BCS National Championship - Alabama v Texas
Getty Images

Nick Saban is college football's all-time leader in national championships with seven, giving him a strong trump card as the greatest college football coach of all time. Six of them came during his legendary 17-year run as Alabama's coach, which came to an end Tuesday when he announced his retirement.

From his first coaching stint at Toledo in 1990 through the end of the 2023 season, Saban witnessed seismic change in the sport. Part of what made him great was his ability to adapt. It was a skill he repeatedly put on display at Alabama while cycling through coordinators but always managing to keep the Crimson Tide at or near the top of college football.

Saban's embrace of the sport's changing offensive norms after his first three national titles enabled him to win three more. Alabama's evolution from a defensive-oriented program into one also capable of winning high-scoring battles also makes comparing his teams a challenge. Beauty lies in the eye of the beholder when it comes to comparing squads like the 2020 team with its offensive brilliance to the 2011 team's defensive dominance.

Here is our best shot at ranking the top squads of Saban's collegiate coaching career.

8. LSU, 2003 (13-1)

Saban arrived at LSU in 2000, inheriting a program coming off a 3-8 season. In his fourth year, the Tigers finished 13-1 with a 21-14 victory over Oklahoma in the BCS National Championship. By the standards of his later title teams at Alabama, this team wasn't supremely dominant — an Oct. 11 home loss to unranked Florida is bizarre in hindsight — but the defense had some serious bite. No one scored more than 24 points against LSU in 2003, which foreshadowed the formula Saban's early teams at Alabama used to reach the top of college football.

7. Alabama, 2016 (14-1)

Alabama's 2016 team started 14-0 with an average victory margin of 27.9 points. The beatings were relentless: 52-6 over No. 20 USC to open the year; 49-10 over No. 9 Tennessee; 33-14 over No. 6 Texas A&M; 54-16 over No. 15 Florida in the SEC Championship Game. The Crimson Tide owned the top spot in the rankings all season long and seemed like a team of inevitable destiny. But the program's bid for back-to-back titles was derailed in the CFP National Championship when Clemson broke through with a dramatic 35-31 victory. There is no question this team — led by stars such as QB Jalen Hurts, LB Reuben Foster and DB Minkah Fitzpatrick — was as good or better than some of those that won national titles under Saban.

6. Alabama, 2012 (13-1)

Eddie Lacy and T.J. Yeldon each surpassed 1,000 yards rushing, fueling Alabama to a 13-1 season and its second straight national championship. The Crimson Tide rebounded from a Nov. 10 loss against Texas A&M and eventual Heisman Trophy winner Johnny Manziel to secure their place in the SEC Championship Game with a 49-0 evisceration of rival Auburn to close the regular season. A 32-28 win over Georgia in the league championship game sent the Crimson Tide into a BCS National Championship matchup with Notre Dame that proved to be a dire mismatch. Alabama led 28-0 at halftime and cruised to a 42-14 win.

5. Alabama, 2017 (13-1)

Alabama's 2017 team is best remembered for the drama of its CFP National Championship victory against Georgia. Saban inserted freshman quarterback Tua Tagovailoa at halftime with the Crimson Tide trailing 13-0. Tagovailoa provided a spark and Alabama rallied to force overtime. Once there, Tagovailoa took a seemingly catastrophic sack for a 16-yard loss. On the next play, however, he hit DeVonta Smith for a 41-yard walk-off touchdown. The play is arguably the most iconic of Saban's career, and it validated his bold halftime decision to put the game in Tagovailoa's hands.

4. Alabama, 2015 (14-1)

After wining three national championships in a four-year span from 2009-12, Alabama went consecutive seasons without a title. It returned to the peak in 2015 behind the running of Derrick Henry. The Heisman Trophy winner ran for 2,219 yards, helping the Crimson Tide overcome an early loss to Ole Miss that sent them spiraling out of the top 10 for the first time since 2010. Alabama proceeded to beat five opponents ranked in the top 10, capped by a thrilling 45-40 win over Clemson in the CFP National Championship.

3. Alabama, 2009 (14-0)

Saban's first national title team dethroned reigning national champion and top-ranked Florida in the SEC Championship Game to mark the establishment of a new hierarchy in college football. The Crimson Tide held the Gators and star quarterback Tim Tebow to just 13 first downs and pulled away in the fourth quarter to secure a spot in the BCS National Championship against Texas. Heisman Trophy winner Mark Ingram rushed for 116 yards and two touchdowns in the national title game, while fellow back Trent Richardson added 109 yards and two touchdowns of his own in a 37-21 victory for the Crimson Tide.

2. Alabama, 2011 (12-1)

Alabama's 2011 team entered its Nov. 5 game against No. 1 LSU at 8-0 with a 32.5-point average margin of victory behind a ruthless defense. But the Tigers bested the Crimson Tide 9-6 in an overtime slugfest that featured nine field goal attempts. The outcome ousted Alabama from the SEC title race but not the national title picture. With three more dominant wins to close the regular season, the Crimson Tide secured a rematch with LSU in the BCS National Championship and made the most of it. The Crimson Tide blasted the Tigers 21-0, holding them to 92 total yards and just five first downs for Saban's second national title with the program. The only team to score more than 14 points against Alabama was Georgia Southern (45-21) as the Crimson Tide's historically elite unit took things a bit easy during a game sandwiched between SEC road contests.

1. Alabama, 2020 (13-0)

Alabama's 2020 offense is one of the best of all time in college football and inarguably the best offense of Saban's tenure. The Crimson Tide never scored fewer than 31 points. Quarterback Mac Jones threw for 4,500 yards and 41 touchdowns against just four interceptions. Smith won the Heisman Trophy with 117 receptions for 1,856 yards and 23 touchdown. The Crimson Tide capped the high-flying campaign with a 52-24 beatdown of Ohio State in which Alabama amassed 621 yards. The only time Alabama won by less than a touchdown was a 52-46 victory over Florida in the SEC Championship Game. This was one of only two Saban squads to finish undefeated (2009), and its sheer statistical production makes it Saban's best.