When Nick Saban took the Alabama job in 2007, even though many knew he had what it took to resurrect a sleeping giant, few believed he would eventually become the greatest coach in Crimson Tide lore.

After all, Denny Stadium was renamed Bryant-Denny Stadium in 1975 to honor the legendary achievements of Paul “Bear” Bryant, who at that point had won four national championships for the Tide and would go on to win two more. His 232-46-9 record in Tuscaloosa — 325-85-17 overall including stints at Maryland, Kentucky and Texas A&M — put him on the coaching Mount Rushmore alongside the likes of Bobby Bowden, Tom Osborne and Joe Paterno.

But Bryant is no longer the best coach in ‘Bama history, let alone college football history, not after Saban just won a fourth national title for the Tide in a seven-year stretch.

Alabama defeated Clemson 45-40 Monday night in the College Football Playoff, as two of the better defenses in the country ended up engaging in an old-fashioned shootout at University of Phoenix Stadium. In a game featuring 85 points, 49 first downs and 1,023 yards of offense — 478 from Clemson quarterback Deshaun Watson alone — the turning point was Saban himself making a gutsy decision on special teams.

Following an Adam Griffith field goal that tied it at 24-24 five minutes into the fourth quarter, Saban called for a surprise onside kick. It was recovered by cornerback Marlon Humphrey. Pandemonium in Glendale.

“It works almost every time, except that I usually drop the ball,” Humphrey told reporters with a chuckle after the game. “Actually, we practiced it this past Thursday. We hadn’t practiced it a lot. I actually dropped it. I definitely did not think there was any chance he would call it.”

It was a brilliant piece of coaching, as Saban noticed the Clemson kick-return unit had been pinching a little too close to the middle of the field all night long.

Instead of a conventional onside kick — and putting himself at the mercy of an unpredictable bouncing football — Griffith instead pooched the pigskin like a Phil Mickelson lob wedge into Humphrey’s waiting arms. He reeled it in over his shoulder at midfield directly in front of the Clemson bench, as if it were a fade pass thrown by Alabama QB Jake Coker.

Two plays later, Coker hit tight end O.J. Howard for a 51-yard touchdown strike that gave the Crimson Tide a lead they would never relinquish.

“He’s going to do what he thinks is the best to win,” ‘Bama offensive coordinator Lane Kiffin said. “Whether that’s signing players. Whether that’s hiring coaches other people don’t think he should. Whether it’s that onside kick. He’s going to do whatever he wants to win. That’s why he’s the best.”

Aside from a second-quarter interception when he misread a coverage, Watson was carving up a Tide defensive unit littered with future draft picks at every position to the tune of 30-of-47 passing for 405 yards and 4 TDs.

When he wasn’t spreading it around beautifully to his many targets — six Tigers recorded at least three receptions — Watson was frustrating Saban and Co. with an innate ability to keep plays alive scrambling and run for positive yards as a last resort. Even with Coker delivering daggers downfield during a 335-yard performance of his own, trading haymakers through the air couldn’t have been part of Alabama’s original game plan.

However, stealing a possession turned out to be the ultimate trump card, as Watson isn’t a threat standing on the sideline with an unbuckled chinstrap.

“I had confidence in the players,” Saban told reporters. “I trusted them that they would go out and execute it and do it. I mean, if we didn’t get it, they’d have got the ball on the 45- or 50-yard line, so it’s not really like it would have been the end of the world. But it was worth the risk, I felt.”

Including the one he captured at LSU in 2003, Saban now has five national championships on his résumé, which ties him with Bernie Bierman and Howard Jones for second all time behind Bryant. But if you’re judging quality vs. quantity, the scales tip heavily in Saban’s favor.

Bryant won six, but only half of them — 1961, 1964 and 1979 — were consensus championships. Remember, in Bryant’s day, we were dependent on nothing more than polls to determine the best team in the land. In ’65, the Crimson Tide finished No. 1 in the AP poll but only No. 4 in the Coaches poll. In ’73, despite a No. 1 finish in the Coaches, they were just No. 4 in the AP. In ’78, No. 1 in the AP yet No. 2 in the Coaches.

As a matter of fact, in 1964 and 1973, Bryant was still credited with a national title despite ‘Bama losing its bowl game.

“I think Coach Bryant is the greatest of his era,” Alabama athletic director Bill Battle said. “I think Coach Saban is the greatest of his era. I think they’d both be proud of each other. And if they had to play each other, I don’t know who I’d bet on.”

Saban has won his five times during the BCS and College Football Playoff periods, which have done much a better job determining an undisputed champion on the actual gridiron.

And there’s no reason to think Saban is done. He is a relatively young 64 years old. There isn’t a college job in America — not Texas, not USC, not Notre Dame — that can offer him more in terms of money, facilities or recruits than Alabama already does. Each passing season makes it less likely he’ll return to the NFL. His wife has said repeatedly that she likes the down-home goodness of collegiate life more than the bright lights and big cities in the pros.

Besides, Saban-Bryant-Denny Stadium has a nice ring to it, don’t you think?