OXFORD, Miss. -- Six o'clock, straight up, and Nick Saban jogged off the field. In a stadium almost otherwise devoid of life, thousands of Alabama fans in a wedge of crimson rose to applaud and sing his praises.

Saban looked up, smiled and waved an index finger, straight up.

So much was yet to unfold and so much had already unraveled on this monumental day of college football. Still, Saban might have made a valid point to display the universal "We're No. 1" sign. Alabama is 6-0. One of the biggest hurdles it had anticipated was little more than a speed bump. The Tide cleared Ole Miss with ease, 22-3.

Meanwhile, as the evening rolled on, life wouldn't be easy for Florida, the consensus No. 1. The Gators held off LSU in Baton Rouge 13-3.

While Alabama remained...