Legendary Alabama head coach Nick Saban didn't make many mistakes in recruiting evaluations over his 17-year run with the Crimson Tide. He signed No. 1 recruiting class after No. 1 recruiting class, stockpiling an embarrassment of riches in Tuscaloosa.
Saban produced countless pros, including 47 1st Round picks. But like every perfectionist, it's the misses - or the losses - that stand out the most. Ask Saban, and the three national championship games the Crimson Tide lost during his tenure - not the six he won - stand out in his mind the most.
In that same vein, when LSU TE Mason Taylor was selected in the 2nd Round of the NFL Draft on Friday night, Saban derided his missed evaluation on Taylor:
"This is the biggest recruiting mistake we ever made," Saban said of Taylor. "This guy is the best tight end we had in camp."
"You know, we bring the guy in and we shuffle around on whether we're going to offer him or not and then he commits to LSU."
Taylor is the son of Miami Dolphins legend Jason Taylor, a player Saban coached during his two years as the head coach of the Dolphins. So the familiarity was there with Taylor, and yet Saban still didn't pull the trigger on an offer until it was too late.
Alabama had a major need at tight end during the 2022 recruiting class and ultimately signed four guys at the position. Those players were Amari Niblack, Elijah Brown, Danny Lewis Jr., and JUCO transfer Miles Kitselman.
Niblack, Brown, and Kitselman all ultimately transferred away from Alabama. Lewis Jr. figures to be a depth piece in the Crimson Tide's tight end room and figures to compete with Josh Cuevas for playing time.
Mason Taylor made Nick Saban pay for the recruiting miss immediately
Taylor was a starter for the Tigers as a freshman. During the 2022 Alabama/LSU game, it was Taylor who made the game-winning reception for a two-point conversion in overtime to lift the Tigers over the Crimson Tide and effectively knock Alabama out of the College Football Playoff.
Alabama couldn't overcome a second loss and finished the regular season ranked No. 5 in the College Football Playoff poll. They went on to beat Kansas State in the Sugar Bowl, but that was just a consolation prize for the ultimate goal of a team more than talented enough to have walked away with a national title.