Alabama football coach Nick Saban is retiring after 17 seasons with the Crimson Tide, CBS Sports reported.

Saban has won seven national titles in his coaching career, the most recent in 2020. 

Saban's retirement was first reported by ESPN. Sources later confirmed to 247sports' Matt Zenitz that Saban informed Alabama of his decision on Wednesday. 

Alabama has not yet made an official announcement.

The Crimson Tide were eliminated from the 2023 College Football Playoff with a 27-20 overtime loss to the eventual national champion Michigan Wolverines in a semifinal game.

Saban's seven national titles are the most won by any college football coach. He is also tied with legendary Alabama coach Bear Bryant for most titles in Crimson Tide history, with six.

After coaching stints with both the NFL and several other college teams, the first of Saban's titles came in 2003 with Louisiana State University, where he was head coach from 2000-2004. Following the 2004 season, a 9-3 campaign that included a 30-25 loss to the Iowa Hawkeyes in the Capital One Bowl, Saban left LSU to coach the Miami Dolphins in the NFL.

Saban coached the Dolphins for just two seasons, going 9-7 in 2005 but managing just six wins in 2006 — missing the playoffs both years. Saban left the Dolphins at the end of the 2006 season to become the head football coach at Alabama, which hadn't won a national title since 1992.

In his 17 years helming the Crimson Tide, Saban built a football powerhouse, winning the national title in 2009, 2011, 2012, 2015, 2017 and 2020. He also amassed 9 SEC titles at Alabama and coached four Heisman Trophy winners.

Following the Crimson Tide's semifinal loss this past season, the 72-year-old coach said, "This is one of the most amazing seasons in Alabama football history in terms of where this team came from, what they were able to accomplish and what they were able to do, winning the SEC Championship, and really, really proud of this group," according to The Associated Press. "I just wish that I could have done more as a coach to help them be successful and help them finish, and all we can do now is learn from the lessons that sometimes failings bring to us."