Nick Saban has had no shortage of remarkable experiences in college football.

He's been a coach for half a century and won the most national championships of any coach with seven total — six at Alabama, one at LSU. He's worked with the best of the best athletes, taken part in bowl game after bowl game and won trophy after trophy.

But none of those things were the moment he mentioned as "the most gratifying experience" he's had when he was speaking on Thursday at his radio show.

"I know this was a long time ago and a lot has changed since then, but I've never had a more gratifying experience than when I walked in the stadium 17 years ago for the spring game, the A-Day game, and there were 95,000 people in the stands," Saban said. "That still gives me cold chills to this day to know that there were that many people who were so committed to wanting to see the University of Alabama have a quality program and something they can be proud of. That's what we work for: To try to please those people. That means a lot as well."

It was 2007 when Saban arrived in Tuscaloosa to coach the Crimson Tide. He coached in his first A-Day game on April 22, 2007, and hundreds of fans had to be turned away. From a spring game.

"What we did today sends a message that there's a lot of support and enthusiasm for what’s happening here right now," Saban said in 2007 after the game. "I certainly appreciate it. It makes me and my family feel good about being here.”

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Nick Kelly covers Alabama football and men's basketball for The Tuscaloosa News, part of the USA TODAY Network. Reach him at nkelly@gannett.com or follow him @_NickKelly on X, the social media app formerly known as Twitter.

This article originally appeared on The Tuscaloosa News: Nick Saban describes most gratifying moment with Alabama football