He added: “The offenses are constantly getting faster, so you, as a defense, have to adapt, anyway. I feel like this year, we adapted well to each and every team trying to spread us out.”

Many great football coaches are distinguished by specific philosophical bents. Vince Lombardi insisted on running the power sweep to perfection. Bill Walsh innovated the West Coast offense. Bill Parcells demanded toughness.

As with Bill Belichick, under whom Saban once served as a defensive coordinator in the N.F.L., Saban’s defining characteristic is an unwillingness to be shaped by a defining characteristic. Much as Belichick moved the New England Patriots from a tidy ball-control offense to an explosive one, and then later redefined the tight end position, Saban sees where the rules, the players and the coaches are taking the game, and then he gets there faster and better than anyone else.

“The flexibility of being able to learn from others and change what you do relative to how the game changes is very, very important,” he said Friday.

It is because of such flexibility that Alabama (14-0) will face Clemson (13-1) for the national championship on Jan. 9 in Tampa, Fla., in a rematch of last year’s title game, won by Alabama, 45-40.

The Crimson Tide could become the first modern team to go 15-0 and the first since World War II to win five national titles in eight seasons.

But Clemson promises not to be a pushover. Last year, Alabama required a kick-return touchdown and an extra possession bought by a surprise onside kick to beat the Tigers by a slim margin.