Five national championships and the most wins in NCAA history are just part of the resume of this coaching icon in Durham.
But Duke's Mike Krzyzewski can appreciate greatness beyond the court and he saw it Monday night in Santa Clara as the top two teams in college football went at for the national championship.
After seeing Clemson dominate Alabama in a 44-16 victory, Coach K took a few minutes earlier this week after the Wake Forest game to give credit to both teams for their performance.
"Congratulations to Dabo and his team and it shows the difference in a game is really those third and fourth down possessions," he said.
"Critical moments and they won all those critical moments. To me, it looked like it was a lot worse than what it was. I love when teams are able to do that. I wasn't cheering for either one. Obviously I know Nick. I know Dabo a litle bit because it's conference. It's great for our conference. But two amazing programs. Come on. For them to give sports fans that level of excellence is crazy."
Clemson won its second national championship in three seasons but unlike the first two meetings, the last two contests between the Tigers and Crimson Tide have been one-sided. The win Monday also saw Clemson become the first team in the modern era to go 15-0.