While all the current College Football Playoff hype centers around Ohio State’s Cotton Bowl semifinal win against Texas, former Big Ten-turned-SEC icon Nick Saban learned on College GameDay that he’d been accepted into the 2025 Hall of Fame class.

Saban is arguably considered the sport’s greatest coach ever, winning seven national titles, six of them during a 17-year Crimson Tide stint that ended last January.

ESPN’s Rece Davis was initially the one to reveal the news just before kickoff Friday night.

“Headlining that class will be the greatest college football coach in the history of the sport, Nick Saban,” Davis said on the broadcast.

In utter disbelief, Saban could barely find the words to encapsulate the accomplishment.

“I was happy to drive the bus, but we had great people on it,” Saban said, referencing those who impacted his career.

Although Saban had a tremendous impact on his players, one stood out in recent memory.

Current Green Bay Packers running back Josh Jacobs, who played for Saban from 2016-18, is thankful for Saban’s guidance for his career goals at the highest level.

“Saban made every freshman take speech [class] to be able to talk to the media,” Jacobs told reporters Thursday. “We had to take that class. That was something he made every freshman do. He also taught us [that] wins and losses, you gotta still be a pro. I think that’s the thing that stuck with me the most.”

Jacobs’ example is one of countless over the years. Regardless of one’s opinion of Saban, it’s undeniable that he will go down in college football history forever. His legacy may have already been written, but his remembrance has just begun.