No, what changed the nature of battle rifles was the StG44.
In the .308 world - which could include rebarreled Israeli M1's, the most impressive rifle is the AR10. First, because it made the other battle rifles in .308 look like the curios and relics they are, and second, it weighs two pounds less than the hunk of roller locking sheetmetal my HK91 was. BOTH don't have operating rods or silly gas mechanisms rattling around on the barrel attempting to bend it while cycling.
Of course, most of the Armies of the world dropped the .308 because it's more cartridge than needed. In terms of the most awesome, that leaves the AR10 as the last and best design - something it proved even more when it transistioned to 5.56 and became the most successful battle rifle in American history. Added to that, the 65 nations that have subsequently dumped the .308 battle rifle en mass and made it the parts guns so avidly coveted by collectors today.
As for actual battlefield use, there's barely a few thousand, usually dedicated as a battalion asset to be parceled out one per patrol, with it's dedicated marksman. As some have already posted, the refitted M14's sent to SWAsia largely remain in the racks. That conflict has moved to the urban built up areas and transistioned to the IED warfare used in Iraq.
In terms of numbers, with over 100,000 troops in Afghanistan, there may be more M9 pistols than .308 rifles issued. At least we know which are actually more effective.