Nick Saban was nearly unbeatable as the Alabama football coach.
One of the few things even more difficult than beating Saban was handing him back-to-back losses. Coming off a loss for the Crimson Tide under Saban, Alabama became even more dangerous. Under the 17-year coach, Alabama lost back-to-back games in 2013 and 2007. The Crimson Tide had a four-game losing streak during the inaugural Saban 2007 season.
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First-year coach Kalen DeBoer naturally will be compared to his predecessor during his tenure at Alabama. Following a significant win over then-No. 1 Georgia on Sept. 28, the Crimson Tide faced the first speed bump of the DeBoer era with a 40-35 loss to Vanderbilt on the road.
Now, DeBoer needs to do what Saban did best when he was the Alabama coach: Flush the loss and move on to the next one. Here's a look at how Saban's record following a loss in 2008:
Nick Saban's record with Alabama after loss since 2008:19-2
Nick Saban's record with Alabama after loss overall:20-7
Saban ended his legendary career with a loss to Michigan in the College Football Playoff Semifinal with a record of 206-29 at Alabama. Unless he makes a surprising comeback, that will be the final game in his coaching career. Saban had losing streaks of two and four games in his first season with the Crimson Tide but then only lost one more time following a loss. In the regular season, he was never beaten after losing a game.
Alabama lost on the kick-six to Auburn on Nov. 30, 2013, in Auburn. The Crimson Tide lost 45-31 in the Sugar Bowl on Jan. 2, 2014. That was the last time Saban lost back-to-back games. In 2016 and 2018, Alabama lost the national championship to Dabo Swinney and Clemson. Still, it bounced back with season-opening wins vs. No. 3 Florida State and Duke to open the 2017 and 2019 seasons, respectively. The same was true following a 2014 loss to Ohio State in the CFP Semifinal, with Alabama bouncing back with a win over Wisconsin to open 2015.
Saban's only other back-to-back losses came during the 2008 season. The Crimson Tide lost the SEC Championship Game to Urban Meyer, Tim Tebow and the Florida Gators on Dec. 6. On June 2, 2009, Utah beat Alabama 31-17 in the Sugar Bowl.
The 2010, 2019 and 2022 seasons were the only seasons Saban lost two or more games during the regular season. But Saban's teams responded each time with a victory in the next game.
2023:
Loss:34-24 loss to Texas on Sept. 9, 2023
Next game:17-3 win over USF on Sept. 16, 2023
2022:
Loss:52-49 loss to Tennessee on Oct. 15, 2022
Next game:30-6 win over Mississippi State on Oct. 22, 2022
Loss:32-31 overtime loss to LSU on Nov. 5, 2022
Next game:30-24 win over Ole Miss on Nov. 12, 2022
2021-22:
Loss:33-18 loss to Georgia on Jan. 10, 2022 (CFP National Championship)
Next game:55-0 win over Utah State on Sept. 3, 2022 (2022 season opener)
2021:
Loss:41-38 loss to Texas A&M on Oct. 9, 2021
Next game:49-9 win over Mississippi State on Oct. 16, 2021
2019:
Loss:46-41 loss to LSU on Nov. 9, 2019
Next game:38-7 win over Mississippi State on Nov. 16
Loss:48-45 loss to Auburn on Nov. 30, 2019
Next game:35-16 win over Michigan on Jan. 1, 2020 (Citrus Bowl)
2018-19:
Loss:44-16 loss to Clemson on Jan. 7, 2019 (CFP Semifinal)
Next game:45-3 win over Duke on Aug. 31, 2019 (2019 season opener)
2017:
Loss:26-14 loss to Auburn on Nov. 25, 2017
Next game:24-6 win over Clemson on Jan. 1, 2018 (CFP Semifinal)
2016-17:
Loss:35-31 loss to Clemson on Jan. 9, 2017 (CFP Championship Game)
Next game:24-7 win over Florida State on Sept. 2, 2017 (2017 season opener)
2015:
Loss:43-37 loss to Ole Miss on Sept. 19, 2015
Next game:34-0 win over Louisiana-Monroe on Sept. 26, 2015
2014:
Loss:23-17 loss to Ole Miss on Oct. 4, 2014
Next game:14-13 win over Arkansas on Oct. 11, 2014
2013-14:
Loss:45-31 loss to Oklahoma on Jan., 2014
Next game:33-23 win over West Virginia on Aug. 30, 2014 (2014 season opener)
2013:
Loss:34-28 loss to Auburn on Nov. 30, 2013
Next game:45-31 loss to Oklahoma on Jan., 2014
2012:
Loss:29-24 loss to Texas A&M on Nov. 10, 2012
Next game:49-0 win over Western Carolina on Nov. 17, 2012
2011:
Loss:9-6 loss to LSU on Nov. 5, 2011
Next game:24-7 win over Mississippi State on Nov. 12, 2011
2010:
Loss:35-21 loss to South Carolina on Oct. 9, 2010
Next game:23-10 win over Ole Miss on Oct. 16, 2010
Loss:24-21 loss to LSU on Nov. 6, 2010
Next game:30-10 win over Mississippi State on Nov. 13, 2010
Loss:28-27 loss to Auburn on Nov. 26, 2010
Next game:49-7 win over Michigan State in Florida Citrus Bowl
2008-09:
Loss:31-17 loss to Utah in Sugar Bowl on Jan. 2, 2009
Next game:34-24 win over Virginia Tech on Sept, 5, 2009 (2009 season opener)
2008:
Loss:31-20 to Florida in SEC Championship Game on Dec. 8, 2008
Next game:31-17 loss to Utah in Sugar Bowl on Jan. 2, 2009
This article originally appeared on The Tuscaloosa News: How Alabama football responded to losses under Nick Saban
