Column: Why Urban Meyer ranks ahead of Nick Saban on the all-time college football coaches list

Yes, you read that headline correctly.

There's no hyperbole here or aim to create any clickbait. Just a firm belief why I feel Urban Meyer is historically a greater college football coach than Nick Saban.

With college football on the precipice of another season, it's no better time to revisit this topic than now. The 70-year-old Saban is set to enter his 27th season as a college football head coach (16th at Alabama), while the 58-year-old Meyer is no longer coaching in the college ranks and spent 17 years as a head coach.

Let's make this clear: Saban and Meyer are two of the greatest coaches ever to walk the sidelines and are two of three college football coaches ever (along with Glen "Pop" Warner) to win a national title with two different schools.

There are a number of coaches throughout college football history that have a claim to being called the "Best Ever" such as Paul "Bear" Bryant, Tom Osborne, Knute Rockne, Bud Wilkinson, Eddie Robinson, Bobby Bowden, Joe Paterno, Woody Hayes and Frank Leahy. I'm not convinced that there is one coach that sticks out as the greatest but Saban is widely seen by today's college football media as just that.

Cool, that's people's opinion. No problem.

I'm not not here to suggest that Meyer is the greatest coach either, just merely stating why I think Meyer ranks higher than Saban in an objective, rational manner, especially since they competed against each other in the same era.

Now this is strictly a debate based on their college football careers. Nothing else. No mention about failed NFL stints as head coaches. Nothing about how many first-round draft picks they've had or who had more players get drafted overall. No touching on any shortcomings on and off the field. Whose coaching tree is more impressive doesn't matter. It's hard to judge coaches like we do players in debates based on eye test, their peak, value to the team and if they could be successful in any era.

However, there are ways to determine who's better in a coaching debate.

Here are seven reasons why Urban Meyer ranks higher than Nick Saban on the all-time college football coaches lists.

1. Head-to-Head Record

Meyer and Saban are 2-2 against one another all-time.

In their first meeting, Meyer's Florida Gators defeated Saban's Alabama Crimson Tide 31-20 in the 2008 SEC Championship Game.

Saban and Alabama returned the favor in the 2009 SEC Championship Game by winning 32-13.

In a Top-10 matchup (#1 Alabama, #7 Florida) in the 2010 regular season, Alabama stomped Florida 31-6.

In the inaugural College Football Playoff in 2014, Meyer's No. 4 Ohio State knocked out Saban's No. 1 Alabama 42-35 in the semifinals.

So you ask, how does Meyer get the edge over Saban when they're tied 2-2 head-to-head?

When it's this even, you're really splitting hairs. While Saban's 22-point average margin of victory in the two wins tops Meyer's nine-point margin of victory in his two wins, Meyer holds the slim advantage in being 2-1 against Saban in games on the biggest stage.

In those back-to-back SEC title games in 2008-09, I remember the hype going into both games. The Alabama-Florida matchups were genuinely titanic clashes between the two best teams in not just their conference but in all of college football at the time. In 2008, Alabama was No. 1 and Florida was No. 2. In 2009, Florida was No. 1 and Alabama was No. 2.

Florida-Alabama was truly the college football version of Ali-Frazier. They split the two meetings 1-1.

In the 2014 College Football Playoff, Ohio State topped Alabama, which was the favorite in the game.

So, in Conference Title/Playoff/Bowl/National Championship games, Meyer got the better of Saban, even if it is a small sample size. And that leads us to ...

2. Better Big Game Coach

This is where Meyer starts to separate himself from Saban. One of the areas most athletic administrations examine when evaluating a coach's performance is how well he does in the big games. The ones that really matter.

You know, the important regular-season games. Top 10 showdowns. Top five matchups. Games with national title implications on the line. Rivalry games. Conference title games. Bowl games. Playoff games. National title games.

There's no denying the fact that Saban has won seven national championships (7-3 in national title games) to Meyer's three (3-0 in national title games) and 11 conference titles (10-1 in conference title games) to Meyer's seven (5-2 in conference title games). For perspective, of Meyer's three titles, two of them were in the BCS era (1998-2013) and the other in the playoff era (2014-current). Of Saban's seven titles, four of them were in the BCS era and the other three in the playoff era. Both pretty good, right?

In playoff games, Saban carries a 9-4 record with seven playoff appearances, while Meyer had just a 2-1 mark with two playoff appearances.

(Note: the playoff was in place in just five of the seven seasons Meyer coached at OSU.)

I mentioned that for context. Saban coached more years than Meyer, so he had more opportunities to win titles. Plus, we must factor in the benefit of the doubt that Alabama received from the wildly flawed and controversial BCS system in 2011 and the unpredictable, uninformed playoff committee in 2017.

In 2011, Alabama jumped Oklahoma State for the No. 2 spot for the right to face No. 1 LSU in the national title game when the Cowboys had a stronger case due to being the more accomplished team that season. Oklahoma State had seven wins over teams .500 or better compared to three for Alabama, had five top-25 wins compared to Alabama's three and most importantly won their conference title, while Alabama not only didn't but didn't even win their own division. If you wanna argue that Alabama was the better team (they went on to beat LSU in the title game), then I won't totally dispute that, but they were not the more deserving team.

In 2017, Alabama just squeezed out Ohio State for the fourth and final playoff spot, which the Buckeyes deserved more. Yes, Alabama (11-1) had a better record than Ohio State (11-2) but Ohio State's competition on their schedule was much tougher, they had the better wins and won their conference title, unlike Alabama. Yet, the playoff committee plainly showed bias towards the SEC and has for some years now. That worked out in Alabama's favor and at the expense of Ohio State. Yes, OSU had two losses compared to the Crimson Tide's one but that shouldn't have been the end-all, be-all in the argument. Nonetheless, it was.

Meyer's Ohio State teams should have gotten more cracks at winning a national title (2015, 2017) and, if they were a little more fortunate, the national championship gap could have been closer but the playoff committee in my view, stiff-armed them twice.

However, Meyer's record in bowl games and in rivalry games is where his edge lies in big games.

Meyer is 12-3 in bowl games with an .800% winning percentage, including 6-2 in New Year's Six Bowl Games (Rose/Sugar/Fiesta/Orange/Peach/Cotton). Saban is 18-11 with an .621% winning percentage, including 8-3 in New Year's Six Bowl Games.

Another is the rivalry games. For the readers sake, let's break down each coach's "true" rivalry games at each school they led:

(Note: LSU really doesn't have a true national rival throughout their history. In some cases, rivalries for certain schools change over time as the competition rises. So I'm going to chose LSU's top rivals based off their toughest competition and biggest games yearly since the start of the 21st century, which have been Alabama, Auburn and Florida, the teams they play every regular season.)

Saban

- Toledo vs Bowling Green

- Michigan State vs Michigan, Notre Dame

- LSU vs Alabama, Florida, Auburn

- Alabama vs Auburn, LSU

Meyer

- Bowling Green vs Toledo

- Utah vs BYU

- Florida vs Georgia, LSU, Tennessee, Florida State, Miami (FL)

- Ohio State vs Michigan

Saban is 36-19 in rivalry games, while Meyer owns an impeccable 30-6 record. It gets even better when you consider their records against their biggest rival.

Saban (Alabama) holds a 10-5 record versus Auburn. Meyer (Ohio State), on the other hand, finished 7-0 vs Michigan.

Overall, Meyer's big-game chops top what Saban has done in his huge games.

3. Meyer changed the entire outlook of one conference (Big Ten) and jumpstarted the dominant run of another (SEC)

When Meyer joined Ohio State in 2011, his presence alone elevated a struggling Big Ten and helped change the perception of the conference.

At Meyer's retirement news conference in 2018, Ohio State Athletic Director Gene Smith elaborated even more on Meyer's impact. "Not only has he elevated the quality and status of our program, but his presence has elevated Big Ten football," said Smith. "To compete with Urban-coached teams, our Big Ten colleagues have had to elevate their programs."

What Meyer brought to the Big Ten was:

a.) An edge in recruiting. His ability and proven track record to constantly recruit the top high school players in the country forced other Big Ten coaches to prioritize recruiting more and that created more of a sense of urgency to keep up competitively.

b.) Helped reverse the label that was always attached to Big Ten programs for years by leading the way in modernizing the conference. Big Ten teams were known for being big, strong up front, predominantly run-oriented, playing a plodding, slow-paced style and controlling the game solely at the line of scrimmage. Meyer introduced more speed, athleticism, a faster pace of play and the know-how to utilize space in the open field with dynamic players, which were the same exact traits that gave Big Ten teams trouble in the past. Opposing Big Ten coaches soon took notice of Meyer's methods and adapted their game plan more to where college football was and was going.

c.) Forced Big Ten teams to invest more and upgrade their facilities on campus to keep up with other schools.

Saban's coaching pedigree and presence never transformed an entire conference from the very beginning the way Meyer did when he joined the Big Ten. Even when Saban joined LSU in 2000 and Alabama in 2007, they weren't looked upon as game-changing, altering moves in the SEC at the time. Only in hindsight are they viewed that way.

When it comes to the SEC's dominance that began in 2006 — from 2006 to 2021, the SEC has won 11 of the last 16 national championships, including seven in a row from 2006-2013 — it was Meyer's Florida teams that jumpstarted the South's unreal run by winning the national title in 2006 (his second year in SEC) and in 2008. How we look at the SEC today all started with Meyer, and that's something that holds weight.

4. Revolutionized College Football

There have been many iterations of a wide range of offenses throughout college football history. The Wishbone, Air Raid, Triple Option, I-Formation, Run and Shoot and Fun-n-Gun all come to mind, but the most recognizable offense in college football during the 21st century has been the spread option offense, which Meyer either adopted, created or put his own twist on it but definitely moved it forward at the college level by pushing boundaries we still see in effect today.

Urban Meyer basically revolutionized college football with his spread option offense (sometimes called run-pass option "RPO") in the early 2000s at Bowling Green with quarterback Josh Harris and at Utah with Alex Smith. He later did more damage at Florida with Tim Tebow and at Ohio State with Braxton Miller, Cardale Jones and J.T. Barrett.

The spread option offense is defined by spacing, speed and tempo. Meyer introduced an offense that leans on spreading three to four receivers wide, the quarterback being in shotgun formation with the responsibility to read the defense, and a running back in the backfield being used as a threat in the option offense setup. Meyer's philosophy with the spread was to create matchup problems, spread the field and have the offense outnumber the defense. Many of the trademarks you now see in pass-heavy offenses stem from elements borrowed from the spread offense Meyer implemented.

I admit it's hard to determine who started the trend and who invented the spread because sometimes multiple people can take credit for creating something and bringing it to the forefront. But what I will say is that Meyer popularized the spread option offense in college football with his version more than anyone.

Around 2001-2004 while at Bowling Green and Utah, his offense caught on quickly across the country and received more and more headlines. That led to numerous college teams either emulating or copying the spread option, running their own version of it, or taking small increments of the offense to inject in their offensive system. Even NFL teams have taken certain components of the spread in the last two decades.

Meyer had his hand in revolutionizing the sport, while Saban can't quite make that claim, even on the defensive side of the ball, which is his strong suit. When you think about the spread offense, Meyer's name is attached to it more than any college coach.

5. Better Program Builder

When it comes to taking over a new program and instantly turning it around, Meyer checks the box completely over Saban.

They each coached at four different schools.

Saban took over Toledo in 1990 and went 9-2. The year before they were 6-5. Solid job.

Saban arrived at Michigan State in 1995. The year before the Spartans were 5-6. The next five seasons record-wise looked like this: 6-5-1 (1995); 6-6 (1996); 7-5 (1997); 6-6 (1998); 9-2 (1999). Michigan State was pretty average in his first four seasons and really didn't put together a quality season until his fifth and final season there in 1999.

Saban's first year at LSU was in 2000. The year before they were 3-8. Saban improved that mark to 8-4 in 2000 and, while the Tigers produced a 10-3 record in 2001 (SEC title and Sugar Bowl victory), LSU didn't really become a legit national power on the level of where it is today until 2003, when it won a split version of the national championship in Saban's fourth year.

2007 was Saban's first year at Alabama. The year before they were 6-7. Saban barely did better, leading Alabama to a 7-6 record. It wasn't until 2008 (Saban's second year) when Alabama turned into the relentless powerhouse we know them as now.

Looking at Saban's track record at his four stops, it usually takes him some time to build a program to elite status.

Conversely, Meyer's impact is typically felt instantly.

Meyer's first head coaching gig was at Bowling Green in 2001. Bowling Green was coming off a putrid 2-9 season and were nowhere close to being a contender in the MAC. He completed one of the best turnarounds in college football history by going 8-3 in his first season (winning MAC Coach of the Year) and 9-3 in his second year.

At Utah, things got even better. In his first season in 2003, Meyer led the Utes to a 10-2 record (best ever for a first-year coach at Utah), was named Mountain West Conference (MWC) Coach of the Year and won the conference championship. The year before, Utah was 5-6. In 2004, Meyer led Utah to an undefeated 12-0 season, won the MWC title again and clinched a berth in the Fiesta Bowl — the first school in the BCS era outside the major conferences at the time like the SEC/Big 12/Big Ten/ACC/Big East/Pac-12 to participate in a BCS bowl game — which Utah won. Meyer went 22-2 in his two seasons at Utah.

Meyer took over at Florida in 2005. In Year One, Florida went 9-3 (year before they were 7-5). By Year Two, he led the Gators to the national championship with a 13-1 record.

Meyer really did a number at Ohio State. The Buckeyes went 6-7 in 2011. In Meyer's first season in 2012, he led the Buckeyes to an undefeated 12-0 campaign but the program was ineligible for postseason play due to NCAA sanctions that took place before Meyer arrived there. Most forget that if Ohio State would have been eligible for the postseason, they would have likely played for the national championship that year against undefeated Notre Dame in the title game. They would have probably been the favorites against the Fighting Irish, too.

There's been no better program architect in recent memory in college football than Urban Meyer.

6. Dominated Three Conferences

Saban coached in three conferences: the MAC, Big Ten and SEC.

Meyer coached in four conferences: the MAC, Mountain West, SEC and Big Ten.

The main difference lies in the fact that Meyer dominated three conferences, while Saban has only dominated one.

At Toledo (9-2 record), Saban was solid in his first and only year, winning the conference title. At Michigan State (34-24 record), he was average, decent at best. At LSU (48-16 record), outside the one national championship in 2003, he had a couple of up-and-down seasons. It wasn't until at Alabama (currently 183-25 record), when Saban really took over a conference, where he's won six national titles and eight SEC championships.

Compared to Meyer, Saban falls short.

At Bowling Green (17-6), Meyer was really good. At Utah (22-2 record), he was great, winning two Mountain West conference titles. At Florida (65-15 record), he was outstanding, especially in the Gators' 2006-09 run when they won two national titles and two SEC conference titles. At Ohio State (83-9 record), he ruled the Big Ten, winning one national title, three Big Ten conference titles and reset the standard in the Midwest region.

So, Meyer won conference titles in three different conferences; Saban in two.

Considering the evidence, Meyer had full monopolization over three conferences (SEC, Big Ten, Mountain West), as Saban can only claim he reigned over one (SEC).

7. More consistently great, year-in and year-out

When it comes to examining both Saban and Meyer's resume, Saban has had the better career, coaching Alabama to a dynasty by winning three national titles in a four-year span from 2009-12 and the longevity factor favors him, as the Tide have been ranked No. 1 in the AP Poll at least one week each season since 2008.

Look closer and they both even out in some areas.

Both have had two undefeated seasons — Meyer in 2004 with Utah and in 2012 with Ohio State, and Saban in 2009 and 2020 with Alabama.

Both have finished undefeated in the regular season during conference play five times.

Saban has had 16 double-digit winning seasons; Meyer had 12.

Where Meyer ultimately wins out is that he's not only the more impactful coach but the more consistently great coach in terms of winning, season after season.

Yes, Meyer's career winning percentage of .854 (187-32) tops Saban's .803 (274-67). That's one factor. Another is Meyer had two winning streaks of 20 games or more (24 from 2012-13 and 23 from 2014-15), and Saban has had one (26 in a row from 2015-16).

The tipping point is that Meyer never had a down season. I mean never.

Saban has had multiple mediocre seasons.

Both have never had a losing season but Saban has had two seasons in which his team finished right at .500. Meyer never had a season in which his team finished at .500 or below.

Meyer never had a season in which he won less than eight games. Saban has had five seasons (four at Michigan State, one at Alabama) in which he's won less than eight games.

Throughout his career, Meyer has just been the more consistent winner, and the numbers back that up.

While both are all-timers and the discussion is up for debate, I believe Urban Meyer belongs above Nick Saban on the Greatest College Football Coaches Ever list.

Now you may go ahead and rip me to shreds. I'm totally expecting it.

jsimpson@gannett.com

Twitter: @JamesSimpsonII

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY Sports: Column: Why Urban Meyer ranks ahead of Nick Saban on the All-Time College Football Coaches list