Alabama Football: How the greatest coach in CFB history goes back to work

Alabama Football: Nick Saban had a full plate Tuesday morning. That did not mean an extra ‘Little Debbie’ oatmeal cream pie, but another hard day of work.

It can be difficult for Alabama football fans to remember but Nick Saban is human. He is just not a normal human. During a season, Saban gives his players 24 hours to celebrate a win. He does not embrace such a respite for himself.

Monday was a late night for Nick. Tuesday was an early morning. The few hours in between allowed time to shed a few celebration tears of joy, list-making for the next day, and hopefully a little sleep.

Nick Saban has much to do between a required media schedule, conversations with players on their football futures and ongoing changes to the Alabama football coaching staff. While Saban will not spend much time celebrating, he will be compelled to devote some thoughts to his place in college football history.

As he does better than anyone, on Monday Cecil Hurt offered perspective on Saban’s career.

"… a seventh title under the BCS and CFP models borders on unfathomable.… at this point in his career, every game Saban coaches is history of some sort. I’m not sure any coach – not Stagg or Warner, not Rockne or Wilkinson, not Parseghian or Paterno or Bowden, not even Bryant himself – was ever at that point."

“Every game … history of some sort” – take time to let that sink in. The statement at first seems implausible. Instead, it is exactly correct. Nick Saban will never publicly acknowledge passing anyone and certainly not Paul ‘Bear’ Bryant. Last night spoke about Bryant.

"If it wasn’t for Coach Bryant, we’d never be able to do what we did. He made the University of Alabama a place where players wanted to come and his family has supported us in a tremendous way. The tradition that he started helps in a tremendous way."

One of Bryant’s most frequent themes was behaving with ‘class.’ He said he was not sure he could define the word but he knew it when he saw it. Bryant’s players were taught to win and lose with class. Nick Saban may not have learned the same from Bryant but he embodies the concept in every way.

Nick Saban is simply so special, Cecil’s description would also be correct if turned another way. Going forward, it will not be only the excitement or the outcomes of Alabama football games that make them historic. Without any other qualifiers, the games will be historic because Nick Saban coached in them.

Nick Saban may never have another team he loves as much as the 2020 one. That will change nothing about how hard he will work to coach the future ones.