With Tommy Rees coming aboard, we rank the Alabama offensive coordinators of the Nick Saban era

Though it has yet to be announced by the school, Tommy Rees is Alabama's next offensive coordinator. The hire is an interesting one, to say the least. 

Rees becomes the ninth man to call plays for a Nick Saban-led Alabama team, and the predecessor with which he shares the most traits is Saban's first OC, Major Applewhite. The 30-year-old Rees is the second-youngest of the nine and, because of that, the second-least experienced. In fact, his first full-time, on-the-field job outside of his alma mater will be as the Alabama offensive coordinator. Seems daunting when you put it that way, no?

Rees arrives in Tuscaloosa at an interesting time. For the first time since 2008, Alabama is unquestionably not the top program in college football. Even Clemson only managed to wrestle the Tide into 1A and 1B status with their 2016 and 2018 national championships. But Georgia has zoomed past Alabama (and the remainder of the sport) to set a new, red-and-black standard.

It will be partially up to Rees to reset that standard. Every coach's ultimate calling is to develop his players as students, as people, and as future husbands and fathers as well as football players. Rees will be tasked with doing all of the above while collecting trophies. Every multi-year Saban offensive coordinator save for one has won at least one national championship.

Rees will have to pick a new starting quarterback -- the battle shapes up to be between sophomore Jalen Milroe and redshirt freshman Ty Simpson, at least for now -- while also developing the Tide's skill positions. Alabama became oddly reliant on transfers in the O'Brien years; Georgia Tech transfer Jahmyr Gibbs led the club in rushes and catches in 2022. The transfer portal is the law of the land these days, but if any program figured to have five studs waiting in the wings for every one they lose, you'd think it'd Alabama. 

In Bill Connelly's returning production ratings, Alabama's offense ranks 120th. 

The opportunity should invigorate Rees. How many coaches get the opportunity to write a "redemption story" at Ala-freaking-bama? As stated above: Five men coordinated Saban's offenses for more than one season; four won at least one title, and the fifth played for one. Of the eight men to hold the job before, seven earned at least a B. 

All Rees has to do is put the ball in the end zone six times a game, win a bunch of hardware, a national title or two, and the world will be his. If he doesn't do those things, by 24 months from now the college football world will consider the Saban Dynasty a thing of the past. No pressure. 

Before we take on the difficult task of ranking the Saban OCs, here's a look at the major offensive statistics, dating back to 2009. 

1. Steve Sarkisian (2019-20)
Age at hiring: 44 | Job upon hiring: Atlanta Falcons offensive coordinator | Left for: Texas head coach | Major accomplishments: 2020 SEC/national champions, 2020 Heisman Trophy (DeVonta Smith), argument for greatest offense in CFB history

It's hard to improve upon perfection. The 2019 LSU offense was immediately regarded as the best in college football history, but the 2020 Alabama unit matched them yard for yard and point for point.

Sark enjoyed a collection of riches that would make Elon Musk blush: DeVonta Smith, Jerry Jeudy, Henry Ruggs III, Jaylen Waddle and John Metchie III at wide receiver, Najee Harris and Brian Robinson, Jr., at running back, and Tua and Mac Jones at quarterback. While he didn't recruit any of those guys, he made the absolute most out of what he had, and paid his good fortune forward by signing Bryce Young.

Alabama's destruction of Ohio State in the 2020 national championship game -- 621 yards on 7.48 per play; 33 first downs; 36-of-45 passing for 464 yards and five touchdowns; one non-garbage time punt in a 52-24 win -- remains among the best individual play-calling performances in recent memory.

Smith became the first pure wide receiver to win the Heisman since Tim Brown in 1987. 

2. Lane Kiffin (2014-16)
Age at hiring: 38 | Job upon hiring: Unemployed | Left for: Florida Atlantic head coach
Major accomplishments: 2015 national championship, three SEC championships, 2015 Heisman Trophy (Derrick Henry)

I'll admit off the top that the statistical case for Kiffin above his successors is not only a tough one, it's impossible. However, Lane had a tougher task than those that followed.

He modernized the Alabama offense, and it's unlikely that Tua Tagovailoa and Bryce Young leave the West Coast (or, in Tua's case, the middle of the Pacific Ocean) for Tuscaloosa, Ala., if not for the work Lane did. Alabama's starting quarterbacks in Lane's three seasons: Blake Sims, Jake Coker, and true freshman Jalen Hurts. No offense to those guys, but they wouldn't have started for Alabama today.

Despite a relative lack of luxury at the quarterback position, Lane pulled off one of the neatest tricks I've ever seen from a play-caller. In his three seasons on the job, three separate players at three separate positions won the SEC offensive player of the year award: Amari Cooper in 2014, Henry in 2015, and Hurts in 2016.

Alabama's 3,675 rushing yards in 2016 are a Saban-era record. 

3. Doug Nussmeier (2012-13)
Age at hiring: 41 | Job upon hiring: Washington offensive coordinator | Left for: Michigan offensive coordinator | Major accomplishments: 2012 SEC/national champions

Admit it, you didn't realize Alabama was that explosive in the Nuss years, did you? Nussmeier benefitted from inheriting the veteran AJ McCarron at quarterback, but he got the absolute most out of him. In the final years of a 'pro-style' Alabama attack, the Tide's 2012 national championship run saw McCarron post a 30-to-3 touchdown-to-interception ratio while averaging more yards per attempt (9.3) than Young did in his Heisman year, while Eddie Lacy and TJ Yeldon combined for 29 rushing touchdowns.

Alabama quite possibly would've completed a 3-peat had Saban not willed the Kick Six into existence, but the only reason Alabama was even in that position was, in my opinion, the gutsiest and quite possibly the best individual play call of the Saban era.

(Don't watch the rest of the video, where Alabama takes over at or inside the Auburn 35 twice in the final nine minutes with a 7-point lead and doesn't score either time.)

4. Jim McElwain (2008-11) 
Age at hiring: 45 | Job upon hiring: Fresno State offensive coordinator | Left for: Colorado State head coach | Major accomplishments: Two national championships, one SEC championship, Alabama's first Heisman Trophy (Mark Ingram, 2009)

Alabama's philosophy in the early Saban years, if condensed into one sentence: "We have Courtney Upshaw and Trent Richardson and you don't." 

In one national title game win, Alabama threw for 58 yards. In the other, the Tide didn't score an offensive touchdown until the 4:36 mark of the fourth quarter. McElwain understood the assignment.

5. Mike Locksley (2018)
Age at hiring: 48 | Job upon hiring: Alabama co-offensive coordinator/wide receivers coach | Left for: Maryland head coach | Major accomplishments: SEC champions, national runner-up

Locksley loses personal points on this list due to a lack of longevity, but put up plenty of them in his one season calling the plays. His 2018 attack was the first to average 45 a game. Tua broke reigning Heisman winner Baker Mayfield's FBS passing efficiency record, and would've won the Heisman himself if not for a late-season ankle injury. 

6. Brian Daboll (2017)
Age at hiring: 41 | Job upon hiring: New England Patriots tight ends coach | Left for: Buffalo Bills offensive coordinator | Major accomplishments: SEC, national champions

Daboll walked into a situation that was enviable, yet also not easy. Hurts was the entrenched starter and the reigning SEC offensive player of the year in his true freshman season, yet his true freshman backup was undeniably catching and then surpassing Hurts's ability to execute Alabama's passing game.

We know how the story ended. Along the way, Hurts posted a 17-to-1 TD-to-INT ratio while also leading the team in carries. Calvin Ridley caught 63 passes for nearly 1,000 yards, no other Tide player caught more than 17. Daboll built the offense around concepts Hurts could execute at that point in time while continuing to bring Tua along. The end result was the most dramatic payoff of the Saban era.

7. Bill O'Brien (2021-22)
Age at hiring: 51 | Job upon hiring: Unemployed | Left for: New England Patriots offensive coordinator | Major accomplishments: 2021 SEC champions, national runner-up, first Alabama quarterback Heisman Trophy (Young, 2021)

Don't let O'Brien's spot on this list imply he did a bad job. Alabama averaged 40 points a game in his two seasons on campus, for goodness sakes. He ranks below others because Alabama's running game bottomed out in 2021, which manifested in the national championship game: the Tide settled for six field goals in that game, three of them in the red zone.

O'Brien is the only multi-year Saban OC to leave Tuscaloosa without a national title. 

8. Major Applewhite (2007)

Age at hiring: 28 | Job upon hiring: Rice offensive coordinator | Left for: Texas assistant head coach/running backs coach 

It probably became pretty apparent early on that this was not the working arrangement that Saban nor Applewhite needed at that time. It's not fair to either side to judge Applewhite by what did or did not happen in 2007, and the fact that Applewhite returned to Alabama as an analyst in 2019-20 is proof that both men recognized that.