Nick Saban gives his definition of a successful season

Winning has become synonymous with Nick Saban’s tenure at Alabama, but a successful season, he explained, means far more than just a winning season.

Saban has been Alabama’s head coach since 2007, and the winning has come in every possible form. Alabama has won national championships, six to be exact, in Saban’s tenure. The Crimson Tide have won 11 SEC Western Division titles and eight SEC crowns. Since he left LSU in favor of Alabama, he’s won the Bear Bryant Award twice, SEC Coach of the Year four times and AP Coach of the Year twice. Overall, Saban boasts a 183-24 overall record in 15 years at Alabama, including a 15-5 record in bowl games, and his players have seen immense individual success, too: 44 of Saban’s players in his career have been named consensus All-Americans, and four more have won Heisman Trophies.

But championships, awards, accomplishments, accolades — those aren’t the only methods of measuring success, Saban said.

“I think my definition of a successful season would be that every player in the organization, every player on the team would actually maximize his full potential based on his competitive character, discipline, work ethic, ability to overcome adversity, resiliency to persevere and do things that are going to create value for him and his future,” Saban said. “I would say that if every player in the organization could get to that point, that would be a successful season. Now, I know that I’ve always philosophically thought that’s what college football was all about, helping players be more successful.”

Players have certainly accomplished that on his tenure, both at Alabama and before his arrival in Tuscaloosa. On Monday, Saban has a chance once again to make rare history and further establish Alabama’s dominance by winning the eighth national title of his Alabama career and ninth of his entire coaching career, but he still argues that wins and losses are not the only method by which to judge a coach’s success.

“We all get judged as coaches on how many games we win and lose. But I think if maybe everybody on your team has the right competitive character, attitude, discipline, whatever you want to talk about, that that will give you the best chance to maximize the team’s chances to be successful,” Saban said. “So, if the team reaches its full potential because every individual who make the team what it is did, then I think that’s probably a successful year. And I don’t know how that equates into wins and losses.”

Will Anderson reveals best advice Nick Saban has ever given

Alabama linebacker Will Anderson is having a historic season for the Crimson Tide, and the future first-round draft pick on Saturday revealed that head coach Nick Saban has been there to help him through adversity.

In a Cotton Bowl win over Cincinnati, Anderson logged six total tackles (two solo stops), while also notching two sacks, bringing his nation-leading sack count up to 17.5. Now, as Anderson and Alabama prepares to face Georgia in the national title game, Anderson — asked to recall the best advice Saban ever gave him — explained how his coach has helped him face tough times head on.

“The best piece of advice I received from Coach Saban will probably be just facing adversity, never giving up,” Anderson said. “No matter how hard something gets, keep fighting to the end. Don’t let it control you. Don’t let it get too overwhelming or put too much pressure on yourself. Just go out there and have fun. And whatever happens, happens.”

Perhaps Saban’s lesson helped Anderson push through his Heisman Trophy snub this season, as the linebacker finished well below the expectation in voting — all while Michigan defensive end Aidan Hutchinson was the lone defensive player to be named a finalist.