Alabama is a different place than it was when Nick Saban in 2007 stepped from an airplane at Tuscaloosa National Airport.

And, now that the coach is retiring, it might be time to do a rough accounting of the financial impact he brought.

If you recall, when Saban arrived at the Capstone, he was handed an 8-year contract worth $32 million, at $4 million a year.

This past season, with bonuses, he was expected to clear nearly $11 million.

According to sports investment personality Joe Pompliano, Alabama paid Saban roughly $130 million over 16 seasons.

“But you could argue he was worth more than $1 billion,” Pompliano said.

That’s approximately the value that Sportskeeda put on the Alabama football program two years ago – $1.1 billion, behind Texas and Ohio State.

“…and as long as head coach Nick Saban is at the helm, that would only rise,” the site stated then.

Since 2007, the University of Alabama’s enrollment has increased from 25,000 students to almost 40,000 students, up 60%.

Meanwhile, nationally the total number of 18- to 24-year-olds enrolled in college has declined over the past decade, down about 1.2 million from its peak in 2011, according to the Pew Research Center.

During that time, Alabama also went from having a majority of its student body consisting of in-state students to out-of-state making up the majority.

That translates into dollars, as in 2023, tuition was $11,900 for in-state students and $32,260 for out-of-state students.

The effect has migrated out beyond the Capstone as well.

Tuscaloosa Mayor Walt Maddox, two years ago, estimated Alabama football has an economic impact on the city of between $180 to $200 million.

Median home prices in Tuscaloosa have risen from $172,000 in 2007 to $259,900 last year. Tuscaloosa’s population has grown by about 11,000 since Saban’s arrival, according to census figures.

According to the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, the average per capita GDP of Tuscaloosa was just under $45,000 last year, up from $39,732 when Saban took over the Tide. You also have to factor in that number shrinking by more than $1,000 in 2009 during the Great Recession.

Saban has also left his mark in charity work. The Nick’s Kids Foundation for disadvantaged children, overseen with his wife Terry, has raised more than $12 million for students, teachers and children’s causes at over 150 charities.