2019 College Football Season Preview: Alabama Crimson Tide
2019 College Football Season Preview: Alabama Crimson Tide
In the weeks leading up to the season, I’ll be previewing some of the top programs in college football. Today I cover the national runner-up, Alabama University. All stats according to sports-reference.com
2019 Coaches’ Poll Ranking: 2
2018 Final AP Ranking: 2
2018 Record: 14-1
Coach: Nick Saban
Conference: Southeastern Conference (SEC)
Summary: Alabama has ruled college football for a decade, and sat atop the national rankings for the entire college football season, until it was ultimately embarrassed on the nation’s biggest stage by Clemson in the national championship. The team still had the most players in the nation drafted, though, and ultimately lost twelve players to the NFL through the draft and undrafted free agency. For most teams(see: Clemson) I’d worry about some kind of regression, but does anyone really believe that Alabama isn’t going to be ready for the season with their new players? Nick Saban has been doing this forever, and that shouldn’t be an issue. However, even before their humiliation in the championship, Alabama suffered a serious scare against Georgia. Is Alabama weakening?
Most Valuable Player: Tua Tagovailoa The Heisman favorite most of the season only to be beaten out by eventual number one overall pick Kyler Murray, Tagovailoa comes in as the favorite to win the Heisman trophy a year after barely missing out. Tagovailoa introduced himself in the second half of the 2017 national championship, coming in as a freshman and leading a comeback against Clemson to win. It was a controversial move, but the Hawaii native threw for over 3900 yards as a sophomore while leading one of the better offenses in the nation in 2018. That he’s talented isn’t up for debate. The only real question is how high he goes. Will he return as a better quarterback and come back with a Heisman-winning performance? Alabama may need him too.
Biggest Game: vs. LSU, Nov. 9th. LSU is currently ranked number 6 in the preseason polls, and if LSU is able to stick around this could be the biggest game of the regular season. LSU will have to cooperate, though, as they have started high each of the last few seasons only to fade down the stretch. This game will be a good measuring stick for Alabama: If they dominate LSU as they have in the past, they’re likely going to win the SEC and make the playoffs. A loss, though, would be hard to overcome due to the fact that LSU would lead even the division and Alabama might find itself left out of the SEC Championship.
One Big Question: Will Alabama recover? To be clear, Alabama looked really good for most of the year. Tua Tagovailoa, as already discussed, was dynamite as a passer and the defense was a top-20 unit. However, Alabama’s last three games all made the Tide look vulnerable, with a close, come-from-behind win against Georgia, a furious attempt at a comeback by Kyler Murray in the semifinal against Oklahoma and the horrible Clemson game. It feels like Clemson has finally truly turned the corner to truly be better than Alabama, and how the Tide reacts to no longer being the undisputed top dog will be something to watch this season. They still might be the most talented team in the nation, but it will take more than that to beat Clemson, or even Georgia.
My Season Prediction: 14-1, Lose in the Championship I think it’s highly possible that Alabama loses at least one game in the regular season, and if last year’s finale is any indication they are no longer the Alabama of old. But I can’t pick against them until they prove me wrong. After all, this team has been the best in college football for all of recent memory, and picking against the trend is likely foolhardy. But watch this season, weakness may have finally shown in the Tide.
For my previous season preview on Clemson, click Here
-By: Alex Spieldenner