Paul Finebaum addresses how 2023 season impacts Nick Saban's legacy

The 2023 season could really impact Nick Saban’s legacy moving forward, according to ESPN’s Paul Finebaum.

Saban could be on the backend of his career, even though he’s not slowing down anytime soon. The 71-year old coach is considered the greatest college head coach of all-time and has seven national titles to his name.

But is he being surpassed? Kirby Smart and the changes coming to college football could dictate that according to Finebaum.

“Let me say this for the record, Nick Saban is still the greatest coach of all-time,” Finebaum said on First Take. “He finished last year fifth in the country, the year before second in the country, and the year before first. He had the best recruiting class in the country.

“But these are fair conversations about where he stands, though. I think the one thing that he would argue — and he’ll turn 72 years old in October ­— that next year, the door opens a little bit wider.”

The change to a 12-team College Football Playoff gives more teams an opportunity to upset the apple cart, so to speak. No longer will it be just the Alabama’s of the world, in addition to schools like Georgia and the Big Ten winner, as the sole dominant forces in college football.

Nick Saban legacy at stake in 2023?

Changes are coming to college football and Finebaum made a point that it could alter Saban’s current standing in college football. But perhaps not historically.

“There’s a 12-team playoff,” Finebaum said. “But the schedule becomes a little more difficult with very difficult road games. Now you have Texas and Oklahoma on the schedule, and so many other factors. I think Saban can do it again but the fact that I picked up a blog this morning and read a local columnist saying Kirby Smart’s the best coach in the SEC, that’s hard to get used to because Nick Saban has been the best coach in the SEC since the day he got there.”

But father time is undefeated to all athletes and coaches. Saban’s time will run out eventually and he’ll step away with quite the legacy to look back upon. But when is that? It remains to be seen.

“But these things happen,” Finebaum said. “Nobody considers Bill Belichick the best coach in the NFL anymore and he has an endless number of Super Bowls. Nick Saban still has command of college football in one respect, he’s still the most talked about, the most influential person.

“But if we’re back here in mid-January and Kirby Smart has done it again, and Saban is home, then the conversation gets more heated about where does he stand today in the parlance of college football.”

Of course, Finebaum said Belichick isn’t the best coach in the NFL at this current time, which doesn’t take away from his historical standing. Like Saban, Belichick is generally considered the greatest coach in history.