Alabama was in its death throes in 2023, although it might not have known it yet.
It started with Saban leaving and the poor 2021 class, and would very, very quickly get worse. Saban's replacement, Jim Harbaugh, actually improved the team in 2023, due to a decent 2023 Freshman class and better game management in close games. They finished in the top 25 again, only losing to Georgia and LSU. They were able to win an Iron Bowl for the first time since 2020. However, as Jim Harbaugh is, well, Jim Harbaugh, he grated on the management, and even a 2 loss season wouldn't be enough to save his job if it happened again. 2024 would be make or break for the irritable and irritating coach.
It turned out to be make, as in the playoffs. The 2020 class, which had many people bound for the draft (although none made it) was in full force and the strong D-Line carried Jim Harbaugh's Alabama Squad to a now 8 team playoff. They beat their first opponent, Clemson, 27-17, and went up early on Notre Dame, holding a 10 point lead heading into halftime. Then tragedy struck. Samuel Gay, the surefire top 10 pick as a Wide Receiver, who had already hit 150 yards on the night, broke his leg in one of the most gruesome and most impactful injuries in any sport. Said Gay, "It's the only time I've ever seen bone on a field, and it was mine." He would recover, but his career was over. And so the WR3 for the game became the WR2, a name which has become synonomous with scum and choker on the Alabama Campus. Bryce Rollins. Notre Dame slowly clawed its way back to within a field goal with 3 minutes to go, 17-14. With Gay out, the offense had stalled, but after a quick Touchdown early in the second half, so had Notre Dame. The ball was on the Notre Dame 40 yard line, 2nd and 8. It was a simple slant to try and open the defense up, with Rollins on a drag route underneath. The slant route was covered well, and so the QB, Miles Parish, went to Rollins. The ball was on target, he was open with the defender trailing behind, and he had open space in front of him. Then Rollins tripped. The ball went straight, and hit the flailing Rollins' left foot. It ended up in the cornerback's hands, who speedily ran around the offensive line and got to the Red Zone. Notre Dame punched it in, and Alabama was eliminated before the Final again.
This was the last time they would make the playoffs for a decade.
Three weeks into next season, after a loss to Texas A&M, Jim Harbaugh was fired. His abrasiveness had finally gotten on Alabama's last nerve, and the choke in the playoffs, perhaps a bit unfairly, was also put on his shoulders a bit. Four weeks later, Alabama's playoff ambitions took a backseat to scandal.
For many years, a conspiracy that everyone knew about but nobody could technically prove was spoken about in hushed tones, in loud bars, on Reddit, and eventually, on sports media. Was the SEC receiving preferential treatment from the seeding algorithm? Yes. Everyone knew the answer was yes. That the NCAA was involved in making it that way and keeping it that way was not technically known, but not unexpected giving the corrupt and money grubbing nature of the organization. That president Mark Emmert would be caught on tape admitting it while drunk was much, much less expected.
"Yeah, there's no way in hell that an SEC team isn't making the postseason. Hell, two will probably make it each year we keep up the cheat system."
When the "Cheat system" was investigated, it was discovered that all of the things the algorithm took into account when deciding the system were boosted if the team being considered was an SEC team. Bad losses? Not as bad if you were an SEC team. Good wins? Better if you were an SEC team. Strength of Schedule? Better if you were an SEC team, or if you played a lot of SEC teams, and the strength of all SEC teams was boosted unfairly in that department, which fed into itself for even greater effects. Same with losing to a bad SEC team as a good SEC team, the effects stacked meaning SEC teams for years hadn't been budging as much as they should have when losing to the lower class in their league. NCAA was paid a million dollars per year to keep the cheat in place, but they and the SEC themselves each made tens of millions boosting the reputation of those top teams.
This led to many, many sanctions and outrage. The entire NCAA apparatus was overhauled. Many rules changed, including players getting paid for more than just scholarships for their time at College, more stringent education requirements, and the entire SEC getting banned from the playoffs for 5 years. This particularly hurt Alabama, due to one specific factor. During the majority of the time that the Cheat system was in place, they were getting the highest boost, due to their status as top dog of the SEC and the biggest moneymaker for the league. The worst punishment they got wasn't to their pocketbook or to their ability to make the playoffs, it was to their reputation.
The football team got less benefits, and the school lost its biggest advantage over its opposition. The five star high school prospects that the school got, year after year, decided to head to the Big 12 and the Pac-12. Michigan and Ohio State faced each other in the BCS final in 2025, Stanford won the title from the 8th position upsetting powerhouses Clemson, OSU, and Wisconsin in the process in 2026, and UCLA won every game for 2 straight seasons to take the 2027 and 2028 titles. In 2029, the last year of no postseason for SEC teams, Alabama won two games. One against FCS opposition, the other against South Carolina. They scheduled 3 games against FCS opposition. They had lost to two FCS teams. Their best player was a defensive end who had 5.5 sacks and didn't bother to declare for the draft. Alabama was in complete and utter free fall, and they needed something to bring themselves out of it.
They weren't going to get it for at least a couple more years. 2030 saw the Georgia Bulldogs head to the playoffs, the first SEC team to do so since the ban. They beat Alabama by 40 points. Alabama's only win was against the Razorbacks. They lost to South Dakota State and James Madison. 2031 saw eventual champions, the Michigan State Spartans, put up 70 points on Alabama. Teams were taking advantage of Alabama's remaining prestige and their new cupcake nature to double dip big paydays while also getting easy wins. Finally, in 2033, a new freshman savior arrived. Baron Richardson was the best quarterback that they had in many years, and he threw for 18 TDs and ran for 7 more. He got Alabama back over .500 for the first time since 2025. Next year Alabama qualified for a bowl game, the Chipotle Burrito Bowl, where they faced and beat Pitt. Alabama was on the rise. In 2035, Alabama finally had a number of pro worthy players. They beat last year's champions, the Badgers, and the champion of their conference last year, Ole Miss. They were ranked 6 at the end of the season, and were able to beat perennial playoff contenders Cal to get to the semifinals. There, their road to redemption came to an end, as they lost in overtime to the team that sent them into the downward spiral in the first place, the Tennessee Volunteers.
In recent times, Alabama has gotten back to the playoffs a couple more years, bowing out before the finals each time, albeit most recently to the eventual champions. Their head coach, Martin Corey, has received heaps of praise for taking a team that was in the dumpster fire half a decade ago and taken them to the playoffs 3 times in that 5 year span. Perhaps a new dynasty could be on the rise. This reporter will certainly keep an eye on them, as no matter whether they succeed or fail, they will certainly tell a story in the process.
(1409 words)
It started with Saban leaving and the poor 2021 class, and would very, very quickly get worse. Saban's replacement, Jim Harbaugh, actually improved the team in 2023, due to a decent 2023 Freshman class and better game management in close games. They finished in the top 25 again, only losing to Georgia and LSU. They were able to win an Iron Bowl for the first time since 2020. However, as Jim Harbaugh is, well, Jim Harbaugh, he grated on the management, and even a 2 loss season wouldn't be enough to save his job if it happened again. 2024 would be make or break for the irritable and irritating coach.
It turned out to be make, as in the playoffs. The 2020 class, which had many people bound for the draft (although none made it) was in full force and the strong D-Line carried Jim Harbaugh's Alabama Squad to a now 8 team playoff. They beat their first opponent, Clemson, 27-17, and went up early on Notre Dame, holding a 10 point lead heading into halftime. Then tragedy struck. Samuel Gay, the surefire top 10 pick as a Wide Receiver, who had already hit 150 yards on the night, broke his leg in one of the most gruesome and most impactful injuries in any sport. Said Gay, "It's the only time I've ever seen bone on a field, and it was mine." He would recover, but his career was over. And so the WR3 for the game became the WR2, a name which has become synonomous with scum and choker on the Alabama Campus. Bryce Rollins. Notre Dame slowly clawed its way back to within a field goal with 3 minutes to go, 17-14. With Gay out, the offense had stalled, but after a quick Touchdown early in the second half, so had Notre Dame. The ball was on the Notre Dame 40 yard line, 2nd and 8. It was a simple slant to try and open the defense up, with Rollins on a drag route underneath. The slant route was covered well, and so the QB, Miles Parish, went to Rollins. The ball was on target, he was open with the defender trailing behind, and he had open space in front of him. Then Rollins tripped. The ball went straight, and hit the flailing Rollins' left foot. It ended up in the cornerback's hands, who speedily ran around the offensive line and got to the Red Zone. Notre Dame punched it in, and Alabama was eliminated before the Final again.
This was the last time they would make the playoffs for a decade.
Three weeks into next season, after a loss to Texas A&M, Jim Harbaugh was fired. His abrasiveness had finally gotten on Alabama's last nerve, and the choke in the playoffs, perhaps a bit unfairly, was also put on his shoulders a bit. Four weeks later, Alabama's playoff ambitions took a backseat to scandal.
For many years, a conspiracy that everyone knew about but nobody could technically prove was spoken about in hushed tones, in loud bars, on Reddit, and eventually, on sports media. Was the SEC receiving preferential treatment from the seeding algorithm? Yes. Everyone knew the answer was yes. That the NCAA was involved in making it that way and keeping it that way was not technically known, but not unexpected giving the corrupt and money grubbing nature of the organization. That president Mark Emmert would be caught on tape admitting it while drunk was much, much less expected.
"Yeah, there's no way in hell that an SEC team isn't making the postseason. Hell, two will probably make it each year we keep up the cheat system."
When the "Cheat system" was investigated, it was discovered that all of the things the algorithm took into account when deciding the system were boosted if the team being considered was an SEC team. Bad losses? Not as bad if you were an SEC team. Good wins? Better if you were an SEC team. Strength of Schedule? Better if you were an SEC team, or if you played a lot of SEC teams, and the strength of all SEC teams was boosted unfairly in that department, which fed into itself for even greater effects. Same with losing to a bad SEC team as a good SEC team, the effects stacked meaning SEC teams for years hadn't been budging as much as they should have when losing to the lower class in their league. NCAA was paid a million dollars per year to keep the cheat in place, but they and the SEC themselves each made tens of millions boosting the reputation of those top teams.
This led to many, many sanctions and outrage. The entire NCAA apparatus was overhauled. Many rules changed, including players getting paid for more than just scholarships for their time at College, more stringent education requirements, and the entire SEC getting banned from the playoffs for 5 years. This particularly hurt Alabama, due to one specific factor. During the majority of the time that the Cheat system was in place, they were getting the highest boost, due to their status as top dog of the SEC and the biggest moneymaker for the league. The worst punishment they got wasn't to their pocketbook or to their ability to make the playoffs, it was to their reputation.
The football team got less benefits, and the school lost its biggest advantage over its opposition. The five star high school prospects that the school got, year after year, decided to head to the Big 12 and the Pac-12. Michigan and Ohio State faced each other in the BCS final in 2025, Stanford won the title from the 8th position upsetting powerhouses Clemson, OSU, and Wisconsin in the process in 2026, and UCLA won every game for 2 straight seasons to take the 2027 and 2028 titles. In 2029, the last year of no postseason for SEC teams, Alabama won two games. One against FCS opposition, the other against South Carolina. They scheduled 3 games against FCS opposition. They had lost to two FCS teams. Their best player was a defensive end who had 5.5 sacks and didn't bother to declare for the draft. Alabama was in complete and utter free fall, and they needed something to bring themselves out of it.
They weren't going to get it for at least a couple more years. 2030 saw the Georgia Bulldogs head to the playoffs, the first SEC team to do so since the ban. They beat Alabama by 40 points. Alabama's only win was against the Razorbacks. They lost to South Dakota State and James Madison. 2031 saw eventual champions, the Michigan State Spartans, put up 70 points on Alabama. Teams were taking advantage of Alabama's remaining prestige and their new cupcake nature to double dip big paydays while also getting easy wins. Finally, in 2033, a new freshman savior arrived. Baron Richardson was the best quarterback that they had in many years, and he threw for 18 TDs and ran for 7 more. He got Alabama back over .500 for the first time since 2025. Next year Alabama qualified for a bowl game, the Chipotle Burrito Bowl, where they faced and beat Pitt. Alabama was on the rise. In 2035, Alabama finally had a number of pro worthy players. They beat last year's champions, the Badgers, and the champion of their conference last year, Ole Miss. They were ranked 6 at the end of the season, and were able to beat perennial playoff contenders Cal to get to the semifinals. There, their road to redemption came to an end, as they lost in overtime to the team that sent them into the downward spiral in the first place, the Tennessee Volunteers.
In recent times, Alabama has gotten back to the playoffs a couple more years, bowing out before the finals each time, albeit most recently to the eventual champions. Their head coach, Martin Corey, has received heaps of praise for taking a team that was in the dumpster fire half a decade ago and taken them to the playoffs 3 times in that 5 year span. Perhaps a new dynasty could be on the rise. This reporter will certainly keep an eye on them, as no matter whether they succeed or fail, they will certainly tell a story in the process.
(1409 words)
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