WHEELING ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥” Nick Saban, a national record-setting college football coach, will be inducted into the West Virginia Sports Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility.
Saban, born in Fairmont and a Monongah High School and Kent State University graduate, will be enshrined by the West Virginia Sports Writers Association at the 78th annual Victory Awards Dinner on May 4 at the Bridgeport Convention Center.
ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥œNick Saban is not only one of the greatest college football coaches in history,ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥ WVSWA secretary-treasurer Doug Huff said, ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥œbut heÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™s one of the top sports ambassadors for the state.ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥
Saban retired from coaching in 2024 with a record unmatched by any other state native and a list of accomplishments that places him among the greatest to have coached college football. The first state Hall of Fame class of 1950 included Fielding Yost, a native of Fairview in SabanÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™s home of Marion County, who won six national titles at Michigan. The 1991 state Hall of Fame class included John McKay, a native of nearby Everettsville and a Shinnston High graduate who won four national crowns at USC.
Saban, who coached for 28 seasons, led his teams to seven national championships, the most in Division I FBS history ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥” six at Alabama and one at LSU. HeÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™s the only coach in history to win national titles at two FBS schools since the AP pollÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™s inception in 1936. HeÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™s the only coach in the Bowl Championship Series and College Football Playoff eras with multiple national titles.
He retired with a 292-71-1 career record (80.4%), ending as the national active leader in wins and ranking sixth all-time among FBS coaches.
During his 17 seasons at Alabama (2000-23), Saban built the most dominant dynasty in modern college annals, leading the Crimson Tide to nine BCS/CFP title games and winning six crowns. Under his direction, Alabama went 201-29 (87.4%) and had 15 consecutive seasons with a No. 1 AP ranking, plus nine SEC titles.
Saban led Alabama to 17 bowl appearances, winning 13. He had a 26-game win streak from 2015-16 and went 11-1 in SEC title games at Alabama and LSU. He coached 12 conference title teams and 25 bowl participants and was selected SEC coach of the year five times. His SEC record was 161-33 (82.9%).
SabanÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™s teams never had a losing record. He claimed more than 20 coach of the year accolades, including the Eddie Robinson National Coach of the Year twice (2003, 2008).
SabanÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™s ability to develop talent resulted in 66 first-team All-Americans, including four Heisman Trophy winners, which ties him with Hall of Famer Frank Leahy for the most such honorees. He coached 136 NFL Draft picks at Alabama and had the most first-round draft picks in a career with 52.
SabanÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™s coaching tenure began at Toledo in 1990, when the Rockets went 9-2 and won a share of the Mid-American Conference title in his lone season. From 1995-99, he led Michigan State to a 34-24-1 record and four bowl trips in five years, with the 1999 Spartans ending with a final No. 7 ranking.
From 2000-04, Saban led LSU to a 48-16 mark its first national title since 1958 with a win in the 2003 BCS national championship game over Oklahoma. He also took the Tigers to two SEC crowns, a 4-1 bowl mark and four top-25 final national rankings.
He also worked in the NFL as the coach of the Miami Dolphins (2005-06) and an assistant for the Cleveland Browns (1991-94) and Houston Oilers (1988-89). His college assistant stops included Michigan State (1983-87), Navy (1982), Ohio State (1980-81), West Virginia (1978-79), Syracuse (1977) and alma mater Kent State (1975-76) after two years as a graduate assistant.
A three-year letterman at safety for Kent State (1970-72), he earned both bachelorÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™s and masterÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™s degrees. At Monongah High School, he was a three-sport all-star as a football quarterback-defensive back, basketball point guard and baseball shortstop.
Currently an ESPN College GameDay analyst, the retired coach was honored at Alabama with the field at Bryant-Denny Stadium named in his honor. He is also among the inductees into the College Football Hall of Fame on Dec. 9.
Beyond football, SabanÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™s philanthropy includes NickÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™s Kids Foundation, which has distributed more than $13 million to more than 150 charities. He helped rebuild 22 homes with Habitat for Humanity after a tornado struck Tuscaloosa, Alabama, and made multiple $1 million donations to support first-generation scholarships, Alabama athletics and St. Francis Catholic Church. His latest venture, the Saban Center, will house a STEM Discovery Center, the Alabama STEM Hub and the Tuscaloosa ChildrenÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™s Theater.
A digital plaque listing, with photos, of the past inductees into the Hall of Fame since 1950 may be found at .
