During his 17 seasons as head coach of the Alabama Crimson Tide, Nick Saban had some of college football's best coordinators the sport has seen in the last two decades serve on his staff in play-calling roles.
As head coach at Alabama from 2007-23, the Crimson Tide won six national championships under Saban and posted an overall record of 206-29.
During that span, Alabama had some of the best offensive and defensive coordinators in college football. The Crimson Tide saw an assistant win the Broyles Award three times under Saban. The Broyles Award is presented annually to the top assistant coach in college football.
Across his 17 seasons, Saban and Alabama had nine different coaches serve as offensive coordinator while the defense featured five
different assistants calling the plays.
The list is loaded with multiple names who went on to become head coaches, some of which are among the biggest in the sport today.
Here is a ranking of the top 10 coordinators at Alabama during the Nick Saban era.
10. Jim McElwain
- Years at Alabama: 2008-11
Jim McElwain spent four seasons as a coordinator at Alabama, calling the offensive plays for two Crimson Tide title-winning teams in 2009 and 2011. In four seasons under McElwain, Alabama's offense ranked top 20 nationally twice in points per game while the Crimson Tide also produced the program's first-ever Heisman Trophy winner in 2009 with running back Mark Ingram.
9. Brian Daboll
- Years at Alabama: 2017
Brian Daboll spent one season at Alabama as offensive coordinator, joining the Crimson Tide for the 2017 campaign from the NFL. Daboll's offense in 2017 ranked No. 15 nationally with an average of 37.1 points scored per game. Alabama won the national title that season.
8. Doug Nussmeier
- Years at Alabama: 2012-13
Doug Nussmeier spent two seasons at Alabama as the Crimson Tide's offensive coordinator from 2012-13. The Tide won a national championship with Nussmeier calling offensive plays in 2012, and Alabama ranked in the top 20 nationally in points per game in both seasons.
7. Bill O'Brien
- Years at Alabama: 2021-22
Bill O'Brien joined the Alabama coaching staff in January 2021 after seven seasons as head coach of the Houston Texans. He two seasons with the Crimson Tide from 2021-22. In both seasons, Alabama's offense ranked Top 10 nationally in points per game, and the 2021 campaign also saw quarterback Bryce Young win the Heisman Trophy.
6. Mike Locksley
- Years at Alabama: 2018
Mike Locksley spent only one season as a coordinator in Tuscaloosa, but when looking back now, that lone season featured one of the most productive offenses the Crimson Tide has ever had. Alabama, which fell in the College Football Playoff national championship game that year, ranked No. 3 nationally with an average of 45.6 points per game offensively under Locksley, who ended up winning the 2018 Broyles Award.
5. Pete Golding
- Years at Alabama: 2019-22
Golding spent four seasons as a coordinator under Saban, calling the Crimson Tide's defensive plays from 2019-22. Under Golding, Alabama's defense ranked top 20 nationally in points allowed per game in all four seasons, as well as one top-10 finish in 2022. Golding served as Alabama's defensive coordinator during their national championship season in 2020.
4. Jeremy Pruitt
- Years at Alabama: 2016-17
Jeremy Pruitt returned to Alabama as the Tide's defensive coordinator during the 2016-17 seasons, his second stint in Tuscaloosa under Saban after leaving years prior. After a significant coordinator change in 2016, the Crimson Tide defense did not skip a beat in Pruitt's two seasons, ranking No. 1 nationally in points allowed per game both years. Alabama won a national title in 2017 with Pruitt as defensive coordinator.
3. Lane Kiffin
- Years at Alabama: 2014-16
Lane Kiffin served as Alabama's offensive coordinator from 2014-16, and played the biggest role in helping transform the Crimson Tide's offense into one of college football's best during his three seasons in Tuscaloosa. Under Kiffin, Alabama's offense ranked top 30 nationally in points per game with an average of 35+ during each of his three seasons. His time at Alabama included the 2015 College Football Playoff national championship season, which produced Derrick Henry as that year's Heisman Trophy winner.
2. Steve Sarkisian
- Years at Alabama: 2019-20
Not including his time in the role during the 2016 CFP title game, Steve Sarkisian spent two seasons as the Crimson Tide's offensive coordinator from 2019-20, serving as the play-caller for the one greatest offenses college football has ever seen. Under Sarkisian, Alabama's offense ranked No. 2 nationally in points per game both years, headlined by 48.5 during the 2020 national title season. That same season also saw DeVonta Smith win the Heisman, as well as Sarkisian win the Broyles Award. Sarkisian was even the head coach for one game: the 2020 Iron Bowl, which Saban missed.
1. Kirby Smart
- Years at Alabama: 2008-15
Kirby Smart served as Alabama's defensive coordinator for eight seasons from 2008-15, and in doing so, led some of the greatest defenses that modern college football has ever seen. Alabama's defense ranked top 10 nationally in points per game allowed in all eight seasons under Smart. They also led the nation twice in total defense in 2011-12, both of which were national championship winning defenses. Smart, who won four national titles at Alabama as a coordinator, won the Broyles Award in 2009.
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This article originally appeared on Roll Tide Wire: Ranking Alabama's Top 10 coordinators during Nick Saban era
