Nick Saban is gaining on Paul “Bear” Bryant when it comes to turning out coaches who coached or played for him.

While Bryant’s list includes names such as Howard Schnellenberger, Pat Dye, Gene Stallings, Jackie Sherrill, Ray Perkins, Sylvester Croom and Charley Pell, Saban has an impressive list of his own.

Jimbo Fisher has a national championship, Jim McElwain coached against Saban in the SEC championship game last year, and Mark Dantonio coached against him in the College Football Playoff.

If that’s not enough, Kirby Smart is the new head coach at Georgia and Will Muschamp is the new head coach at South Carolina.

Saban is proud to be their mentor.

“There is a lot of excitement for me because these guys have opportunities and we want to see them do extremely well with the opportunities they have,” he said.

“I think it reflects favorably on our program and what we’ve done, and those guys all did a fantastic job for us.”

Georgia Head Coach Kirby Smart directs his team during the annual G-Day game at Sanford Stadium on April 16. Smart is the latest former assistant to Nick Saban to move into a head coaching job. (David Barnes)

Like his former boss, Florida State Head Coach Jimbo Fisher has a national championship. (Ross Obley)

Will Muschamp coaches the South Carolina Gamecocks, his second head coaching job. (Contributed)

Mark Dantonio has built a strong resume at Michigan State. (Contributed)

Jim McElwain coaches his Florida Gators during spring training in March. McElwain got to coach against his former boss, Nick Saban, in last year’s SEC Championship Game. (Tim Casey/UAA Communications)

Saban has former coaches who are now in the NFL, such as Jason Garrett, head coach of the Dallas Cowboys. He coached two years under Saban in Miami.

The record shows that Saban can spot talent wherever it might be. He hired Muschamp away from Division II Valdosta State.

But not all of Saban’s assistants have been winners as head coaches.

Derek Dooley, son of Vince, was hired by Saban at LSU as recruiting coordinator/tight ends coach. He went on to be head coach at Louisiana Tech, where he went 17-20 in three years, and to Tennessee, where his teams won 15 and lost 21 in three seasons.

Dooley is now an assistant coach for the Dallas Cowboys and says of Saban, “I’ll always be indebted to him for what he gave to me professionally.”

Former Alabama assistant and Georgia Head Coach Kirby Smart sees Saban coaching for “a long time” to come. (Emily Selby)

Smart, making his first SEC Media Days appearance last week, was asked what Saban has meant to him.

“After spending 11 years with him, I can tell you he is driven to be the best,” Smart said. “He wants all of his coaches to go on and be successful. It makes him proud.”

How much longer will Saban coach?

“A long time,” Smart said. “He is healthy. He takes care of himself. He will be there for a long time.”

Here are some of Saban’s former players and assistant coaches who went on to become head coaches:

• Mark Dantonio – Cincinnati, Michigan State
• Derek Dooley – Lousiana Tech, Tennessee
• Jimbo Fisher – Florida State
• Jason Garrett – Dallas Cowboys
• Jim McElwain – Colorado State, Florida
• Will Muschamp – Florida, South Carolina
• Kirby Smart – Georgia
• Mike Mularkey – Tennessee Titans
• Dan Quinn – Atlanta Falcons