(AP) — Nick Saban’s coaching reign has come to an end. His dominance over college football, however, will forever linger in the lore of the sport.

Saban, who won seven national championships — more than any other major college football coach — and turned Alabama back into a national powerhouse with six of those titles in just 17 seasons, is retiring, according to multiple outlets.

The 72-year-old Saban restored a Crimson Tide program once ruled by Paul “Bear” Bryant to the top of college football after taking over in 2007. His decision to step away was reported Wednesday, first by ESPN and then by other outlets, ending a career that has produced numerous titles and helped launch or relaunch the head coaching careers of Georgia’s Kirby Smith, Texas’ Steve Sarkisian and Mississippi’s Lane Kiffin.

He finished just shy of the top in his final season, leading the Tide from a shaky start to a Southeastern Conference championship and back into the College Football Playoff before falling in overtime to Michigan in a semifinal game at the Rose Bowl.

Saban led the Tide to nine Southeastern Conference championships and won his first national title at Alabama with a 14-0 season in 2009. Titles came again in 2011, 2012, 2015, 2017 and 2020. He also won the SEC with LSU in 2001 and 2003.

Colorado coach Deion Sanders, who has appeared with Saban in a series of commercials, had a strong reaction to both the Alabama coach’s retirement and the state of college football.

“WOW! College Football just lost the GOAT to retirement,” Sanders posted on X. “WOW! I knew it would happen 1 day soon but not this soon. The game has change so much that it chased the GOAT away. College football let’s hold up our mirrors and say HONESTLY what u see.”

Saban made a two-year foray into the NFL with the Miami Dolphins before returning to college football to revive one of college football’s most storied programs, which hadn’t won a national title in 15 years. Saban is 297-71-1 as a college head coach, with stops at Toledo, Michigan State and LSU, where he also won a national title. But Alabama is where he cemented his status as one of college football’s greatest coaches.

Saban coached Alabama’s first four Heisman Trophy winners and churned out numerous NFL players, going 206-29, a winning clip of 87.7%.