent State University (KSU) is a public research university in Kent, Ohio. The university also includes seven regional campuses in Northeast Ohio and additional facilities in the region and internationally. Regional campuses are located in As ...
with a
bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Middle Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate academic degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six ...
in business. Saban played defensive back for Kent State under coach Don James. He and a roommate avoided being part of the
Kent State shootings The Kent State shootings, also known as the May 4 massacre and the Kent State massacre,"These would be the first of many probes into what soon became known as the Kent State Massacre. Like the Boston Massacre almost exactly two hundred years bef ...
, on May 4, 1970, when they decided to eat lunch before walking to the rally area. In 1975, Saban earned his
master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is an academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice.
in sports administration from Kent State. Saban's father died during his son's first year of
graduate school Postgraduate or graduate education refers to Academic degree, academic or professional degrees, certificates, diplomas, or other qualifications pursued by higher education, post-secondary students who have earned an Undergraduate education, un ...
.


Coaching career


Early coaching career

Saban had not intended to enter the coaching ranks until Don James hired him as a graduate assistant at Kent State, while Saban waited for his wife to graduate. He later served as an assistant coach in
NCAA Division I-A The NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS), formerly known as Division I-A, is the highest level of college football in the United States. The FBS consists of the largest schools in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). As ...
, at several schools: Syracuse in 1977,
West Virginia West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian, Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States.The Census Bureau and the Association of American Geographers classify West Virginia as part of the Southern United States while the Bur ...
in
1978 Events January * January 1 – Air India Flight 855, a Boeing 747 passenger jet, crashes off the coast of Bombay, killing 213. * January 5 – Bülent Ecevit, of Republican People's Party, CHP, forms the new government of Turkey (42nd go ...
and 1979,
Ohio State The Ohio State University, commonly called Ohio State or OSU, is a public land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio. A member of the University System of Ohio, it has been ranked by major institutional rankings among the best public ...
in
1980 Events January * January 4 – U.S. President Jimmy Carter proclaims a grain embargo against the USSR with the support of the European Commission. * January 6 – Global Positioning System time epoch begins at 00:00 UTC. * January 9 – ...
and
1981 Events January * January 1 ** Greece enters the European Economic Community, predecessor of the European Union. ** Palau becomes a self-governing territory. * January 10 – Salvadoran Civil War: The FMLN launches its first major offensiv ...
,
Navy A navy, naval force, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval warfare, naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral zone, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations and ...
in
1982 Events January * January 1 – In Malaysia and Singapore, clocks are adjusted to the same time zone, UTC+8 (GMT+8.00). * January 13 – Air Florida Flight 90 crashes shortly after takeoff into the 14th Street bridges, 14th Street Bridge in ...
, and
Michigan State Michigan State University (Michigan State, MSU) is a public land-grant research university in East Lansing, Michigan. It was founded in 1855 as the Agricultural College of the State of Michigan, the first of its kind in the United States. It i ...
from 1983 to
1987 File:1987 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The MS Herald of Free Enterprise capsizes after leaving the Port of Zeebrugge in Belgium, killing 193; Northwest Airlines Flight 255 crashes after takeoff from Detroit Metropolitan Airport, k ...
. After the 1987 season, Kent State passed over Saban for its vacant head coaching position and hired Dick Crum. Saban was then hired as an assistant for the
Houston Oilers The Houston Oilers were a professional American football team that played in Houston from its founding in 1960 to 1996 before relocating to Memphis, and later Nashville, Tennessee becoming the Tennessee Titans. The Oilers began play in 1960 as ...
in the
National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...
.


Toledo

Saban began his career as a head coach when he was hired by the
University of Toledo The University of Toledo (UToledo or UT) is a public research university in Toledo, Ohio. It is the northernmost campus of the University System of Ohio. The university also operates a Health Science campus, which includes the University of T ...
on December 22, 1989. Coming off of 6–5 seasons in both
1988 File:1988 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The oil platform Piper Alpha explodes and collapses in the North Sea, killing 165 workers; The USS Vincennes (CG-49) mistakenly shoots down Iran Air Flight 655; Australia celebrates its Australian ...
and 1989, the
Rockets A rocket (from it, rocchetto, , bobbin/spool) is a vehicle that uses jet propulsion to accelerate without using the surrounding air. A rocket engine produces thrust by reaction to exhaust expelled at high speed. Rocket engines work entirely fr ...
found quick success under Nick Saban in
1990 File:1990 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 1990 FIFA World Cup is played in Italy; The Human Genome Project is launched; Voyager I takes the famous Pale Blue Dot image- speaking on the fragility of Humankind, humanity on Earth, Astroph ...
. With a 9–2 season, Toledo was co-champion of the
Mid-American Conference The Mid-American Conference (MAC) is a National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I collegiate athletic conference with a membership base in the Great Lakes region that stretches from Western New York to Illinois. Nine of the twel ...
. The two games the Rockets lost that season were by narrow margins: one point to
Central Michigan Central Michigan, also called Mid Michigan, is a region in the Lower Peninsula of the U.S. state of Michigan. As its name implies, it is the middle area of the Lower Peninsula. Lower Michigan is said to resemble a mitten, and Mid Michigan cor ...
and four points to
Navy A navy, naval force, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval warfare, naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral zone, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations and ...
. While coaching in Toledo, Saban turned down an application from future head coach
Urban Meyer Urban Frank Meyer III (born July 10, 1964) is a college football TV commentator and former American football coach. He spent most of his coaching career at the collegiate level, having served as the head coach of the Bowling Green Falcons fro ...
, who was looking for any coaching job on Saban's staff.


Cleveland Browns

The following February, Saban resigned as Toledo's head coach after only one season in order to become
defensive coordinator A defensive coordinator is a coach responsible for a gridiron football (American football) team's defense. Generally, the defensive coordinator, the offensive coordinator and the special teams coordinator represent the second level of a team's c ...
of the
Cleveland Browns The Cleveland Browns are a professional American football team based in Cleveland. Named after original coach and co-founder Paul Brown, they compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference ( ...
under head coach
Bill Belichick William Stephen Belichick (; born April 16, 1952) is an American professional football coach who is the head coach of the New England Patriots of the National Football League (NFL). Additionally, he exercises extensive authority over the Patri ...
. He remained in that position for four seasons. Saban helped lead the 1994 defensive unit for the Browns that was the best in the NFL in points allowed. Saban later said these four years were the "worst of my life".


Michigan State

Saban became head coach of
Michigan State Michigan State University (Michigan State, MSU) is a public land-grant research university in East Lansing, Michigan. It was founded in 1855 as the Agricultural College of the State of Michigan, the first of its kind in the United States. It i ...
prior to the 1995 season. Michigan State had not had a winning season since
1990 File:1990 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 1990 FIFA World Cup is played in Italy; The Human Genome Project is launched; Voyager I takes the famous Pale Blue Dot image- speaking on the fragility of Humankind, humanity on Earth, Astroph ...
, and the team was sanctioned by the NCAA for recruiting violations that were committed under his predecessor and former mentor,
George Perles George Julius Perles (July 16, 1934 – January 7, 2020) was an American football player and coach. He was a defensive line coach, defensive coordinator, and assistant head coach for the National Football League's Pittsburgh Steelers from 1972 to ...
. Beginning in
1995 File:1995 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: O.J. Simpson is O. J. Simpson murder case, acquitted of the murders of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman from the 1994, year prior in "The Trial of the Century" in the United States; The ...
, Saban moderately improved Michigan State's fortunes, taking the Spartans to bowl games in each of his first three seasons. From 1995 to
1997 File:1997 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The movie set of ''Titanic'', the highest-grossing movie in history at the time; ''Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone'', is published; Comet Hale-Bopp passes by Earth and becomes one of t ...
, Michigan State finished 6–5–1, 6–6, and 7–5. In comparison, MSU had finished 5–6, 6–6, and 5–6 (prior to NCAA forfeits) in 1992–1994. On November 7, 1998, the Spartans upset the No.1 ranked
Ohio State Buckeyes The Ohio State Buckeyes are the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent Ohio State University, located in Columbus, Ohio. The athletic programs are named after the colloquial term for people from the state of Ohio and after the state tree ...
28–24 at
Ohio Stadium Ohio Stadium is an American football stadium in Columbus, Ohio, on the campus of Ohio State University. It primarily serves as the home venue of the Ohio State Buckeyes football team and is also the site for the university's Spring Commencement c ...
. However, even after the upset and an early-season rout of then-highly ranked Notre Dame the Spartans finished 6–6, including three last-minute losses featuring turnovers, defensive lapses, and special-teams misplays, and failed to earn a bowl invitation. Saban led the 1999 Spartans to a 9–2 season that included wins over Notre Dame,
Michigan Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...
,
Ohio State The Ohio State University, commonly called Ohio State or OSU, is a public land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio. A member of the University System of Ohio, it has been ranked by major institutional rankings among the best public ...
, and
Penn State #Redirect Pennsylvania State University The Pennsylvania State University (Penn State or PSU) is a Public university, public Commonwealth System of Higher Education, state-related Land-grant university, land-grant research university with campu ...
. The two losses were routs at the hands of
Purdue Purdue University is a public land-grant research university in West Lafayette, Indiana, and the flagship campus of the Purdue University system. The university was founded in 1869 after Lafayette businessman John Purdue donated land and money ...
and
Wisconsin Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake M ...
. Following the final regular-season game against Penn State, Saban abruptly resigned to accept the head coaching position with
LSU Louisiana State University (officially Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, commonly referred to as LSU) is a public land-grant research university in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The university was founded in 1860 near ...
. Saban's assistant head coach and successor,
Bobby Williams Robert Vann Williams (born November 21, 1958) is an American football coach who most recently served as the special teams coordinator and tight ends coach at the University of Oregon from 2018 to 2021. Williams served as the head coach at Mich ...
, coached the Spartans to a Citrus Bowl victory over
Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...
, giving the Spartans an overall record of 10–2 for the 1999 season. It was the most wins for the Spartans in a season since
1965 Events January–February * January 14 – The Prime Minister of Northern Ireland and the Taoiseach of the Republic of Ireland meet for the first time in 43 years. * January 20 ** Lyndon B. Johnson is Second inauguration of Lyndo ...
, and the Spartans reached their highest ranking since the 1966 team. Future NFL head coach
Josh McDaniels Joshua Thomas McDaniels (born April 22, 1976) is an American football head coach for the Las Vegas Raiders of the National Football League (NFL). He began his NFL career in 2001 with the New England Patriots, where he served as the offensive coo ...
served as a graduate assistant on Saban's 1999 coaching staff.


LSU

In November 1999, LSU named Nick Saban as their 31st head football coach. In
2000 File:2000 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Protests against Bush v. Gore after the 2000 United States presidential election; Heads of state meet for the Millennium Summit; The International Space Station in its infant form as seen from ...
, the Tigers went 8–4 and won the
Peach Bowl The Peach Bowl is an annual college football bowl game played in Atlanta, Georgia since December 1968. Since 1997, it has been sponsored by Chick-fil-A and is officially known as the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl. From 2006 to 2013, it was officially ...
. The season was somewhat marred by several lopsided losses, including a 34–17 loss to the
Auburn Tigers The Auburn Tigers are the athletic teams representing Auburn University, a public four-year coeducational university located in Auburn, Alabama, United States. The Auburn Tigers compete in Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Associat ...
, and a 41–9 loss to the
Florida Gators The Florida Gators are the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the University of Florida, located in Gainesville. The University of Florida, its athletic program, its alumni and its sports fans are often collectively referred to as t ...
. Saban led LSU to a 10–3 record in
2001 The September 11 attacks against the United States by Al-Qaeda, which Casualties of the September 11 attacks, killed 2,977 people and instigated the global war on terror, were a defining event of 2001. The United States led a Participants in ...
, including an SEC Championship and a Sugar Bowl victory. After a loss to the Ole Miss Rebels, the Tigers finished the year with six straight wins, including a win over #2 Tennessee in the 2001 SEC Championship Game, and a 47–34 win over
Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...
in the 2002 Sugar Bowl. It was the first outright SEC championship for LSU since
1986 The year 1986 was designated as the International Year of Peace by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** Aruba gains increased autonomy from the Netherlands by separating from the Netherlands Antilles. **Spain and Portugal ente ...
, and the first time the Tigers had won the Sugar Bowl since 1968. The 2002 season opened with high expectations, but a 26–8 loss at the hands of
Virginia Tech Virginia Tech (formally the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University and informally VT, or VPI) is a Public university, public Land-grant college, land-grant research university with its main campus in Blacksburg, Virginia. It also ...
raised serious questions about their outlook. However, the Tigers would rebound to win their next six straight, but after a mid-season injury to quarterback
Matt Mauck Matthew Ryan Mauck (born February 12, 1979) is a former American football quarterback who played professionally in the National Football League (NFL) for the Denver Broncos and Tennessee Titans. He played college football at LSU Tigers football ...
, LSU lost four of its last six games to close the season, including a 21–20 loss at
Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the South Central United States. It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the Osage ...
, which knocked the Tigers out of the SEC Championship Game, and forced them to share the SEC West Division title with the Razorbacks. LSU also suffered a 35–20 loss to Texas in the
Cotton Bowl Classic The Cotton Bowl Classic (also known as the Cotton Bowl) is an American college football bowl game that has been held annually in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex since January 1, 1937. The game was originally played at its namesake stadium i ...
, and finished 8–5. The
2003 File:2003 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The crew of STS-107 perished when the Space Shuttle Columbia disintegrated during reentry into Earth's atmosphere; SARS became an epidemic in China, and was a precursor to SARS-CoV-2; A des ...
Tigers started the season with five wins, including a 17–10 victory in Tiger Stadium over the defending SEC champion, and then-undefeated,
Georgia Bulldogs The Georgia Bulldogs are the athletic teams that represent the University of Georgia. The female athletic teams are sometimes referred to as Lady Bulldogs. The Bulldogs compete in NCAA Division I and are members of the Southeastern Conference ( ...
. LSU lost the following week to
Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...
, 19–7. After the loss to Florida, LSU did not lose again in the regular season and ended its regular season with a win over the
Arkansas Razorbacks The Arkansas Razorbacks, also known as the Hogs, are the intercollegiate athletics teams representing the University of Arkansas, located in Fayetteville. The University of Arkansas student body voted to change the name of the school mascot (ori ...
to win the SEC West. After winning the SEC West, the Tigers defeated the Georgia Bulldogs in the SEC Championship Game in Atlanta. They were ranked No. 2 in the BCS standings and advanced to play the BCS No.1
Oklahoma Sooners The Oklahoma Sooners are the athletic teams that represent the University of Oklahoma, located in Norman. The 19 men's and women's varsity teams are called the "Sooners", a reference to a nickname given to the early participants in the Land Run ...
in the
Sugar Bowl The Sugar Bowl is an annual American college football bowl game played in New Orleans, Louisiana. Played annually since January 1, 1935, it is tied with the Orange Bowl and Sun Bowl as the second-oldest bowl games in the country, surpassed onl ...
, which was the host of the BCS Championship Game in 2003. The Tigers won the game 21–14. The win gave LSU the BCS national championship and a 13–1 finish for the season. LSU finished the 2004 season 9–3, after losing to the
Iowa Hawkeyes The Iowa Hawkeyes are the athletic teams that represent the University of Iowa, located in Iowa City, Iowa. The Hawkeyes have varsity teams in 22 sports, 8 for men and 14 for women; a 15th women's sport will be added in 2023. The teams partici ...
in the
Capital One Bowl The Citrus Bowl is an annual college football bowl game played at Camping World Stadium in Orlando, Florida. The bowl is operated by Florida Citrus Sports, a non-profit group that also organizes the Cheez-It Bowl and Florida Classic. The gam ...
30–25 on a final play touchdown pass. Other losses that season were on the road at Auburn 10–9, and a loss on the road to Georgia 45–16. At the end of the 2004 season, Saban left LSU to coach the
Miami Dolphins The Miami Dolphins are a professional American football team based in the Miami metropolitan area. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member team of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. The team pla ...
.


Miami Dolphins

Saban accepted the head coaching position for the
Miami Dolphins The Miami Dolphins are a professional American football team based in the Miami metropolitan area. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member team of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. The team pla ...
on December 25, 2004. He was the sixth coach in the franchise's history. The Nick Saban era officially kicked off with a 34–10 win over the
Denver Broncos The Denver Broncos are a professional American football franchise based in Denver. The Broncos compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The team is headquart ...
in
2005 File:2005 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: Hurricane Katrina in the Gulf of Mexico; the Funeral of Pope John Paul II is held in Vatican City; "Me at the zoo", the first video ever to be uploaded to YouTube; Eris was discovered in ...
. From there, however, the Dolphins struggled, losing seven of their next nine games to fall to 3–7. The two wins came over the
Carolina Panthers The Carolina Panthers are a professional American football team based in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Panthers compete in the National Football League (NFL), as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. T ...
and the
New Orleans Saints The New Orleans Saints are a professional American football team based in New Orleans. The Saints compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. Since 1975, the te ...
, a game that took place in Tiger Stadium due to
Hurricane Katrina Hurricane Katrina was a destructive Category 5 Atlantic hurricane that caused over 1,800 fatalities and $125 billion in damage in late August 2005, especially in the city of New Orleans and the surrounding areas. It was at the time the cost ...
. After a frustrating two months, however, the Dolphins would rally late in the season, as they won their final six games, including a win to end the season in
Foxboro, Massachusetts Foxborough is a town in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States, about southwest of Boston, northeast of Providence, Rhode Island and about northwest of Cape Cod. Foxborough is part of the Greater Boston area. The population was 18,618 a ...
over the
New England Patriots The New England Patriots are a professional American football team based in the Greater Boston area. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East divisio ...
. The team finished the year with a 9–7 record, and narrowly missed the playoffs in Saban's first season. Going into the 2006 season, the Dolphins were expected to contend for a playoff spot. The season, however, turned out to be a major disappointment. The Dolphins were considering quarterback
Drew Brees Drew Christopher Brees (; born January 15, 1979) is an American former football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 20 seasons. A member of the New Orleans Saints for most of his career, Brees is the NFL leader in ...
, who had just been released from the
San Diego Chargers The San Diego Chargers were a professional American football team that played in San Diego from 1961 until the end of the 2016 season, before relocating to Los Angeles, where the franchise had played its inaugural 1960 season. The team is now ...
due to a career-threatening shoulder injury and subsequent contract dispute, but instead signed
Daunte Culpepper Daunte Rachard Culpepper (born January 28, 1977) is a former American football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 11 seasons, primarily with the Minnesota Vikings. He played college football at UCF and was selected ...
, who was still recovering from a knee injury from the previous season. Culpepper never fully recovered and was ultimately benched after the fourth game of the season, when the Dolphins lost to the
Houston Texans The Houston Texans are a professional American football team based in Houston. The Texans compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division, and play their home ga ...
. He was eventually put on
injured reserve The injured reserve list ( IR list) is a designation used in North American professional sports leagues for athletes who suffer injuries and become unable to play. The exact name of the list varies by league; it is known as "injured reserve" in th ...
. After starting the season 1–6, however, the Dolphins got hot. They won four straight games, including wins over the
Chicago Bears The Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago. The Bears compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) North division. The Bears have won nine NF ...
, who were previously unbeaten and made it to the
Super Bowl The Super Bowl is the annual final playoff game of the National Football League (NFL) to determine the league champion. It has served as the final game of every NFL season since 1966, replacing the NFL Championship Game. Since 2022, the game ...
that year, and the
Kansas City Chiefs The Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Chiefs compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The tea ...
. Suddenly, the Dolphins were back in the playoff hunt at 5–6, but a 24–10 loss the following week to the
Jacksonville Jaguars The Jacksonville Jaguars are a professional American football team based in Jacksonville, Florida. The Jaguars compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) South division. The team play ...
all but ended their playoff hopes. The Dolphins would rebound the following week with a 21–0 win over the
New England Patriots The New England Patriots are a professional American football team based in the Greater Boston area. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East divisio ...
. The win would be the last bright spot for the Dolphins in the 2006 season. Quarterback
Joey Harrington John Joseph Harrington Jr. (born October 21, 1978) is a former American football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for seven seasons, primarily with the Detroit Lions. He played college football at Oregon, where he w ...
was eventually benched in favor of third-string quarterback
Cleo Lemon Cleo Lemon Jr. (born August 16, 1979) is a wide receivers coach for the Jacksonville State Gamecocks and former American football quarterback in the National Football League and Canadian Football League. He most recently played for the Toronto Arg ...
. While the defense was very good, the offense was anemic, with the only bright spot being running back
Ronnie Brown Ronnie G. Brown Jr. (born December 12, 1981) is a former American football running back. After graduating from Cartersville High School in Georgia, Brown attended Auburn University to play college football for the Auburn Tigers. He and Cadill ...
, who gained over 1,000 rushing yards on the season. The Dolphins would lose their next two games to the
Buffalo Bills The Buffalo Bills are a professional American football team based in the Buffalo metropolitan area. The Bills compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. ...
and the
New York Jets The New York Jets are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Jets compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. The J ...
to finish 6–10, Saban's first losing season as a head coach. On November 27, 2006, the
University of Alabama The University of Alabama (informally known as Alabama, UA, or Bama) is a Public university, public research university in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Established in 1820 and opened to students in 1831, the University of Alabama is the oldest and la ...
announced the firing of head coach
Mike Shula Mike Shula (born June 3, 1965) is an American football coach who is the senior offensive assistant coach for the Buffalo Bills of the National Football League (NFL). A graduate of the University of Alabama, he was the school's head football coa ...
. Saban was rumored to be at the top of Alabama's wish list, but Saban refused to discuss the job while his NFL season was still underway. During the month of December 2006, Saban was repeatedly questioned by the media about the Alabama job, and he repeatedly denied the rumors in his weekly press conferences, stating on December 21 "I guess I have to say it. I'm not going to be the Alabama coach." Saban met with Alabama officials on January 1, 2007, which was shortly after the Dolphins' season-ending loss to the
Indianapolis Colts The Indianapolis Colts are a professional American football team based in Indianapolis. The Colts compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) South division. Since the 2008 ...
.


Alabama


2007 season

On January 3, 2007, following a meeting with Dolphins owner
Wayne Huizenga Harry Wayne Huizenga Sr. (; December 29, 1937 – March 22, 2018) was an American businessman, entrepreneur, and philanthropist. He founded AutoNation and Waste Management Inc., and was the owner or co-owner of Blockbuster Video, the Miami ...
, Saban announced that he had accepted an offer to become
Alabama (We dare defend our rights) , anthem = "Alabama (state song), Alabama" , image_map = Alabama in United States.svg , seat = Montgomery, Alabama, Montgomery , LargestCity = Huntsville, Alabama, Huntsville , LargestCounty = Baldwin County, Al ...
's 27thhead coach. His initial eight-year contract totaling made him one of the highest-paid football coaches, professional or collegiate, in the United States at the time. On January 4, 2007, at a press conference on the Alabama campus, Saban was officially introduced as the head football coach of The University of Alabama. On September 1,
2007 File:2007 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Steve Jobs unveils Apple's first iPhone; TAM Airlines Flight 3054 overruns a runway and crashes into a gas station, killing almost 200 people; Former Pakistani Prime Minister of Pakistan, Pr ...
, his Crimson Tide opened the season with a 52–6 win over the Western Carolina Catamounts, scoring more points than during any game in the 2006 season. Saban became the fifth Alabama coach since 1900 to start his first season 3–0, earning a win over then-ranked No.16
Arkansas Razorbacks The Arkansas Razorbacks, also known as the Hogs, are the intercollegiate athletics teams representing the University of Arkansas, located in Fayetteville. The University of Arkansas student body voted to change the name of the school mascot (ori ...
. Alabama ended the regular season with a 6–6 record, including a four-game losing streak, a particularly humiliating loss at home to
Louisiana-Monroe The University of Louisiana Monroe (ULM) is a public university in Monroe, Louisiana. It is part of the University of Louisiana System. History ULM opened in 1931 as Ouachita Parish Junior College. Three years later it became the Northeast Ce ...
, and a sixth straight loss to
Auburn Auburn may refer to: Places Australia * Auburn, New South Wales * City of Auburn, the local government area *Electoral district of Auburn *Auburn, Queensland, a locality in the Western Downs Region *Auburn, South Australia *Auburn, Tasmania *Aub ...
in the
Iron Bowl The Alabama–Auburn football rivalry, better known as the Iron Bowl, is an American college football rivalry game between the Auburn University Tigers and University of Alabama Crimson Tide, both charter members of the Southeastern Conferenc ...
. All six of Alabama's losses were by seven points or less. The Crimson Tide defeated
Colorado Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of t ...
in the 2007 Independence Bowl, 30–24, to end the year 7–6.


2008 season

During his
second year Second year (also known as S2 in Scotland) is the second year of schooling in secondary schools in Scotland and in the Republic of Ireland, and is roughly equivalent to Year 9 in England and Wales and Year 10 (Third Form) in Northern Ireland. M ...
as head coach of the Tide, Saban led his team from a sub-par season in 2007 to a perfect 12–0 regular season record. Saban finished the regular season undefeated for the first time in his career as a head coach as he led the Crimson Tide to its first undefeated regular season since
1994 File:1994 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 1994 Winter Olympics are held in Lillehammer, Norway; The Kaiser Permanente building after the 1994 Northridge earthquake; A model of the MS Estonia, which Sinking of the MS Estonia, sank in ...
. He appeared on the September 1, 2008, cover of ''
Forbes ''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine owned by Integrated Whale Media Investments and the Forbes family. Published eight times a year, it features articles on finance, industry, investing, and marketing topics. ''Forbes'' also re ...
'' magazine as "The Most Powerful Coach in Sports." His second season as Alabama head coach began with a 34–10 victory over the No.9 ranked
Clemson Tigers The Clemson Tigers are the athletic teams that represent Clemson University, located in Clemson, South Carolina. They compete as a member of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I level (Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) ...
in the
Chick-fil-A College Kickoff The Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game is an annual series of college football games played on the opening weekend of the NCAA Division I FBS season in Atlanta, Georgia. Organized by the Peach Bowl, the event coincides with Labor Day weekend in the Unit ...
in the
Georgia Dome The Georgia Dome was a domed stadium in the Southeastern United States. Located in Atlanta between downtown to the east and Vine City to the west, it was owned and operated by the State of Georgia as part of the Georgia World Congress Center ...
. Alabama won the next two games against
Tulane Tulane University, officially the Tulane University of Louisiana, is a private research university in New Orleans, Louisiana. Founded as the Medical College of Louisiana in 1834 by seven young medical doctors, it turned into a comprehensive pub ...
and
Western Kentucky Western Kentucky is the western portion of the U.S. state of Kentucky. It generally includes part or all of several more widely recognized regions of the state. ;Always included * The Jackson Purchase, the state's westernmost generally recogniz ...
before entering SEC play. In the following game, Alabama had a convincing 49–14 road-win over
Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the South Central United States. It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the Osage ...
. The Tide followed that victory with an impressive 41–30 win over the No.3 ranked
Georgia Bulldogs The Georgia Bulldogs are the athletic teams that represent the University of Georgia. The female athletic teams are sometimes referred to as Lady Bulldogs. The Bulldogs compete in NCAA Division I and are members of the Southeastern Conference ( ...
. After the Georgia game, the Tide won consecutive home games against the
Kentucky Wildcats The Kentucky Wildcats are the men's and women's intercollegiate athletic squads of the University of Kentucky (UK), a founding member of the Southeastern Conference. The Kentucky Wildcats is the student body of the University of Kentucky. 30,473 ...
and the
Ole Miss Rebels The Ole Miss Rebels are the 18 men's and women's intercollegiate athletic teams that are funded by and represent the University of Mississippi, located in Oxford. The first was the football team, which began play in 1893. Originally known as th ...
and finished the month of October with a 29–9 victory over the
Tennessee Volunteers The Tennessee Volunteers and Lady Volunteers are the 20 male and female varsity college athletics, intercollegiate athletics programs that represent the University of Tennessee in Knoxville, Tennessee. The Volunteers compete in NCAA Division I, ...
. Following a 35–0 homecoming victory over
Arkansas State Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the South Central United States. It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the Osage l ...
, the Crimson Tide rose to No.1 in all major polls in Week 10following a loss by No.1
Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...
to the
Texas Tech Red Raiders The Texas Tech Red Raiders and Lady Raiders are the athletic teams that represent Texas Tech University, located in Lubbock, Texas. The women's basketball team uses the name Lady Raiders, while the school's other women's teams use the "Red Raide ...
. It was the first time since the 1980 season that Alabama held the top spot during the regular season. The Tide took their No.1 ranking into
Baton Rouge, Louisiana Baton Rouge ( ; ) is a city in and the capital of the U.S. state of Louisiana. Located the eastern bank of the Mississippi River, it is the parish seat of East Baton Rouge Parish, Louisiana's most populous parish—the equivalent of counties i ...
, and came out with a 27–21 overtime victory over
LSU Louisiana State University (officially Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, commonly referred to as LSU) is a public land-grant research university in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The university was founded in 1860 near ...
. With the win, Alabama clinched its first SEC Western Division Championship since
1999 File:1999 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The funeral procession of King Hussein of Jordan in Amman; the 1999 İzmit earthquake kills over 17,000 people in Turkey; the Columbine High School massacre, one of the first major school shootin ...
and guaranteed the team a trip to the 2008 SEC Championship Game. The Tide then improved to 11–0 with a win at home over
Mississippi State Mississippi State University for Agriculture and Applied Science, commonly known as Mississippi State University (MSU), is a public land-grant research university adjacent to Starkville, Mississippi. It is classified among "R1: Doctoral Univer ...
. To finish the regular season, Bama defeated in-state rival
Auburn Auburn may refer to: Places Australia * Auburn, New South Wales * City of Auburn, the local government area *Electoral district of Auburn *Auburn, Queensland, a locality in the Western Downs Region *Auburn, South Australia *Auburn, Tasmania *Aub ...
, 36–0, the largest margin of victory in
the series ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the ...
since 1962. It was Alabama's first victory over Auburn since the 2001 season. In the
SEC Championship Game The SEC Championship Game is an annual American football game that has determined the Southeastern Conference's season champion since 1992. The championship game pits the SEC East Division regular season champion against the West Division regula ...
, Alabama suffered its first defeat in a 31–20 loss to the SEC Eastern Division Champion
Florida Gators The Florida Gators are the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the University of Florida, located in Gainesville. The University of Florida, its athletic program, its alumni and its sports fans are often collectively referred to as t ...
(who later won the 2008 BCS Championship), and closed out the season with a 31–17 loss to
Utah Utah ( , ) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. Utah is a landlocked U.S. state bordered to its east by Colorado, to its northeast by Wyoming, to its north by Idaho, to its south by Arizona, and to it ...
in the
Sugar Bowl The Sugar Bowl is an annual American college football bowl game played in New Orleans, Louisiana. Played annually since January 1, 1935, it is tied with the Orange Bowl and Sun Bowl as the second-oldest bowl games in the country, surpassed onl ...
to finish the season at 12–2. For his efforts during the season, Saban received several Coach of the Year awards.


2009 season

No.5
Alabama (We dare defend our rights) , anthem = "Alabama (state song), Alabama" , image_map = Alabama in United States.svg , seat = Montgomery, Alabama, Montgomery , LargestCity = Huntsville, Alabama, Huntsville , LargestCounty = Baldwin County, Al ...
began Saban's third year by defeating the No.7 ranked
Virginia Tech Hokies The Virginia Tech Hokies are the athletic teams representing the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (Virginia Tech) in intercollegiate athletics. The Hokies participate in the NCAA's Division I Atlantic Coast Conference in 22 va ...
in the Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game, 34–24. The Crimson Tide followed up with wins over Florida International and
North Texas North Texas (also commonly called North Central Texas) is a term used primarily by residents of Dallas, Fort Worth, and surrounding areas to describe much of the north central portion of the U.S. state of Texas. Residents of the Dallas–Fort Wor ...
. The following week Alabama won its conference opener over
Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the South Central United States. It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the Osage ...
, 35–7. In its fifth game of the year, Alabama beat
Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...
, 38–20. The sixth game of the season featured a hard-fought defensive battle with Bama defeating Ole Miss, 22–3. The seventh game was the same as Alabama defeated the
South Carolina Gamecocks The South Carolina Gamecocks represent the University of South Carolina in the NCAA Division I. The University of South Carolina uses "Gamecocks" as its official nickname and mascot. While the men's teams were traditionally known as the Fighti ...
, 20–6. The next day, Alabama moved up to No.1 in the APpoll for the second straight year. The next week Alabama beat
Tennessee Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...
12–10, when
Terrence Cody Terrence Bernard Cody, Jr. (born June 28, 1988) is a former American football defensive tackle. He played college football for the University of Alabama.. He was selected by the Baltimore Ravens in the second round of the 2010 NFL Draft and pla ...
blocked Tennessee's game-winning field goal attempt with four seconds left, sealing the victory and improving the team's record to 8–0. After a bye week, Alabama clinched its second straight SEC West Division Championship by knocking off
LSU Louisiana State University (officially Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, commonly referred to as LSU) is a public land-grant research university in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The university was founded in 1860 near ...
, 24–15. The next week Alabama defeated
Mississippi State Mississippi State University for Agriculture and Applied Science, commonly known as Mississippi State University (MSU), is a public land-grant research university adjacent to Starkville, Mississippi. It is classified among "R1: Doctoral Univer ...
, 31–3, securing the second straight 10-win season for Alabama. Following a 45–0 shutout of
Chattanooga Chattanooga ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Hamilton County, Tennessee, United States. Located along the Tennessee River bordering Georgia, it also extends into Marion County on its western end. With a population of 181,099 in 2020, ...
, on Black Friday, Alabama came from behind to defeat
Gene Chizik Eugene C. Chizik Jr. (born December 28, 1961) is an American football coach who is currently the Assistant Head Coach for Defense at North Carolina. A veteran of the coaching ranks, Chizik previously was UNC's defensive coordinator for the 2015 ...
's
Auburn Tigers The Auburn Tigers are the athletic teams representing Auburn University, a public four-year coeducational university located in Auburn, Alabama, United States. The Auburn Tigers compete in Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Associat ...
, 26–21, marking the first time since 1973
1974 Major events in 1974 include the aftermath of the 1973 oil crisis and the resignation of United States President Richard Nixon following the Watergate scandal. In the Middle East, the aftermath of the 1973 Yom Kippur War determined politics; f ...
Alabama had finished the regular season undefeated in consecutive years, and the first consecutive 12-win seasons. The Crimson Tide defeated the
Florida Gators The Florida Gators are the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the University of Florida, located in Gainesville. The University of Florida, its athletic program, its alumni and its sports fans are often collectively referred to as t ...
in the
SEC Championship The SEC Championship Game is an annual American football game that has determined the Southeastern Conference's season champion since 1992. The championship game pits the SEC East Division regular season champion against the West Division regula ...
, 32–13, in a rematch of the previous year's championship game. The championship represented Alabama's 22nd SEC title and its first since 1999. Saban's Crimson Tide ended the season with a 37–21 victory over the
Texas Longhorns The Texas Longhorns are the athletic teams representing the University of Texas at Austin. The teams are sometimes referred to as the Horns and take their name from Longhorn cattle that were an important part of the development of Texas, and a ...
in the
National Championship A national championship(s) is the top achievement for any sport or competition, contest within a league of a particular nation or nation state. The title is usually awarded by contests, ranking systems, stature, ability, etc. This determines the be ...
to finish a perfect 14–0. The win secured Saban's second national championship and Alabama's 13th, and its first in the BCS era. At the on-campus celebration, Saban famously stated "I want everybody here to know, this is not the end. This is the beginning." Following the victory over the Longhorns, the University of Alabama announced that it would unveil a statue of Saban in the week prior to the kickoff of the 2010 season. On April 16, 2011, a life-sized bronzed statue of Saban was unveiled at the 2011 A-Day spring game, making him Alabama's fifth coach to be immortalized outside the north end zone of
Bryant–Denny Stadium Bryant–Denny Stadium is an outdoor stadium in the southeastern United States, on the campus of the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa. It is the home field of the Alabama Crimson Tide football team of the Southeastern Conference (SEC). Open ...
.


2010 season

At the start of his fourth season, Alabama was overwhelmingly chosen as the preseason No.1 team in both the AP and Coaches Poll. It was the first time since 1978 that the Crimson Tide started the season ranked No. 1. In the season opener in front a record crowd of 101,821, Alabama defeated
San Jose State San José State University (San Jose State or SJSU) is a public university in San Jose, California. Established in 1857, SJSU is the oldest public university on the West Coast and the founding campus of the California State University (CSU) sy ...
, 48–3. The following week, the Tide defeated
Joe Paterno Joseph Vincent Paterno (; December 21, 1926 – January 22, 2012), sometimes referred to as JoePa, was an American college football player, athletic director, and coach. He was the head coach of the Penn State Nittany Lions football, Penn ...
and the #23 Penn State 24–3 in their first meeting since 1990. The next week against
Duke Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they are ran ...
,
Mark Ingram II Mark Valentino Ingram II (born December 21, 1989) is an American football running back for the New Orleans Saints of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Alabama, where he was the first Alabama player to win the Heis ...
made his first start of the 2010 season leading Alabama to a 62–13 victory. The next week Alabama overcame a 20–7 deficit to win its conference opener against #10 Arkansas, 24–20. On October 2, Alabama defeated #7 Florida 31–6. The following week Alabama lost to #19 South Carolina 35–21, snapping a 19-game win streak (29 in regular season). Alabama bounced back with a 23–10 win over Ole Miss, and followed that up with a 41–10 victory over
Tennessee Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...
. After a bye week, Alabama suffered its second loss of the season, losing to #10 LSU, 24–21. The following week, Alabama bounced back at home defeating #17 Mississippi State, 30–10. The game marked the 800th victory for the University of Alabama's football program. The following week Alabama defeated
Georgia State Georgia state or ''variation'', may refer to: Primarily * Georgia State University ("State", "Georgia State"), a state university * Georgia (U.S. state) ("Georgia state"), a state of the United States of America Sports * sports teams of Georgia St ...
63–7, the most points for Alabama since 1979. In the
Iron Bowl The Alabama–Auburn football rivalry, better known as the Iron Bowl, is an American college football rivalry game between the Auburn University Tigers and University of Alabama Crimson Tide, both charter members of the Southeastern Conferenc ...
, Alabama lost to in-state rival (and eventual BCS champions) #2 Auburn 28–27, snapping a 20-game home winning streak. In winning the game, Auburn overcame a 24–0 second quarter Alabama lead, thus marking the largest deficit any team had overcome to defeat the Crimson Tide in its football program's history. Alabama was selected to play in the
2011 Capital One Bowl The 2011 Capital One Bowl was the sixty-fifth edition of the college football bowl game, and was played at the Citrus Bowl in Orlando, Florida. The game was played on January 1, 2010 NCAA Division I FBS football season, 2011 and matched the Alabam ...
and in their first-ever meeting, Alabama defeated #7 Michigan State 49–7 in the largest margin of victory in that bowl game's history. The bowl victory brought Alabama to 10–3 on the season and secured Alabama's third consecutive 10-win season.


2011 season

At the start of his fifth season, Alabama came into the season ranked No.2 in the country. In the first game of the season, Alabama defeated Saban's alma mater Kent State 48–7. The next week, Alabama traveled to Penn State for the first time since 1989 and defeated
Joe Paterno Joseph Vincent Paterno (; December 21, 1926 – January 22, 2012), sometimes referred to as JoePa, was an American college football player, athletic director, and coach. He was the head coach of the Penn State Nittany Lions football, Penn ...
and #23 Nittany Lions 27–11. Alabama recorded its first shutout of the season by defeating
North Texas North Texas (also commonly called North Central Texas) is a term used primarily by residents of Dallas, Fort Worth, and surrounding areas to describe much of the north central portion of the U.S. state of Texas. Residents of the Dallas–Fort Wor ...
41–0. In the conference opener, Alabama defeated #12 Arkansas 38–14. The next week Alabama traveled to The Swamp and defeated the 12th-ranked
Florida Gators The Florida Gators are the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the University of Florida, located in Gainesville. The University of Florida, its athletic program, its alumni and its sports fans are often collectively referred to as t ...
38–10. The following week at homecoming, Alabama shut out Vanderbilt, defeating them 34–0. Alabama then traveled to Oxford and destroyed Ole Miss 52–7. In week8, Alabama defeated their rival
Tennessee Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...
37–6 by scoring 31 unanswered points in the second half. After a bye week, Alabama played host to #1 LSU, losing in overtime 9–6, a matchup between conference teams ranked No.1 and No.2. Alabama rebounded the next week after struggling in the first half, with a win over
Mississippi State Mississippi State University for Agriculture and Applied Science, commonly known as Mississippi State University (MSU), is a public land-grant research university adjacent to Starkville, Mississippi. It is classified among "R1: Doctoral Univer ...
24–7. The next week, Alabama defeated FCS 3rd ranked
Georgia Southern Georgia Southern University (GS or Georgia Southern) is a public research university in the U.S. state of Georgia. The flagship campus is in Statesboro, and other locations include the Armstrong Campus in Savannah and the Liberty Campus in Hin ...
45–21 on Senior Day. This win gave Saban his fourth consecutive 10-win season, tying
Bear Bryant Paul William "Bear" Bryant (September 11, 1913 – January 26, 1983) was an American college football player and coach. He is considered by many to be one of the greatest college football coaches of all time, and best known as the head coach of ...
from 1977 to 1980. In the
Iron Bowl The Alabama–Auburn football rivalry, better known as the Iron Bowl, is an American college football rivalry game between the Auburn University Tigers and University of Alabama Crimson Tide, both charter members of the Southeastern Conferenc ...
, Alabama defeated
Auburn Auburn may refer to: Places Australia * Auburn, New South Wales * City of Auburn, the local government area *Electoral district of Auburn *Auburn, Queensland, a locality in the Western Downs Region *Auburn, South Australia *Auburn, Tasmania *Aub ...
42–14. This was Saban's third win over the Tigers in four years. On December 4, Alabama was selected to face LSU in the
BCS National Championship Game The BCS National Championship Game, or BCS National Championship, was a postseason college football bowl game, used to determine a national champion of the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS), first played in the 1998 college fo ...
by finishing No.2 in the final BCS rankings, the first time in college football history that two teams from the same conference (much less the same division of the same conference) played each other for the BCS Championship. In the rematch, Alabama defeated the Tigers 21–0 with a dominating defensive performance, improving Saban's record to 3–3 against
Les Miles Leslie Edwin Miles (born November 10, 1953) is a former American football coach. He most recently served as the head coach at Kansas. His head coaching career began with the Oklahoma State Cowboys, where he coached from 2001 to 2004. Following t ...
and his former employer, LSU. The win secured Saban his third BCS Championship, his second with Alabama, and the 14thNational Championship for the Alabama football team. He is the only coach in college football to win three BCS Championships and the first coach since Nebraska's
Tom Osborne Thomas William Osborne (born February 23, 1937) is a former American football player, coach, college athletics administrator, and politician from Nebraska. He served as head football coach of the Nebraska Cornhuskers from 1973 to 1997 (25 season ...
to win three National Championships.


2012 season

At the start of his sixth season, Alabama came into the season ranked No.2 in both preseason polls for the second consecutive year. Alabama opened the season at
Cowboys Stadium AT&T Stadium, formerly Cowboys Stadium, is a retractable-roof stadium in Arlington, Texas, United States. It serves as the home of the Dallas Cowboys of the National Football League (NFL), and was completed on May 27, 2009. It is also the hom ...
against #8 Michigan in the first meeting between the schools since the 2000 Orange Bowl with Alabama winning 41–14. The next week, Alabama moved up to No.1 in both polls, marking the fifth consecutive year the Tide reached the top spot. A few days later, Alabama shut out Western Kentucky 35–0. Alabama opened up conference play the next week by routing
Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the South Central United States. It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the Osage ...
52–0 in their sixth consecutive win over the Razorbacks. In week4, Alabama defeated Florida Atlantic 40–7, giving Saban his 150thwin. The next week, the Tide defeated Ole Miss 33–14. Following a bye week, Alabama traveled to
Columbia, Missouri Columbia is a city in the U.S. state of Missouri. It is the county seat of Boone County and home to the University of Missouri. Founded in 1821, it is the principal city of the five-county Columbia metropolitan area. It is Missouri's fourth ...
for the first time since 1978 and defeated the
Missouri Tigers The Missouri Tigers intercollegiate athletics programs represent the University of Missouri, located in Columbia. The name comes from a band of armed Union Home Guards called the Fighting Tigers of Columbia who, in 1864, protected Columbia fro ...
42–10 in their first meeting as conference opponents. The next week Alabama defeated their rival
Tennessee Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...
44–13 for the sixth consecutive year. On homecoming, Alabama beat undefeated #13 Mississippi State 38–7. In a rematch of the
2012 BCS National Championship Game The 2012 Allstate BCS National Championship Game was a postseason college football bowl game between the Alabama Crimson Tide and the LSU Tigers, and determined the national champion of the 2011 NCAA Division I FBS football season on Monday, J ...
, Alabama overcame a late deficit with less than a minute remaining to defeat #5 LSU 21–17. The next week, Alabama suffered their first loss of the season to new conference member #15 Texas A&M 29–24. Alabama rebounded the following week recording its third shutout of the season defeating
Western Carolina Western Carolina University (WCU) is a public university in Cullowhee, North Carolina. It is part of the University of North Carolina system. The fifth oldest institution of the sixteen four-year universities in the UNC system, WCU was founded t ...
49–0. The win secured Alabama's fifth consecutive 10-win season, tying the longest streak from 1971 to 1975. In the Iron Bowl, Alabama defeated
Auburn Auburn may refer to: Places Australia * Auburn, New South Wales * City of Auburn, the local government area *Electoral district of Auburn *Auburn, Queensland, a locality in the Western Downs Region *Auburn, South Australia *Auburn, Tasmania *Aub ...
49–0 to secure its third SEC Western Division Championship under Saban. It is the second biggest margin of victory in the rivalry's history and first shutout since 2008. It is Alabama's fourth shutout of the season (second time back-to-back) and second year in a row the Tide finish the regular season 11–1. In the
SEC Championship The SEC Championship Game is an annual American football game that has determined the Southeastern Conference's season champion since 1992. The championship game pits the SEC East Division regular season champion against the West Division regula ...
, Alabama overcame a late drive by #3 Georgia to defeat the Bulldogs 32–28 winning the schools 23rd conference title. The 2012 title was Alabama's first conference championship since 2009 and Saban's fourth overall (2nd with Alabama). The win also clinched a spot in a BCS bowl game for the fourth time in five years. On December 2, Alabama finished second in the final BCS rankings for the second consecutive season. On January 7, 2013, No.2 Alabama faced #1 Notre Dame in the first meeting between the schools since 1987, defeating the Irish 42–14 in the 2013 BCS National Championship Game. The win gave Alabama their 15th national championship and their third championship in four years. Alabama won back-to-back national titles for the first time since 1978 and 1979. The title was Saban's fourth national championship and his third with the Crimson Tide, tying him with
Wallace Wade William Wallace Wade (June 15, 1892 – October 7, 1986) was an American football player and coach of football, basketball, and baseball, and college athletics administrator. He served as the head football coach at the University of Alabama fro ...
for second all-time at Alabama.


2013 season

As the 2013 campaign began, Saban's Crimson Tide was ranked No.1 in both the AP and Coaches preseason polls for the first time since 2010. In the
Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game The Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game is an annual series of college football games played on the opening weekend of the NCAA Division I FBS season in Atlanta, Georgia. Organized by the Peach Bowl, the event coincides with Labor Day weekend in the United ...
, Alabama defeated
Virginia Tech Virginia Tech (formally the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University and informally VT, or VPI) is a Public university, public Land-grant college, land-grant research university with its main campus in Blacksburg, Virginia. It also ...
35–10 at the
Georgia Dome The Georgia Dome was a domed stadium in the Southeastern United States. Located in Atlanta between downtown to the east and Vine City to the west, it was owned and operated by the State of Georgia as part of the Georgia World Congress Center ...
in
Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...
. Following a bye week, Alabama traveled to
College Station, Texas College Station is a city in Brazos County, Texas, situated in East-Central Texas in the heart of the Brazos Valley, towards the eastern edge of the region known as the Texas Triangle. It is northwest of Houston and east-northeast of Austin. ...
to pick up its first conference win, defeating #6 Texas A&M, 49–42, in a wild shootout that Alabama had lost the year before. The Crimson Tide then went on to defeat Colorado State, which was coached by Alabama's former offensive coordinator
Jim McElwain James Frank McElwain (born March 1, 1962) is an American football coach who is currently the head coach at Central Michigan University. He previously served as the head coach at Florida from 2015 to 2017, and Colorado State from 2012 to 2014, ...
, 31–6. #21 Ole Miss Rebels was next up for Alabama, which shut out the Rebels 25–0 for its tenth straight win in the series. The following week saw Alabama beat
Georgia State Georgia state or ''variation'', may refer to: Primarily * Georgia State University ("State", "Georgia State"), a state university * Georgia (U.S. state) ("Georgia state"), a state of the United States of America Sports * sports teams of Georgia St ...
45–3. Alabama then went on the road and defeated
Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...
48–7. And for the second straight year Alabama defeated
Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the South Central United States. It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the Osage ...
52–0. In the
Third Saturday in October The Third Saturday in October is the Alabama–Tennessee football rivalry, an American college football rivalry game played annually by the Crimson Tide of the University of Alabama and the Volunteers of the University of Tennessee. The respect ...
, The Tide defeated
Tennessee Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...
45–10 to win its seventh consecutive game over the Vols. Following their second bye week, Alabama took on #10 LSU and Saban improved his record to 5–3 against the Tigers, as Alabama won 38–17. The Crimson Tide then defeated
Mississippi State Mississippi State University for Agriculture and Applied Science, commonly known as Mississippi State University (MSU), is a public land-grant research university adjacent to Starkville, Mississippi. It is classified among "R1: Doctoral Univer ...
20–7 in a defensive bout. The win gave Alabama its sixth straight ten-win season, the longest in school history. On Senior day, the Tide knocked off FCS opponent
Chattanooga Chattanooga ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Hamilton County, Tennessee, United States. Located along the Tennessee River bordering Georgia, it also extends into Marion County on its western end. With a population of 181,099 in 2020, ...
49–0. Up next was the
Iron Bowl The Alabama–Auburn football rivalry, better known as the Iron Bowl, is an American college football rivalry game between the Auburn University Tigers and University of Alabama Crimson Tide, both charter members of the Southeastern Conferenc ...
, which was hosted by #4 Auburn in a matchup between top five teams. The game was tied 28–28 with only a single second remaining in regulation, as Alabama and Auburn appeared headed for overtime. Extra time wasn't necessary, however, as Saban decided to attempt a 56-yard field goal instead of either running out the clock or attempting a Hail Mary from Auburn's 39-yard line. The decision proved costly, as the field goal was short but caught nine yards deep in the Auburn end zone by the Tigers' Chris Davis, who returned the failed attempt 109 yards for a touchdown as time expired. The 28–34 loss knocked Alabama out of contention for the SEC Championship and dashed The Tide's hope for a national championship. Alabama finished the regular season 11–1 for the third consecutive year and clinched a share with Auburn of the SEC West Division title. At the end of the regular season, Alabama finished ranked No.3 in the final BCS rankings and earned an at-large bid to the 2014 Sugar Bowl. Alabama accepted an invitation to play in its third straight BCS bowl game and fifth in Saban's seven seasons at Alabama. In the
Sugar Bowl The Sugar Bowl is an annual American college football bowl game played in New Orleans, Louisiana. Played annually since January 1, 1935, it is tied with the Orange Bowl and Sun Bowl as the second-oldest bowl games in the country, surpassed onl ...
, Alabama lost to #11 Oklahoma 45–31. This was Saban's second bowl loss at Alabama and first since the 2009 Sugar Bowl against Utah. The Tide finished the season at 11–2.


2014 season

Starting in his eighth season, Alabama began the year ranked No.2 in the preseason AP and Coaches Poll for the third time in four years. It was the fifth straight season the Crimson Tide started the year in the top two and the seventh consecutive year in the top five. In the season opener, Alabama improved to 4–0 in the
Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game The Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game is an annual series of college football games played on the opening weekend of the NCAA Division I FBS season in Atlanta, Georgia. Organized by the Peach Bowl, the event coincides with Labor Day weekend in the United ...
beating
West Virginia West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian, Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States.The Census Bureau and the Association of American Geographers classify West Virginia as part of the Southern United States while the Bur ...
33–23 in the first meeting between the two schools. The Tide won their home opener the next week over Florida Atlantic 41–0 after the game was called in the fourth quarter due to lightning. The following week they defeated
Southern Miss The University of Southern Mississippi (Southern Miss or USM) is a public research university with its main campus located in Hattiesburg, Mississippi. It is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools to award bachelor's, ma ...
52–12. In their conference opener, Alabama put up 645 yards of offense beating
Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...
42–21. Following a bye week Alabama was voted No.1 in the Coaches Poll marking the seventh consecutive season Alabama has reached the top spot. Alabama suffered their first loss of the season losing to #11 Ole Miss 23–17 which ended a 10-game win streak against the Rebels. In Saban's 100thgame with the Tide, Alabama bounced back, narrowly defeating
Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the South Central United States. It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the Osage ...
14–13 for its eighth consecutive victory in the series. The next week the Tide dominated #21 Texas A&M shutting them out 59–0 which is the 4thlargest victory in school history. In their annual rivalry with
Tennessee Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...
, Alabama won their eighth straight over the Vols 34–20. After a second bye week, Alabama traveled to Baton Rouge to play #14 LSU. After a late field goal, Alabama sent the game into overtime defeating the Tigers 20–13. In a matchup of top five teams, Alabama defeated #1 Mississippi State 25–20 marking the first time Alabama has defeated an AP No.1 team at home. Alabama then defeated FCS opponent
Western Carolina Western Carolina University (WCU) is a public university in Cullowhee, North Carolina. It is part of the University of North Carolina system. The fifth oldest institution of the sixteen four-year universities in the UNC system, WCU was founded t ...
48–14. The win secured Alabama its seventh consecutive ten-win season. In the
Iron Bowl The Alabama–Auburn football rivalry, better known as the Iron Bowl, is an American college football rivalry game between the Auburn University Tigers and University of Alabama Crimson Tide, both charter members of the Southeastern Conferenc ...
, Alabama avenged their only regular season loss of last season defeating their in-state rival #15 Auburn 55–44, the most points scored in the rivalry's history. The Tide finished the regular season 11–1 for the 4thstraight season and won the SEC West. It was Saban's 5thdivision title at Alabama (8thoverall for his career). In the 2014 SEC Championship Game, Saban won his 5thSEC title (3rdwith Alabama) defeating #14 Missouri 42–13. It was Alabama's 24thSEC championship and first since 2012. Alabama was selected for the
College Football Playoff The College Football Playoff (CFP) is an annual postseason knockout invitational tournament to determine a national champion for the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS), the highest level ...
as the No.1 seed and played the No.4 seed
Ohio State The Ohio State University, commonly called Ohio State or OSU, is a public land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio. A member of the University System of Ohio, it has been ranked by major institutional rankings among the best public ...
in the
Sugar Bowl The Sugar Bowl is an annual American college football bowl game played in New Orleans, Louisiana. Played annually since January 1, 1935, it is tied with the Orange Bowl and Sun Bowl as the second-oldest bowl games in the country, surpassed onl ...
, losing 42–35. The loss was Saban's third in Sugar Bowls at Alabama. The Tide finished the season at 12–2.


2015 season

In his ninth season, Saban and Alabama began the year ranked No.3 in the preseason AP and Coaches Poll, marking the eighth straight year the Tide began the season in the topfive. It was their lowest preseason ranking since 2009. In the season opener against #20 Wisconsin, Alabama won, 35–17, in
Arlington, Texas Arlington is a city in the U.S. state of Texas, located in Tarrant County. It forms part of the Mid-Cities region of the Dallas–Fort Worth–Arlington metropolitan statistical area, and is a principal city of the metropolis and region. ...
. In their home opener, the Tide defeated
Middle Tennessee Middle Tennessee is one of the three Grand Divisions of the U.S. state of Tennessee that composes roughly the central portion of the state. It is delineated according to state law as 41 of the state's 95 counties. Middle Tennessee contains the s ...
, 37–10. In the conference opener, Alabama lost a back-and-forth struggle to #15 Ole Miss, 43–37. The following week Alabama bounced back with a 34–0 win over Louisiana Monroe. The Tide picked up a conference win dominating #8 Georgia, 38–10. Alabama then defeated
Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the South Central United States. It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the Osage ...
27–14 for its ninth consecutive win in the series. The following week behind a strong defensive performance, the Tide beat #9 Texas A&M 41–23. In the annual
Third Saturday in October The Third Saturday in October is the Alabama–Tennessee football rivalry, an American college football rivalry game played annually by the Crimson Tide of the University of Alabama and the Volunteers of the University of Tennessee. The respect ...
meeting, the Tide narrowly defeated
Tennessee Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...
19–14 to get its ninth consecutive win in the rivalry. After the bye week, Alabama hosted #2 LSU in a matchup of top-five teams, winning 30–16. It was Saban's fifth consecutive win in the series. The Tide then beat #20 Mississippi State, 31–6, for the eighth straight year. Next, Alabama defeated FCS opponent
Charleston Southern Charleston Southern University (CSU) is a private Baptist university in North Charleston, South Carolina. It is affiliated with the South Carolina Baptist Convention ( Southern Baptist Convention). History Charleston Southern University was ch ...
, 56–6, to secure Saban's 8thconsecutive 10-win season. In the
Iron Bowl The Alabama–Auburn football rivalry, better known as the Iron Bowl, is an American college football rivalry game between the Auburn University Tigers and University of Alabama Crimson Tide, both charter members of the Southeastern Conferenc ...
, Alabama defeated in-state rival
Auburn Auburn may refer to: Places Australia * Auburn, New South Wales * City of Auburn, the local government area *Electoral district of Auburn *Auburn, Queensland, a locality in the Western Downs Region *Auburn, South Australia *Auburn, Tasmania *Aub ...
, 29–13, to secure a fourth straight West Division Championship and sixth for Saban at Alabama. The Tide also finished the regular season 11–1 for the fifth straight season. In the
SEC Championship The SEC Championship Game is an annual American football game that has determined the Southeastern Conference's season champion since 1992. The championship game pits the SEC East Division regular season champion against the West Division regula ...
, Saban secured his sixth conference title when the Tide defeated #18 Florida 29–15. It was Alabama's 25th conference championship, 2nd consecutive title and third in four years. Alabama for the second straight year was selected to the
College Football Playoff The College Football Playoff (CFP) is an annual postseason knockout invitational tournament to determine a national champion for the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS), the highest level ...
and represented as the #2 seed. On December 12, running back
Derrick Henry Derrick Lamar Henry Jr. (born January 4, 1994) is an American football running back for the Tennessee Titans of the National Football League (NFL). His imposing rushing game and larger stature than the average running back earned him the nickna ...
became Saban's second player to win the
Heisman Trophy The Heisman Memorial Trophy (usually known colloquially as the Heisman Trophy or The Heisman) is awarded annually to the most outstanding player in college football. Winners epitomize great ability combined with diligence, perseverance, and hard ...
. Saban joined
Bob Stoops Robert Anthony Stoops (born September 9, 1960) is an American football coach. He was the head football coach at the University of Oklahoma from 1999 through the 2016 season, and on an interim basis during the 2021 Alamo Bowl. He led the Oklahoma ...
as the only active coaches to have multiple
Heisman The Heisman Memorial Trophy (usually known colloquially as the Heisman Trophy or The Heisman) is awarded annually to the most outstanding player in college football. Winners epitomize great ability combined with diligence, perseverance, and har ...
winners. In the
College Football Playoff The College Football Playoff (CFP) is an annual postseason knockout invitational tournament to determine a national champion for the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS), the highest level ...
semifinal at the Cotton Bowl, Alabama shut out the #3 seed
Michigan State Michigan State University (Michigan State, MSU) is a public land-grant research university in East Lansing, Michigan. It was founded in 1855 as the Agricultural College of the State of Michigan, the first of its kind in the United States. It i ...
, 38–0. The win was Alabama's first in the College Football Playoff and marked Alabama's first appearance in a national championship game since the 2012 season. Alabama went on to defeat unbeaten #1 Clemson, 45–40, to win the
College Football Playoff National Championship The College Football Playoff National Championship is a post-season college football bowl game, used to determine a national champion of the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS), which began play in the 2014 college football season. ...
. The victory marked Alabama's 16th national title and fourth in seven seasons. It was Saban's fifth national title and fourth at Alabama. The Tide finished the season at 14–1.


2016 season

Alabama started Saban's tenth season ranked #1 in the AP and Coaches Poll. 2016 was the ninth consecutive year Alabama was #1 at some point in the season. In their first meeting since the 1985 Aloha Bowl, Alabama dominated traditional power #20 USC, 52–6, in the
Advocare Classic The Cowboys Kickoff Classic was an annual college football game played on the opening weekend of the college football season. It was played in Arlington, Texas, at AT&T Stadium, home of the Dallas Cowboys from 2009 to 2021. The game was orig ...
at
Arlington, Texas Arlington is a city in the U.S. state of Texas, located in Tarrant County. It forms part of the Mid-Cities region of the Dallas–Fort Worth–Arlington metropolitan statistical area, and is a principal city of the metropolis and region. ...
. In their home opener, the Tide took down
Western Kentucky Western Kentucky is the western portion of the U.S. state of Kentucky. It generally includes part or all of several more widely recognized regions of the state. ;Always included * The Jackson Purchase, the state's westernmost generally recogniz ...
, 38–10. In the conference opener, Alabama avenged their last two regular-season losses, defeating #19 Ole Miss 48–43. The next week Saban took on his alma mater Kent State with a 48–0 shutout. On homecoming, Alabama defeated
Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...
34–6. The next week Saban picked up his 10th consecutive victory over
Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the South Central United States. It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the Osage ...
, winning 49–30. In the annual
Third Saturday in October The Third Saturday in October is the Alabama–Tennessee football rivalry, an American college football rivalry game played annually by the Crimson Tide of the University of Alabama and the Volunteers of the University of Tennessee. The respect ...
, Alabama dominated #9 Tennessee 49–10, to win its tenth in a row over the Vols. In their second straight game versus a top-10 opponent, Alabama defeated #6 Texas A&M 33–14. After a bye week, the Tide went to
Baton Rouge Baton Rouge ( ; ) is a city in and the capital of the U.S. state of Louisiana Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It is the 20th-sma ...
to face #15 LSU. In a defensive slugfest, Alabama shut out the Tigers 10–0. The win was also Alabama's sixth in a row over LSU and the first shutout over them since the
2012 BCS National Championship Game The 2012 Allstate BCS National Championship Game was a postseason college football bowl game between the Alabama Crimson Tide and the LSU Tigers, and determined the national champion of the 2011 NCAA Division I FBS football season on Monday, J ...
. The following week Alabama defeated
Mississippi State Mississippi State University for Agriculture and Applied Science, commonly known as Mississippi State University (MSU), is a public land-grant research university adjacent to Starkville, Mississippi. It is classified among "R1: Doctoral Univer ...
51–3. The win gave Saban his ninth consecutive season winning 10 or more games. With a win by
Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...
over #9 Auburn, the Tide secured their third consecutive SEC West Division Championship, seventh for Saban at Alabama, and tenth overall for his career. The next week the Tide defeated FCS opponent
Chattanooga Chattanooga ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Hamilton County, Tennessee, United States. Located along the Tennessee River bordering Georgia, it also extends into Marion County on its western end. With a population of 181,099 in 2020, ...
31–3. In the
Iron Bowl The Alabama–Auburn football rivalry, better known as the Iron Bowl, is an American college football rivalry game between the Auburn University Tigers and University of Alabama Crimson Tide, both charter members of the Southeastern Conferenc ...
, Saban secured an undefeated regular season by defeating in-state rival #16 Auburn 30–12. This was Alabama's third straight win over the Tigers, the first time since 1990–1992. Alabama finished its regular season 12–0 for the third time in Saban's career at Alabama and first since 2009. In the
SEC Championship The SEC Championship Game is an annual American football game that has determined the Southeastern Conference's season champion since 1992. The championship game pits the SEC East Division regular season champion against the West Division regula ...
, Alabama defeated #15 Florida in a rematch of the previous season's title game, 54–16. The win gave Alabama its 26th SEC title, 5th for Saban at Alabama and 7th overall for his career. This was Alabama's third straight conference championship, the first time it had won three straight SEC titles since 1977–1979, and its first three-peat since the
SEC Championship Game The SEC Championship Game is an annual American football game that has determined the Southeastern Conference's season champion since 1992. The championship game pits the SEC East Division regular season champion against the West Division regula ...
was added in 1992. Alabama made the College Football Playoff for the third consecutive year and came in as the #1 seed for the second time. The Tide was selected to play in the
Peach Bowl The Peach Bowl is an annual college football bowl game played in Atlanta, Georgia since December 1968. Since 1997, it has been sponsored by Chick-fil-A and is officially known as the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl. From 2006 to 2013, it was officially ...
against the #4 seed
Washington Huskies The Washington Huskies are the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the University of Washington, located in Seattle. The school competes at the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I level as a member of the Pac- ...
. In the first meeting with the Huskies since the 1986 Sun Bowl, Alabama won 24–7. In a rematch of the previous season's National Championship game, Alabama fell short to #2 Clemson 35–31 when the Tigers scored on a game-winning touchdown pass with one second left on the clock. Alabama failed to recover Clemson's onside kick and time ran out. The loss snapped Alabama's 26-game winning streak and was Saban's first loss in a title game. The Tide finished the season at 14–1.


2017 season

In Saban's 11th season, Alabama started the season #1 in both the AP and Coaches Poll for the second consecutive year. This was the tenth season in a row that Alabama was #1 at some point during the season and fourth time to start the season under Saban. In the
Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game The Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game is an annual series of college football games played on the opening weekend of the NCAA Division I FBS season in Atlanta, Georgia. Organized by the Peach Bowl, the event coincides with Labor Day weekend in the United ...
in a matchup of top-three teams, Alabama beat #3 Florida State 24–7. Alabama improved to 5–0 in Chick-fil-A games and Saban improved to 11–0 against former assistant coaches. In the home opener, the Tide defeated
Fresno State California State University, Fresno (Fresno State) is a public university in Fresno, California. It is one of 23 campuses in the California State University system. The university had a fall 2020 enrollment of 25,341 students. It offers bachelo ...
41–10. The next week Alabama defeated Colorado State 41–23. In the conference opener, the Tide dominated Vanderbilt 59–0. The following week, Alabama manhandled Ole Miss 66–3, the most points in a game since 1979. The next week, Alabama went on the road and defeated
Texas A&M Texas A&M University (Texas A&M, A&M, or TAMU) is a public, land-grant, research university in College Station, Texas. It was founded in 1876 and became the flagship institution of the Texas A&M University System in 1948. As of late 2021, T ...
27–19. The next week, the Tide defeated
Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the South Central United States. It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the Osage ...
41–9 for the 11th win in a row in the series. In the annual
Third Saturday in October The Third Saturday in October is the Alabama–Tennessee football rivalry, an American college football rivalry game played annually by the Crimson Tide of the University of Alabama and the Volunteers of the University of Tennessee. The respect ...
, the Tide defeated
Tennessee Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...
45–7. The win was the 11th consecutive victory over the Vols, tying the record set back from 1971 to 1981. Following the bye week, Alabama won its seventh consecutive game over rival #19 LSU 24–10. Alabama then traveled to Starkville and escaped with a 31–24 win over #18 Mississippi State. The win secured Saban's tenth consecutive season with ten or more wins. On Senior Day, Alabama dominated FCS opponent
Mercer Mercer may refer to: Business * Mercer (car), a defunct American automobile manufacturer (1909–1925) * Mercer (consulting firm), a large human resources consulting firm headquartered in New York City * Mercer (occupation), a merchant or trader, ...
56–0. The win gave Saban's senior class its 51st win, tying the NCAA record. In the
Iron Bowl The Alabama–Auburn football rivalry, better known as the Iron Bowl, is an American college football rivalry game between the Auburn University Tigers and University of Alabama Crimson Tide, both charter members of the Southeastern Conferenc ...
, the Tide suffered its first loss of the season to in-state rival #6 Auburn 26–14. They finished the regular season 11–1. On December 3, Alabama was selected to the College Football Playoff for the fourth consecutive year, becoming the first team to be selected for the playoffs after finishing second in the SEC Western division and not having a chance to play for an SEC Championship. They were chosen as the #4 seed and played the #1 seed
Clemson Tigers The Clemson Tigers are the athletic teams that represent Clemson University, located in Clemson, South Carolina. They compete as a member of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I level (Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) ...
at the
Sugar Bowl The Sugar Bowl is an annual American college football bowl game played in New Orleans, Louisiana. Played annually since January 1, 1935, it is tied with the Orange Bowl and Sun Bowl as the second-oldest bowl games in the country, surpassed onl ...
. In the rematch of the previous two National Championship games, Alabama avenged the previous season's only loss, to Clemson, winning 24–6. The win gave Saban his first Sugar Bowl victory as Alabama's coach, ending a three-game losing streak in the bowl. The win secured Saban his third consecutive appearance in the College Football Playoff Championship Game. It also gave Saban's Senior class an NCAA-record 52nd win. Alabama took on the #3 seed
Georgia Bulldogs The Georgia Bulldogs are the athletic teams that represent the University of Georgia. The female athletic teams are sometimes referred to as Lady Bulldogs. The Bulldogs compete in NCAA Division I and are members of the Southeastern Conference ( ...
in the second National Championship game between SEC schools. In overtime, backup quarterback
Tua Tagovailoa Tuanigamanuolepola Tagovailoa ( ; born March 2, 1998) is an American football quarterback for the Miami Dolphins of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Alabama, where he was the Offensive MVP of the 2018 College Foo ...
threw the game-winning touchdown pass to
DeVonta Smith DeVonta Smith ( ; born November 14, 1998) is an American football wide receiver for the Philadelphia Eagles of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Alabama, where he recorded over 1,800 yards with 23 touchdowns as a ...
for a 26–23 victory. This was Alabama's 17th National Championship and fifth title in nine seasons. Saban tied Coach
Bear Bryant Paul William "Bear" Bryant (September 11, 1913 – January 26, 1983) was an American college football player and coach. He is considered by many to be one of the greatest college football coaches of all time, and best known as the head coach of ...
with six National Championships for most all time in the poll era. The Tide finished the season 13–1.


2018 season

In this twelfth season, Alabama started the season ranked #1 in the AP and coaches poll for the third consecutive year. In the
Camping World Kickoff The Camping World Kickoff is an annual college football game played on the opening weekend of the college football season in Orlando, Florida at Camping World Stadium. The game, a collaboration between Florida Citrus Sports and ESPN Events, debut ...
in
Orlando, Florida Orlando () is a city in the U.S. state of Florida and is the county seat of Orange County, Florida, Orange County. In Central Florida, it is the center of the Greater Orlando, Orlando metropolitan area, which had a population of 2,509,831, acco ...
, the Tide defeated
Louisville Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border. ...
51–14. In the home opener, the Tide dominated
Arkansas State Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the South Central United States. It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the Osage l ...
57–7. In their conference opener against Ole Miss, the Crimson Tide won 62–7. The Tide defeated
Jimbo Fisher John James "Jimbo" Fisher Jr. (born October 9, 1965) is an American college football coach and former player. He is the head coach of the Texas A&M Aggies Football, Texas A&M Aggies. Previously, Fisher was the head coach at Florida State Seminol ...
and #22 Texas A&M 45–23. The following week, Alabama beat
Louisiana Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It is the 20th-smallest by area and the 25th most populous of the 50 U.S. states. Louisiana is borde ...
56–14. Alabama then went to Fayetteville and defeated
Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the South Central United States. It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the Osage ...
65–31 for its 12th consecutive victory over the Hogs. On homecoming, the Tide defeated
Missouri Missouri is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee ...
39–10. In the
Third Saturday in October The Third Saturday in October is the Alabama–Tennessee football rivalry, an American college football rivalry game played annually by the Crimson Tide of the University of Alabama and the Volunteers of the University of Tennessee. The respect ...
, Alabama defeated rival
Tennessee Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...
58–21. It was the longest winning streak against the Vols with 12 wins and most points scored against them. After the bye week, Alabama traveled to
Baton Rouge Baton Rouge ( ; ) is a city in and the capital of the U.S. state of Louisiana Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It is the 20th-sma ...
to take on #4 LSU in a matchup between two top-four ranked teams. The Tide shutout the Tigers 29–0, securing its seventh straight division title. The win was Saban's eighth consecutive victory over LSU. The win gave Alabama their 900th win in program history. The Tide shutout #18 Mississippi State 24–0, the second consecutive shutout of a conference opponent for first time since 1980. The win secured Saban his 11th straight 10-win season. The Tide defeated FCS opponent
The Citadel The Citadel, The Military College of South Carolina, commonly known simply as The Citadel, is a Public college, public United States senior military college, senior military college in Charleston, South Carolina. Established in 1842, it is one ...
50–17. In the
Iron Bowl The Alabama–Auburn football rivalry, better known as the Iron Bowl, is an American college football rivalry game between the Auburn University Tigers and University of Alabama Crimson Tide, both charter members of the Southeastern Conferenc ...
, Alabama avenged the previous season's only loss, to rival
Auburn Auburn may refer to: Places Australia * Auburn, New South Wales * City of Auburn, the local government area *Electoral district of Auburn *Auburn, Queensland, a locality in the Western Downs Region *Auburn, South Australia *Auburn, Tasmania *Aub ...
, defeating the Tigers 52–21. The win secured Saban's fourth undefeated regular season. In the
SEC Championship The SEC Championship Game is an annual American football game that has determined the Southeastern Conference's season champion since 1992. The championship game pits the SEC East Division regular season champion against the West Division regula ...
, Alabama, behind backup quarterback
Jalen Hurts Jalen Alexander Hurts (born August 7, 1998) is an American football quarterback for the Philadelphia Eagles of the National Football League (NFL). He played his first three seasons of college football at Alabama, where he was part of the team ...
, overcame a 14-point deficit to defeat #4 Georgia 35–28. The win gave Alabama its 27th SEC Championship. It was Saban's eighth conference title, sixth with Alabama. The win also gave Saban's senior class its 54th win, breaking the previous year's NCAA record for most wins. The following day, Alabama was selected for the
College Football Playoff The College Football Playoff (CFP) is an annual postseason knockout invitational tournament to determine a national champion for the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS), the highest level ...
for the fifth year in a row. They were selected as the #1 seed for the third time and played the #4 seed
Oklahoma Oklahoma (; Choctaw language, Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the nor ...
at the
Orange Bowl The Orange Bowl is an annual American college football bowl game played in the Miami metropolitan area. It has been played annually since January 1, 1935, making it, along with the Sugar Bowl and the Sun Bowl, the second-oldest bowl game in th ...
. In the first meeting since the 2014 Sugar Bowl, the Tide ended a three-game losing streak to Oklahoma, winning 45–34. It was Alabama's first Orange Bowl win since 1966. The Tide advanced to the
National Championship A national championship(s) is the top achievement for any sport or competition, contest within a league of a particular nation or nation state. The title is usually awarded by contests, ranking systems, stature, ability, etc. This determines the be ...
game for the fourth consecutive year and played the #2 seed
Clemson Tigers The Clemson Tigers are the athletic teams that represent Clemson University, located in Clemson, South Carolina. They compete as a member of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I level (Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) ...
. In the third title game in four years against Clemson, Saban suffered his worst loss at Alabama, losing 44–16. Saban fell to 2–2 in CFP championship games. The Tide finished the season 14–1.


2019 season

To start Saban's thirteenth season, Alabama began the year ranked #2 in the AP and coaches poll. In the
Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game The Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game is an annual series of college football games played on the opening weekend of the NCAA Division I FBS season in Atlanta, Georgia. Organized by the Peach Bowl, the event coincides with Labor Day weekend in the United ...
, Alabama defeated
Duke Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they are ran ...
42–3. In the home opener, the Tide rolled
New Mexico State New Mexico State University (NMSU or NM State) is a public land-grant research university based primarily in Las Cruces, New Mexico. Founded in 1888, it is the oldest public institution of higher education in New Mexico and one of the state's tw ...
62–10. In their conference opener, Alabama traveled to
Columbia, SC Columbia is the capital of the U.S. state of South Carolina. With a population of 136,632 at the 2020 census, it is the second-largest city in South Carolina. The city serves as the county seat of Richland County, and a portion of the city ...
and defeated
South Carolina )''Animis opibusque parati'' ( for, , Latin, Prepared in mind and resources, links=no) , anthem = " Carolina";" South Carolina On My Mind" , Former = Province of South Carolina , seat = Columbia , LargestCity = Charleston , LargestMetro = ...
47–23. In their next game, Alabama defeated
Southern Miss The University of Southern Mississippi (Southern Miss or USM) is a public research university with its main campus located in Hattiesburg, Mississippi. It is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools to award bachelor's, ma ...
49–7. Alabama, back in conference play, defeated Ole Miss 59–31. The next day, Alabama moved to #1 in the AP and Coaches poll. It was the twelfth year in a row Alabama was ranked at the top spot at some point during a season. Following a bye week, Alabama traveled to
College Station, TX College Station is a city in Brazos County, Texas, situated in East-Central Texas in the heart of the Brazos Valley, towards the eastern edge of the region known as the Texas Triangle. It is northwest of Houston and east-northeast of Austin. A ...
and defeated #24 Texas A&M 47–28. In the
Third Saturday in October The Third Saturday in October is the Alabama–Tennessee football rivalry, an American college football rivalry game played annually by the Crimson Tide of the University of Alabama and the Volunteers of the University of Tennessee. The respect ...
, the Tide picked up its 13th win a row over
Tennessee Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...
35–13. On homecoming, Alabama got its 13th consecutive win over
Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the South Central United States. It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the Osage ...
48–7. After a second bye week, Alabama took on #2 LSU in a matchup of top-3 teams for the second consecutive year. LSU handed Saban his first loss of the season, 46–41, snapping an eight-game winning streak against the Tigers. It also snapped Alabama's 31-home-game winning streak. The next week, Alabama defeated
Mississippi State Mississippi State University for Agriculture and Applied Science, commonly known as Mississippi State University (MSU), is a public land-grant research university adjacent to Starkville, Mississippi. It is classified among "R1: Doctoral Univer ...
38–7. On Senior day, the Tide dominated
Western Carolina Western Carolina University (WCU) is a public university in Cullowhee, North Carolina. It is part of the University of North Carolina system. The fifth oldest institution of the sixteen four-year universities in the UNC system, WCU was founded t ...
66–3, securing Saban's 12th consecutive 10 win season. In the
Iron Bowl The Alabama–Auburn football rivalry, better known as the Iron Bowl, is an American college football rivalry game between the Auburn University Tigers and University of Alabama Crimson Tide, both charter members of the Southeastern Conferenc ...
, Saban suffered his second loss of the season to rival #15 Auburn 48–45. It's the first time Saban has lost two games in the regular season since 2010 and didn't qualify for the
College Football Playoff The College Football Playoff (CFP) is an annual postseason knockout invitational tournament to determine a national champion for the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS), the highest level ...
for the first time. Alabama finished the regular season at 10–2 and ranked thirteenth in the final College Football Playoff rankings. They were selected to face
Jim Harbaugh James Joseph Harbaugh (; born December 23, 1963) is an American football coach and former quarterback, who is the current and 20th head football coach of the Michigan Wolverines. He played college football at Michigan from 1983 to 1986. He play ...
and #14 Michigan in the Citrus Bowl. In the first meeting since 2012, The Tide won 35–16. The Tide finished the season 11–2.


2020 season

In his 14th season, due to the
COVID-19 pandemic in the United States The COVID-19 pandemic in the United States is a part of the COVID-19 pandemic, worldwide pandemic of COVID-19, coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by SARS-CoV-2, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). In the Uni ...
, Alabama's season was cut to an all conference, ten-game season beginning on September 26. Alabama began the season ranked #3 in the AP and Coaches Poll. In the season opener, Alabama went on the road and defeated
Missouri Missouri is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee ...
38–19. In the home opener, Alabama defeated #13 Texas A&M 52–24. The following week Saban took on former assistant
Lane Kiffin Lane Monte Kiffin (born May 9, 1975) is an American football coach who is currently the head coach of the Ole Miss Rebels. Kiffin formerly was the offensive coordinator for the USC Trojans football team from 2005 to 2006, head coach of the Nati ...
. In a shootout, Alabama defeated Ole Miss 63–48. The 111 points scored was the most in a non-overtime conference game in SEC history. On October 14, 2020, Saban tested positive for COVID-19, along with the university athletic director, Greg Byrne. That Saturday, Saban tested negative and was able to coach Alabama in a top 3 matchup against #3 Georgia. The Tide prevailed 41–24 to improve to 22–0 versus former assistants. In the
Third Saturday in October The Third Saturday in October is the Alabama–Tennessee football rivalry, an American college football rivalry game played annually by the Crimson Tide of the University of Alabama and the Volunteers of the University of Tennessee. The respect ...
, Alabama won its 14th straight over rival
Tennessee Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...
48–17. The next week, the Tide shutout
Mississippi State Mississippi State University for Agriculture and Applied Science, commonly known as Mississippi State University (MSU), is a public land-grant research university adjacent to Starkville, Mississippi. It is classified among "R1: Doctoral Univer ...
41–0. Following the bye week, Alabama moved up to #1 in the polls. It's the thirteenth year in a row Alabama has reached the top spot during a season. After an extra week off due to
COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was COVID-19 pandemic in Hubei, identified in Wuhan, China, in December ...
, Alabama returned to play defeating
Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...
63–3. On November 25, Saban returned a positive COVID-19 test. He missed the following game against #22 Auburn in the
Iron Bowl The Alabama–Auburn football rivalry, better known as the Iron Bowl, is an American college football rivalry game between the Auburn University Tigers and University of Alabama Crimson Tide, both charter members of the Southeastern Conferenc ...
, which Alabama won 42–13. The next week, Saban was back on the sideline, as Alabama routed
LSU Louisiana State University (officially Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, commonly referred to as LSU) is a public land-grant research university in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The university was founded in 1860 near ...
55–17. The win secured Alabama the SEC West division title, its 15th overall and Saban’s 13th as a coach. Alabama finished the regular season undefeated after defeating
Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the South Central United States. It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the Osage ...
52–3. It was Saban’s fifth undefeated regular season at Alabama. It marks Alabama’s 13th consecutive ten-win season as well. In the
SEC Championship The SEC Championship Game is an annual American football game that has determined the Southeastern Conference's season champion since 1992. The championship game pits the SEC East Division regular season champion against the West Division regula ...
, Alabama hung on in a high scoring game against #7 Florida 52–46. The win secured Alabama its 28th SEC title and gave Saban his ninth overall. The following day, Alabama was selected for the
College Football Playoff The College Football Playoff (CFP) is an annual postseason knockout invitational tournament to determine a national champion for the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS), the highest level ...
for the sixth time in seven years. Alabama was selected as the #1 seed and played the #4 seed Notre Dame in the Rose Bowl. In the first meeting since the 2013 BCS National Championship Game, the Tide defeated the Irish 31–14. It was Alabama’s first appearance and win in the Rose Bowl since
1946 Events January * January 6 - The 1946 North Vietnamese parliamentary election, first general election ever in Vietnam is held. * January 7 – The Allies recognize the Austrian republic with its 1937 borders, and divide the country into f ...
. On January 5, 2021,
DeVonta Smith DeVonta Smith ( ; born November 14, 1998) is an American football wide receiver for the Philadelphia Eagles of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Alabama, where he recorded over 1,800 yards with 23 touchdowns as a ...
became Saban’s third
Heisman Trophy The Heisman Memorial Trophy (usually known colloquially as the Heisman Trophy or The Heisman) is awarded annually to the most outstanding player in college football. Winners epitomize great ability combined with diligence, perseverance, and hard ...
winner.
Mac Jones Michael McCorkle "Mac" Jones (born September 5, 1998) is an American football quarterback for the New England Patriots of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at University of Alabama, Alabama, where he set the Nationa ...
and
Najee Harris Najee Jerome Harris (born March 9, 1998) is an American football running back for the Pittsburgh Steelers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Alabama and was selected by the Steelers in the first round of the 2021 ...
finished third and fifth respectively in voting. Alabama became the second program to have three players finish in the top five in Heisman voting, joining Army's 1946 team. In the 2021 College Football Playoff National Championship, Alabama defeated #3 Ohio State 52–24 to win its 18th National Championship. The win gave Saban his seventh overall National Title, and sixth with the Crimson Tide. Saban passed Paul W. Bryant for most titles all time. It was Saban’s second undefeated season and first since 2009. The Tide finished the season 13–0.


2021 season

On June 7, 2021, Saban agreed to a contract extension with Alabama. The deal runs through the 2028 season. In his 15th season, Alabama started the season #1 in the preseason AP and Coaches poll, marking the 14th consecutive season the Tide have had the #1 ranking. It’s the sixth time Alabama has started the season No. 1 under Saban. In the
Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game The Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game is an annual series of college football games played on the opening weekend of the NCAA Division I FBS season in Atlanta, Georgia. Organized by the Peach Bowl, the event coincides with Labor Day weekend in the United ...
, Alabama defeated #14 Miami (FL) 44–13 in their first meeting since the 1993 Sugar Bowl. In the home opener, the Tide defeated
Mercer Mercer may refer to: Business * Mercer (car), a defunct American automobile manufacturer (1909–1925) * Mercer (consulting firm), a large human resources consulting firm headquartered in New York City * Mercer (occupation), a merchant or trader, ...
48–14. The following week, Alabama traveled to Gainesville to take on #11 Florida. In the conference opener, The Tide won a close game 31–29. The next week, Alabama defeated
Southern Miss The University of Southern Mississippi (Southern Miss or USM) is a public research university with its main campus located in Hattiesburg, Mississippi. It is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools to award bachelor's, ma ...
63–14. In the following game, Alabama took on #12 Ole Miss and won 42–21. Alabama traveled to
College Station, Texas College Station is a city in Brazos County, Texas, situated in East-Central Texas in the heart of the Brazos Valley, towards the eastern edge of the region known as the Texas Triangle. It is northwest of Houston and east-northeast of Austin. ...
to play
Texas A&M Texas A&M University (Texas A&M, A&M, or TAMU) is a public, land-grant, research university in College Station, Texas. It was founded in 1876 and became the flagship institution of the Texas A&M University System in 1948. As of late 2021, T ...
in the next game. In a back and forth game, the Aggies kicked a last second 28-yard field goal to upset the Tide 41–38. The loss snapped a 19-game win streak, an eight-game win streak against the Aggies, and a 100-game win streak against unranked opponents dating back to 2007. The next week, Alabama bounced back defeating
Mississippi State Mississippi State University for Agriculture and Applied Science, commonly known as Mississippi State University (MSU), is a public land-grant research university adjacent to Starkville, Mississippi. It is classified among "R1: Doctoral Univer ...
49–9. In the
Third Saturday in October The Third Saturday in October is the Alabama–Tennessee football rivalry, an American college football rivalry game played annually by the Crimson Tide of the University of Alabama and the Volunteers of the University of Tennessee. The respect ...
, Alabama defeated
Tennessee Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...
52–24 for its 15th consecutive win in the series. Following the bye week, Alabama won a close game against
LSU Louisiana State University (officially Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, commonly referred to as LSU) is a public land-grant research university in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The university was founded in 1860 near ...
20–14. Alabama wrapped up non-conference play against
New Mexico State New Mexico State University (NMSU or NM State) is a public land-grant research university based primarily in Las Cruces, New Mexico. Founded in 1888, it is the oldest public institution of higher education in New Mexico and one of the state's tw ...
winning 59–3. On Senior day, Alabama won another close game over #21 Arkansas 42–35. The win secured Saban his ninth SEC West title at Alabama. The win gave him his 14th consecutive 10-win season, tying
Bobby Bowden Robert Cleckler Bowden (; November 8, 1929 – August 8, 2021) was an American college football coach. Bowden coached the Florida State Seminoles of Florida State University (FSU) from 1976 to 2009 and is considered one of the greatest college ...
for most all time. In the
Iron Bowl The Alabama–Auburn football rivalry, better known as the Iron Bowl, is an American college football rivalry game between the Auburn University Tigers and University of Alabama Crimson Tide, both charter members of the Southeastern Conferenc ...
, Alabama played
Auburn Auburn may refer to: Places Australia * Auburn, New South Wales * City of Auburn, the local government area *Electoral district of Auburn *Auburn, Queensland, a locality in the Western Downs Region *Auburn, South Australia *Auburn, Tasmania *Aub ...
in the first overtime game in the rivalry’s history, winning 24–22 in four overtimes. The Tide finished the regular season 11–1. In the
SEC Championship The SEC Championship Game is an annual American football game that has determined the Southeastern Conference's season champion since 1992. The championship game pits the SEC East Division regular season champion against the West Division regula ...
, Alabama took on #1 Georgia winning 41–24. The victory marked Saban's eighth SEC title with Alabama, and the Tide’s 29th SEC championship. The following day, Alabama was selected to the
College Football Playoff The College Football Playoff (CFP) is an annual postseason knockout invitational tournament to determine a national champion for the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS), the highest level ...
for the seventh time in eight seasons. They were chosen as the #1 seed and played the #4 seed
Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wit ...
in the first meeting between the schools since 1990. On December 11,
Bryce Young Bryce Christopher Young (born July 25, 2001) is an American football quarterback for the Alabama Crimson Tide. He holds the record for most passing yards in a single game by an Alabama quarterback (559) and was the recipient of the 2021 Heisma ...
became Saban’s fourth
Heisman Trophy The Heisman Memorial Trophy (usually known colloquially as the Heisman Trophy or The Heisman) is awarded annually to the most outstanding player in college football. Winners epitomize great ability combined with diligence, perseverance, and hard ...
winner. The win ties him with
Frank Leahy Francis William Leahy (August 27, 1908 – June 21, 1973) was an American football player, coach, college athletics administrator, and professional sports executive. He served as the head football coach at Boston College from 1939 to 1940 and at ...
for most Heisman winners. In the
Cotton Bowl Classic The Cotton Bowl Classic (also known as the Cotton Bowl) is an American college football bowl game that has been held annually in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex since January 1, 1937. The game was originally played at its namesake stadium i ...
, Alabama defeated Cincinnati 27–6. The win secured Saban’s ninth title game appearance in 13 seasons. The Tide played #3 Georgia in a rematch of the SEC Championship in the third All-SEC National title game. In the CFP National Championship, Saban suffered his third title game loss, losing 33–18. The Tide finished the season 13–2.


2022 season

In his 16th season, Alabama started the year ranked #1 in the preseason AP and Coaches Poll. 2022 marked the 15th consecutive season the Tide have been #1 at some point of the year. In the season opener, Alabama shutout
Utah State Utah State University (USU or Utah State) is a public land-grant research university in Logan, Utah. It is accredited by the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities. With nearly 20,000 students living on or near campus, USU is Utah's ...
55–0. Alabama traveled to
Austin, Texas Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of Texas, as well as the county seat, seat and largest city of Travis County, Texas, Travis County, with portions extending into Hays County, Texas, Hays and Williamson County, Texas, Williamson co ...
for the first time since 1922 to play
Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...
. In the first meeting since the 2010 BCS National Championship Game, Alabama overcame a late deficit to win 20–19. The following week, Alabama defeated Louisiana Monroe 63–7. Alabama opened up conference play with a 55–3 win over Vanderbilt. The next week, the Tide traveled to Fayetteville and defeated #20 Arkansas 49–26. In the following game, the Tide defeated
Texas A&M Texas A&M University (Texas A&M, A&M, or TAMU) is a public, land-grant, research university in College Station, Texas. It was founded in 1876 and became the flagship institution of the Texas A&M University System in 1948. As of late 2021, T ...
24–20, avenging last season’s only regular season loss. In the
Third Saturday in October The Third Saturday in October is the Alabama–Tennessee football rivalry, an American college football rivalry game played annually by the Crimson Tide of the University of Alabama and the Volunteers of the University of Tennessee. The respect ...
, Saban suffered his first loss as Alabama coach against #6 Tennessee, losing 52–49 on a last second field goal at
Neyland Stadium Neyland Stadium ( ), is a sports stadium in Knoxville, Tennessee, United States. It serves primarily as the home of the Tennessee Volunteers football team, but is also used to host large conventions and has been a site for several National Footb ...
in
Knoxville Knoxville is a city in and the county seat of Knox County in the U.S. state of Tennessee. As of the 2020 United States census, Knoxville's population was 190,740, making it the largest city in the East Tennessee Grand Division and the state's ...
. The loss snapped Alabama’s longest winning streak against the Vols at fifteen. On homecoming, the Tide bounced back defeating #24 Mississippi State 30–6. Following a bye week, Alabama traveled to
Baton Rouge Baton Rouge ( ; ) is a city in and the capital of the U.S. state of Louisiana Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It is the 20th-sma ...
in a top ten matchup against #10 LSU. Saban suffered his second loss of the season, losing 32-31 in overtime. Alabama bounced back with a close win over #11 Ole Miss 30-24. The next week, Alabama shutout Austin Peay 34-0. In the
Iron Bowl The Alabama–Auburn football rivalry, better known as the Iron Bowl, is an American college football rivalry game between the Auburn University Tigers and University of Alabama Crimson Tide, both charter members of the Southeastern Conferenc ...
, the Tide defeated
Auburn Auburn may refer to: Places Australia * Auburn, New South Wales * City of Auburn, the local government area *Electoral district of Auburn *Auburn, Queensland, a locality in the Western Downs Region *Auburn, South Australia *Auburn, Tasmania *Aub ...
49–27. The win secured Saban his fifteenth consecutive ten-win season, a new NCAA record.Alabama finished the regular season 10-2 and was selected to play #9 Kansas State in the
Sugar Bowl The Sugar Bowl is an annual American college football bowl game played in New Orleans, Louisiana. Played annually since January 1, 1935, it is tied with the Orange Bowl and Sun Bowl as the second-oldest bowl games in the country, surpassed onl ...
. The game will mark Saban’s seventh appearance in the Sugar Bowl.


Personal life

Saban is a devout
Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
who attends
Mass Mass is an intrinsic property of a body. It was traditionally believed to be related to the quantity of matter in a physical body, until the discovery of the atom and particle physics. It was found that different atoms and different elementar ...
before games. The Sabans attend St. Francis of Assisi University Parish in
Tuscaloosa Tuscaloosa ( ) is a city in and the seat of Tuscaloosa County in west-central Alabama, United States, on the Black Warrior River where the Gulf Coastal and Piedmont plains meet. Alabama's fifth-largest city, it had an estimated population of 1 ...
. St. Francis' Parish priest, Father Gerald Holloway, served as a chaplain for the football team before he was transferred. Saban is of Croatian heritage.
Bill Belichick William Stephen Belichick (; born April 16, 1952) is an American professional football coach who is the head coach of the New England Patriots of the National Football League (NFL). Additionally, he exercises extensive authority over the Patri ...
and Saban are good friends. When Belichick spoke about their relationship, he said: "Two successful Croats in the same division of NFL. You must admit, you don't see that every day." Saban shares his last name with another famous football coach,
Lou Saban Louis Henry Saban (October 13, 1921 – March 29, 2009) was an American football player and coach. He played for Indiana University in college and as a professional for the Cleveland Browns of the All-America Football Conference between 1946 a ...
. They were called "distant cousins" in a 2005 article where Lou comments on the younger Saban's success. Upon the death of Lou Saban, his widow Joyce Saban said the two men might have been second cousins, but their families say they are not related. Saban made a cameo appearance as himself in the 2009 film '' The Blind Side'', and requested to simply repeat a conversation he had with
Michael Oher Michael Jerome Oher (; né Williams Jr.; born May 28, 1986) is a former American football offensive tackle who played in the National Football League (NFL) for eight seasons, primarily with the Baltimore Ravens. He played college football at t ...
rather than follow the script, which director
John Lee Hancock John Lee Hancock Jr. (born December 15, 1956) is an American filmmaker. He directed the sports drama films ''The Rookie (2002 film), The Rookie'' (2002) and ''The Blind Side (film), The Blind Side'' (2009), and the historical drama films ''Savin ...
allowed him to do. In August 2010, the documentary ''Nick Saban: Gamechanger'' was released. Included in the film are interviews from Belichick and Alabama athletic director
Mal Moore Mal Mathad Moore (December 19, 1939 – March 30, 2013) was an American football coach and college athletics administrator. He served as the athletic director at the University of Alabama from 1999 to 2013. On November 23, 1999, he was hired as ...
, among others. Saban and his wife Terry have been married for over 45 years. They have two children: Nicholas and Kristen. The Sabans are the co-founders of the foundation Nick's Kids. This foundation has been used by the Sabans to help support children's needs ever since Saban started head coaching. In the first three years at Alabama, Nick's Kids raised more than . Saban owns a vacation home on
Lake Burton Lake Burton may refer to: *Lake Burton (Georgia), a lake in Rabun County, Georgia * Lake Burton (Quebec), a lake near Long Island, Quebec *Lake Burton (Antarctica) Lake Burton, also known as Burton Lagoon, is a meromictic and saline lake in th ...
in northeast
Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...
. Outside of football, Saban keeps in touch with his players, taking a mentor role to his former players. Saban not only speaks with NFL players, but former athletes that have moved on past football, such as
Eryk Anders Eryk Ryan Anders (born April 21, 1987) is an American professional mixed martial artist and former American football linebacker. He competes in the Middleweight division of the UFC. He played college football at the University of Alabama. Early ...
, linebacker turned pro fighter in the
Ultimate Fighting Championship The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is an American mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion company based in Las Vegas, Nevada. It is owned and operated by Zuffa, a wholly owned subsidiary of Endeavor Group Holdings. It is the largest MMA ...
. In 2022, Saban co-signed a letter directed at Senator
Joe Manchin Joseph Manchin III (born August 24, 1947) is an American politician and businessman serving as the senior United States senator from West Virginia, a seat he has held since 2010. A member of the Democratic Party, Manchin was the 34th governor of ...
, voicing support for the passage of the
Freedom to Vote Act The For the People Act, introduced as H.R.1, is a bill in the United States Congress intended to expand voting rights, change campaign finance laws to reduce the influence of money in politics, ban partisan gerrymandering, and create new eth ...
, while including a footnote that he does not support the removal of the filibuster in the Senate. Saban and Manchin grew up together in West Virginia, and Saban had previously endorsed Manchin for Senate in
2018 File:2018 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in PyeongChang, South Korea; Protests erupt following the Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi; March for Our Lives protests take place across the United ...
.


Coaching tree

Saban is from the Don James coaching tree. After Saban finished his degree at Kent State in 1972, James convinced him to join the Kent State coaching staff as a graduate assistant. Saban's coaching career encompasses the Bill Belichick coaching tree, having worked as his defensive coordinator during Belichick's tenure as head coach of the
Cleveland Browns The Cleveland Browns are a professional American football team based in Cleveland. Named after original coach and co-founder Paul Brown, they compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference ( ...
. Saban worked with Belichick's father, Steve, while on the staff together at Navy in 1982. Head Coaching Tree under Saban: * L. C. Cole:
Tennessee State Tennessee State University (Tennessee State, Tenn State, or TSU) is a public historically black land-grant university in Nashville, Tennessee, United States. Founded in 1912, it is the only state-funded historically black university in Tennes ...
(1996–1999), Alabama State (2000–2002), Stillman (2009–2010) *
Dean Pees Russell Dean Pees (born September 4, 1949) is an American football coach who is the defensive coordinator for the Atlanta Falcons of the National Football League (NFL). He previously served as the defensive coordinator for the New England Patrio ...
: Kent State (1998–2003) *
Bobby Williams Robert Vann Williams (born November 21, 1958) is an American football coach who most recently served as the special teams coordinator and tight ends coach at the University of Oregon from 2018 to 2021. Williams served as the head coach at Mich ...
:
Michigan State Michigan State University (Michigan State, MSU) is a public land-grant research university in East Lansing, Michigan. It was founded in 1855 as the Agricultural College of the State of Michigan, the first of its kind in the United States. It i ...
(2000–2002) *
Tom Amstutz Tom Amstutz (born August 30, 1955) is a former American football player and coach. He served as the head football coach at the University of Toledo from 2001 to 2008, compiling a 58–41 record, including a 39–24 mark in conference play. Known ...
: Toledo (2001–2008) *
Mark Dantonio Mark Justin Dantonio (born March 9, 1956) is a former American football coach and player. He most recently served as the head football coach at Michigan State University, a position he had held from 2007 to 2019, presiding over one of the most ...
:
Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wit ...
(2004–2006),
Michigan State Michigan State University (Michigan State, MSU) is a public land-grant research university in East Lansing, Michigan. It was founded in 1855 as the Agricultural College of the State of Michigan, the first of its kind in the United States. It i ...
(2007–2019) *
Brad Salem Brad Salem (born March 18, 1970) is an American football coach and former player. He is currently the tight ends coach at Memphis Tigers football, Memphis. He has previously been an assistant coach at Luther College (Iowa), Luther, South Dakota C ...
: Augustana (SD) (2005–2009) *
Scott Linehan Scott Thomas Linehan (born September 17, 1963) is an American football coach who currently works as an offensive analyst for Missouri. He was most recently the passing game coordinator for LSU. He was previously the head coach of the St. Louis ...
:
St. Louis Rams The St. Louis Rams were a professional American football team of the National Football League (NFL). They played in St. Louis from 1995 to the 2015 season, before moving back to Los Angeles, where the team had played from 1946 to 1994. The arr ...
(2006–2008) * Derek Dooley:
Louisiana Tech Louisiana Tech University (Louisiana Tech, La. Tech, or simply Tech) is a public research university in Ruston, Louisiana. It is part of the University of Louisiana System and classified among "R2: Doctoral Universities – High research activi ...
(2007–2009),
Tennessee Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...
(2010–2012) *
Greg Colby Greg Colby (born February 25, 1952) is an American football coach. He was the defensive coordinator at Central Michigan University from 2015 to 2018. Colby served as the head football coach at Millersville University of Pennsylvania from 2008 ...
: Millersville (2008–2012) *
Josh McDaniels Joshua Thomas McDaniels (born April 22, 1976) is an American football head coach for the Las Vegas Raiders of the National Football League (NFL). He began his NFL career in 2001 with the New England Patriots, where he served as the offensive coo ...
:
Denver Broncos The Denver Broncos are a professional American football franchise based in Denver. The Broncos compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The team is headquart ...
(2009–2010),
Las Vegas Raiders The Las Vegas Raiders are a professional American football team based in the Las Vegas metropolitan area. The Raiders compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West divis ...
(2022–present) * Mike Haywood: Miami (OH) (2009–2010),
Texas Southern Texas Southern University (Texas Southern or TSU) is a public historically black university in Houston, Texas. The university is one of the largest and most comprehensive historically black college or universities in the USA with nearly 10,000 ...
(2016–2018) *
Jimbo Fisher John James "Jimbo" Fisher Jr. (born October 9, 1965) is an American college football coach and former player. He is the head coach of the Texas A&M Aggies Football, Texas A&M Aggies. Previously, Fisher was the head coach at Florida State Seminol ...
:
Florida State Florida State University (FSU) is a public university, public research university in Tallahassee, Florida. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida. Founded in 1851, it is located on the oldest continuous site of higher e ...
(2010–2017),
Texas A&M Texas A&M University (Texas A&M, A&M, or TAMU) is a public, land-grant, research university in College Station, Texas. It was founded in 1876 and became the flagship institution of the Texas A&M University System in 1948. As of late 2021, T ...
(2018–present) *
Jason Garrett Jason Calvin Garrett (born March 28, 1966) is a former American football player and coach and current broadcaster. He previously served as the head coach of the Dallas Cowboys for the 2010s from 2010-2019. Garrett has also been offensive coordi ...
:
Dallas Cowboys The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football team based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The Cowboys compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East divisi ...
(2011–2019) *
Curt Cignetti Curt Cignetti (born June 2, 1961) is an American football coach who has been the head coach of the James Madison Dukes since 2019. He previously served as the head coach for Elon University and was an assistant coach for the University of Alabam ...
: IUP (2011–2016), Elon (2017–2018),
James Madison James Madison Jr. (March 16, 1751June 28, 1836) was an American statesman, diplomat, and Founding Father. He served as the fourth president of the United States from 1809 to 1817. Madison is hailed as the "Father of the Constitution" for hi ...
(2019–present) * Pat Shurmur:
Cleveland Browns The Cleveland Browns are a professional American football team based in Cleveland. Named after original coach and co-founder Paul Brown, they compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference ( ...
(2011–2012),
New York Giants The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. ...
(2018–2019) *
Will Muschamp William Lawrence Muschamp (born August 3, 1971) is an American football coach and former player. He is the co- defensive coordinator and safeties coach at the University of Georgia. He served as head football coach at the University of Florida fr ...
:
Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...
(2011–2014),
South Carolina )''Animis opibusque parati'' ( for, , Latin, Prepared in mind and resources, links=no) , anthem = " Carolina";" South Carolina On My Mind" , Former = Province of South Carolina , seat = Columbia , LargestCity = Charleston , LargestMetro = ...
(2016–2020) *
Mike Mularkey Michael Rene Mularkey (born November 19, 1961) is a former American football coach and tight end in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the University of Florida, and was drafted in the ninth round of the 1983 NF ...
:
Jacksonville Jaguars The Jacksonville Jaguars are a professional American football team based in Jacksonville, Florida. The Jaguars compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) South division. The team play ...
(2012),
Tennessee Titans The Tennessee Titans are a professional American football team based in Nashville, Tennessee. The Titans compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) South division, and play their h ...
(2016–2017) *
Jim McElwain James Frank McElwain (born March 1, 1962) is an American football coach who is currently the head coach at Central Michigan University. He previously served as the head coach at Florida from 2015 to 2017, and Colorado State from 2012 to 2014, ...
: Colorado State (2012–2014),
Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...
(2015–2017),
Central Michigan Central Michigan, also called Mid Michigan, is a region in the Lower Peninsula of the U.S. state of Michigan. As its name implies, it is the middle area of the Lower Peninsula. Lower Michigan is said to resemble a mitten, and Mid Michigan cor ...
(2019–present) *
Brian Polian Brian Stewart Polian (born December 22, 1974) is an American college football coach and former player. He is the special teams coordinator for LSU. He is the former head coach of the Nevada Wolf Pack football team. He is the son of former Natio ...
:
Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, Western region of the United States. It is bordered by Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. N ...
(2013–2016) * Dan Quinn:
Atlanta Falcons The Atlanta Falcons are a professional American football team based in Atlanta. The Falcons compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. The Falcons joined th ...
(2015–2020) *
Adam Gase Adam Joseph Gase (born March 29, 1978) is a former American football coach in the National Football League (NFL). He came to prominence as the offensive coordinator for the Denver Broncos from 2013 to 2014, whose offense set the NFL record for ...
:
Miami Dolphins The Miami Dolphins are a professional American football team based in the Miami metropolitan area. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member team of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. The team pla ...
(2016–2018),
New York Jets The New York Jets are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Jets compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. The J ...
(2019–2020) *
Kirby Smart Kirby Paul Smart (born December 23, 1975) is an American football coach and former player. He is the current head football coach of the Georgia Bulldogs, his alma mater. He coached the 2021 Bulldogs to a national championship victory, their fi ...
:
Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...
(2016–present) *
Major Applewhite Major Lee Applewhite (born July 26, 1978) is an American football coach and former player who is currently the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach for the South Alabama Jaguars. He served as head coach at the University of Houston from ...
:
Houston Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 in ...
(2016–2018) * Geoff Collins:
Temple A temple (from the Latin ) is a building reserved for spiritual rituals and activities such as prayer and sacrifice. Religions which erect temples include Christianity (whose temples are typically called churches), Hinduism (whose temples ...
(2017–2018),
Georgia Tech The Georgia Institute of Technology, commonly referred to as Georgia Tech or, in the state of Georgia, as Tech or The Institute, is a public research university and institute of technology in Atlanta, Georgia. Established in 1885, it is part of ...
(2019–2022) *
Mario Cristobal Mario Manuel Cristobal (born September 24, 1970) is head football coach of the Miami Hurricanes football team at the University of Miami. Cristobal previously was the head football coach at Florida International University (FIU) from 2007 to 20 ...
:
Oregon Oregon () is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of it ...
(2017–2021),
Miami Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a East Coast of the United States, coastal metropolis and the County seat, county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade C ...
(2022–present) *
Lane Kiffin Lane Monte Kiffin (born May 9, 1975) is an American football coach who is currently the head coach of the Ole Miss Rebels. Kiffin formerly was the offensive coordinator for the USC Trojans football team from 2005 to 2006, head coach of the Nati ...
: FAU (2017–2019), Ole Miss (2020–present) *
Jeremy Pruitt Jeremy Pruitt (born May 28, 1974) is an American football coach who most recently was a senior defensive assistant for the New York Giants of the National Football League (NFL). He previously served as the head coach at the University of Tennes ...
:
Tennessee Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...
(2018–2020) *
Billy Napier William Hall Napier (born July 21, 1979) is an American football coach currently serving as head coach at the University of Florida. From 2017 until 2021, he served as head coach at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, amassing a 40–12 rec ...
:
Louisiana Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It is the 20th-smallest by area and the 25th most populous of the 50 U.S. states. Louisiana is borde ...
(2018–2021),
Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...
(2022–present) *
Mike Locksley Michael Anthony Locksley (born December 25, 1969) is an American football coach. Locksley is currently the head coach at the Maryland Terrapins football, University of Maryland. After serving as an assistant coach for several college football ...
:
Maryland Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean to ...
(2019–present) *
Mel Tucker Melvin Tucker II (born January 4, 1972) is an American football coach and former player. He is currently the head football coach at Michigan State University, a position he has held since 2020. Previously, Tucker served as the head football coac ...
:
Colorado Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of t ...
(2019),
Michigan State Michigan State University (Michigan State, MSU) is a public land-grant research university in East Lansing, Michigan. It was founded in 1855 as the Agricultural College of the State of Michigan, the first of its kind in the United States. It i ...
(2020–present) * Freddie Kitchens:
Cleveland Browns The Cleveland Browns are a professional American football team based in Cleveland. Named after original coach and co-founder Paul Brown, they compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference ( ...
(2019) * Joe Judge:
New York Giants The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. ...
(2020–2021) *
Butch Jones Lyle Allen "Butch" Jones Jr. (born January 17, 1968) is an American football coach who is currently the head coach at Arkansas State University. Jones previously served as a special assistant to the head coach and offensive analyst at the Univ ...
:
Arkansas State Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the South Central United States. It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the Osage l ...
(2021–present) *
Steve Sarkisian Stephen Sarkisian (born March 8, 1974)Stephens, Ken. – "QB GENEALOGY – Steve Sarkisian is latest in long line of talented BYU quarterbacks". – FUN FACT, Sarkisian’s father is actually Texas Tech Head Coach, Joey McGuire. ''Dallas Mo ...
:
Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...
(2021–present) * Charles Huff:
Marshall Marshall may refer to: Places Australia * Marshall, Victoria, a suburb of Geelong, Victoria Canada * Marshall, Saskatchewan * The Marshall, a mountain in British Columbia Liberia * Marshall, Liberia Marshall Islands * Marshall Islands, an i ...
(2021–present) *
Dan Lanning Dan Lanning (born April 10, 1986) is an American football coach and former player who is currently the head coach at the University of Oregon. He previously served as the defensive coordinator and outside linebackers coach at the University of ...
:
Oregon Oregon () is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of it ...
(2022–present) * Ron Cooper: LIU (2022–present) *
Brian Daboll Brian Michael Daboll (; born April 14, 1975) is a Canadian-born American football coach who is the head coach of the New York Giants of the National Football League (NFL). He previously served as the offensive coordinator for the Cleveland Bro ...
:
New York Giants The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. ...
(2022–present) * Brent Key:
Georgia Tech The Georgia Institute of Technology, commonly referred to as Georgia Tech or, in the state of Georgia, as Tech or The Institute, is a public research university and institute of technology in Atlanta, Georgia. Established in 1885, it is part of ...
(2023–present) * Lance Taylor:
Western Michigan West Michigan and Western Michigan are terms for an arbitrary region in the U.S. state of Michigan's Lower Peninsula. Most narrowly it refers to the Grand Rapids- Muskegon-Holland area, and more broadly to most of the region along the Lower Pen ...
(2023–present) Players under Saban that became head coaches: *
Herb Haygood Herbert Donta Haygood (born December 30, 1977) was an American football coach and former player. He played professionally as a wide receiver in the National Football League (NFL). He was drafted by the Denver Broncos in the fifth round of the 2 ...
:
Madonna Madonna Louise Ciccone (; ; born August 16, 1958) is an American singer-songwriter and actress. Widely dubbed the " Queen of Pop", Madonna has been noted for her continual reinvention and versatility in music production, songwriting, a ...
(2020–present) *
Matt Eberflus Matthew Charles Eberflus (born May 17, 1970) is an American football coach who is the head coach of the Chicago Bears of the National Football League (NFL). He previously served as the defensive coordinator for the Indianapolis Colts from 201 ...
:
Chicago Bears The Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago. The Bears compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) North division. The Bears have won nine NF ...
(2022–present)


Head coaching record


College


NFL


See also

*
List of college football coaches with 200 wins This is a list of college football coaches with 200 career wins. "College level" is defined as a four-year college or university program in either the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) or the National Collegiate Athletic Ass ...


Notes


References


Further reading

*


External links


Coaching statistics at Sports-Reference.com

Alabama Crimson Tide bio
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Saban, Nick 1951 births Living people American football defensive backs Alabama Crimson Tide football coaches Cleveland Browns coaches Houston Oilers coaches Kent State Golden Flashes football coaches Kent State Golden Flashes football players LSU Tigers football coaches Miami Dolphins head coaches Michigan State Spartans football coaches National Football League defensive coordinators Navy Midshipmen football coaches Ohio State Buckeyes football coaches Syracuse Orange football coaches Toledo Rockets football coaches West Virginia Mountaineers football coaches People from Fairmont, West Virginia Coaches of American football from West Virginia Players of American football from West Virginia American people of Croatian descent Catholics from West Virginia