Almost every single Alabama football fan has heard or read Paul ‘Bear’ Bryant describing himself as “nothing but a winner.” Nick Saban has earned the same description. Still, there are other, even better ways to take the measure of a man. How many lives has one positively impacted and how deeply?
Bryant and Saban measure up well in the latter. But rightly or wrongly, most of us define greatness in the coach, rather than the man. The simplest standard to hold a coach is to win. Of course, winning is harder by varying degrees at some schools. Great coaches do not tend to remain at those schools very long.