The Alabama Crimson Tide are beginning to enterprise into uncharted territory. At the very least for them.
The Crimson Tide fell all the way in which right down to No. 21 on this week’s AP Ballot following an unpleasant Week 1 loss to Florida State, making it this system’s lowest rating in almost twenty years.
You need to go all the way in which again to the beginning of the Nick Saban period to search out the final time Alabama was ranked this low nationally. The Crimson Tide completed the 2007 unranked, after which opened 2008 with the No. 24 rating within the nation. They jumped as much as No. 13 the next week and didn’t depart the highest 20 till this newest rating.
That could be a stretch of 16 years persistently within the high 20.
The Crimson Tide nonetheless stay ranked — for now — and have been for 280 consecutive polls. However yet another ugly loss — or any loss usually — within the coming weeks might put that streak in severe jeopardy.
It additionally must be in jeopardy.
As dangerous as Saturday’s sport towards Florida State was, it was not a very out-of-nowhere efficiency.
With that loss, Alabama is simply 5-5 in its previous 10 video games going again to the 2024 season, with three losses to unranked opponents in that stretch of video games. Nearly another program would have a tough time nonetheless discovering a option to crack the rankings, however Alabama’s previous success and popularity are all the time going to hold lots of weight within the eyes of voters.
Alabama has a really winnable sport at residence this Saturday towards Louisiana-Monroe, earlier than a tricky stretch of video games towards Wisconsin, No. 4 Georgia and a Vanderbilt crew that upset Alabama a yr in the past.
If it drops one or two of these video games it might convey its stretch of consecutive ballot appearances to an finish, and solely improve the strain on second-year head coach Kalen DeBoer.
