EDITOR'S NOTE: This is an excerpt from The Tuscaloosa News' commemorative book on Nick Saban and his Alabama football dynasty. The complete top 10 Alabama players from the Saban era with expanded content on them, as well as top games, ranking of all his seasons and much more can be found in the book. You can order the book online at: Sabanbook.com.
Being a great coach is a byproduct of the play of great players, and Nick Saban had some of the best over his dynasty seasons with Alabama football. Here are the five best players for the Crimson Tide from the Saban era.
1. DeVonta Smith
WR, 2017-20
The evolution of Alabama’s style of dominance throughout the Saban era is most tangibly demonstrated by Smith. He was the model as Alabama became a destination for the sport’s most dynamic wide receivers. Smith arrived weighing 159 pounds and graduated weighing 170. Undersized at 6-foot but elusive, he stamped his place in Crimson Tide history as a true freshman with his championship-winning touchdown catch in overtime against Georgia.
By the time his college career ended three seasons later, he was the first receiver to win the Heisman Trophy in 30 years. The size question always followed Smith. When Saban was asked about it on the "Rich Eisen Show" in 2021, he said, “The ball weighs 13 ounces. How big do you have to be to carry it?”
Height: 6-1
Number: 6
Hometown/high school: Amite, La./Amite
Stats: 54 games, 235 receptions, 3,965 yards receiving, 46 receiving TDs.
Honors: Heisman Trophy (2020), first-team All-America (‘20), first-team All-SEC (’19, ‘20), SEC Offensive POY (’20), Biletnikoff Award (’20), Walter Camp POY (’20), Maxwell Award (’20), Paul Hornung Award (’20), Associated Press POY (’20)
National titles: 2017, ‘20
2. C.J. Mosley
LB, 2010-13
The team captain is one of Alabama’s most decorated defensive players of the Saban era. Mosley’s impact was instantaneous: He was a Freshman All-American in 2010, with 67 tackles, 10 pass breakups and two interception returns for touchdowns. He only got better from there, earning All-America honors in 2012 and 2013 for his 100-tackle seasons.
In the moments before Mosley was drafted 17th overall by the Baltimore Ravens, Saban told ESPN, “I think C.J. Mosley is one of the finest football players and finest people I’ve ever had the opportunity to coach. This guy actually makes more plays on the football field, plays faster, reacts more quickly than anybody that I’ve ever had.”
Height: 6-2
Number: 32
Hometown/high school: Mobile, Ala./Theodore
Stats: 51 games, 319 tackles, 23 TFL, 6.5 sacks, five INTs
Honors: First-team All-America (2012, ’13), first-team All-SEC (’12, ’13), Butkus Award (‘13), SEC Defensive Player of the Year (’13)
National titles: 2011, ’12
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3. Derrick Henry
RB, 2013-15
What’s the best way to contextualize Henry’s dominance? Perhaps statistically: With 3,591 yards, he’s the No. 2 rusher in Alabama history — behind only Najee Harris — and it took him fewer seasons (3) and fewer carries (602) than anyone else in the top five. Or perhaps visually: Just watch his highlights from the Heisman Trophy-winning 2015 season and marvel at his transcendent combination of power and speed. Henry broke SEC single-season records for rushing touchdowns (28) and yards (2,219).
Born when his mother was 15 years old, he notably had a close bond with his grandmother, who died in 2016. She gave him the nickname “Shocka.” The Tennessee Titans star credited her when he finished his degree in 2018, completing his journey at Alabama.
Height: 6-3
Number: 2
Hometown/high school: Yulee, Fla./Yulee
Stats: 41 games, 602 carries
3,591 rushing yards, 42 rushing TDs
Honors: Heisman Trophy (2015), first-team All-America (’15), first-team All-SEC (’15), Doak Walker Award (‘15), Maxwell Trophy (’15), Walter Camp Player of the Year (’15), SEC Offensive Player of the Year (’15)
National title: 2015
4. Julio Jones
WR, 2008-10
Jones was a highly-coveted athlete out of Foley, Ala. When the Tide earned his commitment in 2008, Nick Saban was trying to build on a 7-6 debut season. “Being from Alabama, it was probably one of the most important things that ever happened in the program,” Saban later said.
Jones became the first true freshman receiver in school history to start a season opener. It began a three-year Crimson Tide career in which Jones compiled 2,653 yards and 15 touchdowns on 179 catches. “There’s nobody that we’ve had that was a better leader or did more to enhance the culture of toughness, giving effort, finishing plays, being a great competitor than Julio Jones did,” Saban said. Jones, the sixth overall pick in the 2011 draft, became an all-decade player in the NFL.
Height: 6-4
Number: 8
Hometown/high school: Foley, Ala./Foley
Stats: 40 games, 179 receptions
2,653 receiving yards, 15 receiving TDs
Honors: SEC Freshman of the Year (2008), second-team All-SEC (2008); first-team All-SEC (2010); AP second-team All-America (2010)
National title: 2009
5. Barrett Jones
OL, 2008-12
Alabama won six national titles under Saban because of superiority in the trenches. His teams often have been bigger and tougher than the rest. And the most venerated offensive lineman in recent Alabama history is Jones, who played three different positions on three different national championship teams.
A two-time first-team All-American, Jones started every game at left guard as a redshirt freshman in 2009. He started at left tackle on the 2011 team that won it all. And he moved to center — the position at which he was recruited — in 2012. His versatility and consistency are unquantifiable, but he embodied the early stages of Alabama’s mission to annihilate opponents up front.
Height: 6-5
Number: 75
Hometown/high school: Memphis (Tenn.)/Evangel Christian
Stats: 53 games over five seasons
Honors: Freshman All-America (2009), first-team All-America (2011, ’12), first-team All-SEC (2010, ’11, ’12), Wuerffel Trophy (’11), Jacobs Blocking Trophy (’11), Outland Trophy (’12), Rimington Trophy (’12), Campbell Trophy (’12), Academic All-America (2009, ’10, ’11, ’12)
National titles: 2009, ’11, ‘12
