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You are correct. However, the "old" Saban operated in a system where he had a second string composed of 4 and 5 start athletes. They were stuck there. They couldn't leave. If the first string guy had "flaws" a second string replacement that was also all world was available. Lots easier to fix things when you have the horses. Today, lots of those second stringers jump in the portal. They aren't willing to "wait their turn" and they don't have to. Yes, this affects Saban a lot. He is used to a world where he always has better personnel than the opponents and that only a very few schools can compete with his guys. Not as true today.

from an Athletic piece today (re. Alabama talent level):

"The 2023 Alabama team boasts the second-most talented roster — on paper — in the modern recruiting era (dating back to 2002). The average scholarship player on this team was a top-100 recruit coming out of high school. That is an absurd statistic. Even if half of the signees didn’t pan out, Alabama would still have 40-ish players who lived up to their recruiting hype and would be among the best players at their position in the country. That’s basically an entire two-deep. It’s unfathomable how many good players are on this team.

[slide]

You are correct. However, the "old" Saban operated in a system where he had a second string composed of 4 and 5 start athletes. They were stuck there. They couldn't leave. If the first string guy had "flaws" a second string replacement that was also all world was available. Lots easier to fix things when you have the horses. Today, lots of those second stringers jump in the portal. They aren't willing to "wait their turn" and they don't have to. Yes, this affects Saban a lot. He is used to a world where he always has better personnel than the opponents and that only a very few schools can compete with his guys. Not as true today.

from an Athletic piece today (re. Alabama talent level):

"The 2023 Alabama team boasts the second-most talented roster — on paper — in the modern recruiting era (dating back to 2002). The average scholarship player on this team was a top-100 recruit coming out of high school. That is an absurd statistic. Even if half of the signees didn’t pan out, Alabama would still have 40-ish players who lived up to their recruiting hype and would be among the best players at their position in the country. That’s basically an entire two-deep. It’s unfathomable how many good players are on this team.