Alabama’s had some notable offensive coordinators in Nick Saban’s 17 seasons.

Four are currently head coaches in the college game while Brian Daboll holds one of the 32 such jobs in the NFL.

In terms of memorable tenures, Lane Kiffin holds that distinction.

Still, he’s got nothing on Steve Sarkisian — not when you think about it. That’s what’ll make his Saturday return to Bryant-Denny Stadium as the Texas head coach unique.

For all the accomplishments of those contemporaries who came before and after, none ran the show.

Yes, this will be the second straight Bryant-Denny Stadium game as head coach for Sarkisian when you roll the clock back to Nov. 28, 2020. That gloomy Saturday afternoon in a season of previously inconceivable moments, it was Sarkisian who led the Crimson Tide off the bus for an Iron Bowl unlike any other.

A few miles away, a COVID-19-infected Nick Saban was holed up in his office where he witnessed his Crimson Tide dispatch Auburn, 42-13. And while the record books still record that as Saban’s 256th, it was Sarkisian who ran the operation the last time he set foot on that Bryant-Denny turf.

“Sark did a nice job of managing things,” Saban said that night via Zoom from his desk at home. “I sat here and felt a little hopeless. But I could see things and yell at things and listen to Miss Terry cheer downstairs. It’s a little different. But it still feels good to win.”

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Sarkisian was later asked about the “unique scenario” before the Rose Bowl semifinal against Notre Dame.

“I didn’t want to lose sight of what my initial role always is,” he said, “and that’s to have our offense ready to play and to call plays. So the end result it was an awesome opportunity. It was great to kind of be back in that role for a few hours.”

He’d be back in that role within days when Texas came calling.

And they dialed up Sarkisian because of his 2020 offensive coordinator masterclass. Landing a premier job like Texas’ felt less likely after Sarkisian’s once-meteoric rise crashed when issues with alcohol abuse led to his very- public firing as USC’s head coach. His first coaching lifeline came a year later when Saban offered him a position as an analyst.

From the glamour of Los Angeles to making exactly $2,651.52 a month working the back office in Tuscaloosa was certainly a humbling experience.

But just a few months after arriving, Kiffin was out as offensive coordinator after winning the CFP semifinal over Washington, leaving a suddenly promoted Sarkisian to design the plan for Clemson in Tampa. A last-second 35-31 loss would be his only game calling Alabama plays, at least for the time being.

It was his second stint, following two seasons as the Atlanta Falcons’ OC, that got him to Texas.

Orchestrating an embarrassment of future first-round riches, did his best work down the stretch of that 2020 season. That group with DeVonta Smith, Mac Jones, Najee Harris and others dipped below the 50-point mark just twice in the final seven games of the season.

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Sarkisian saved perhaps his greatest work for his final act, one that came a week after Texas hired him. The scheme he drew up for the 52-24 throttling of Ohio State in the reduced-capacity CFP title game was a curtain call of sorts.

Everyone knew Heisman winner Smith would be the primary target but Sarkisian put him in position to catch 12 passes for 215 yards with three touchdowns — practically all in the first half since he went down early in the third quarter with a hand injury. All three of the touchdowns to Smith were new designs built to exploit a weakness.

Now he stands in a much different place, recruiting at an elite level with Texas possibly, potentially … back?

This is a state, a fanbase and a program desperate to return to relevance since languishing in some state of limbo for more than a decade. Nobody’s pushed that boulder over the mountain yet, but the stars haven’t aligned like this where potential meets opportunity.

Last September’s 20-19 win for Alabama that Texas controlled served notice.

Of what?

We’ll find out Saturday when Sarkisian returns to a post-pandemic Bryant-Denny Stadium. Again, it’ll be at the center of the college football universe but this time with a shot to claim a win for himself.

Michael Casagrande is a reporter for the Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter @ByCasagrande or on Facebook.