Alabama Football: Sept. 9 a must-win for Bama or Texas?
By Ronald Evans
As Alabama Football fans can attest a big game early is a special treat. Georgia fans will not have a similar experience in the 2023 season, as the Bulldogs open with the UT-Martin Skyhawks. When the Alabama Crimson Tide plays Texas on Sept. 9, Kirby Smart’s team will be toiling with one of the worst FBS teams, the Ball State Cardinals. Ball State was so bad last season, it lost five games in the MAC. Only about 15 of the 133 FBS teams are expected to be worse than Ball State in 2023.
Alabama opens with Middle Tennessee State on Sept. 2 and the Blue Raiders are expected to make a bowl game. It will be a good practice game for the Crimson Tide.
The opening game for the Longhorns is ULM. Just wait until the following game week; some pundit will call the week two game in Tuscaloosa the ‘battle of the unbeatens.’
The game will be much more. CFB Playoff chances will slip for the loser and be enhanced for the winner. The worst outcome for the losing team will be a lost margin for error. It can be argued a one-loss SEC Champion is assured of a Playoff berth. That might also be true for a one-loss Big 12 Champion.
If the schedule rankings projected by College Football News (CFN) are accurate, Alabama is less likely to be undefeated in SEC regular-season play than Texas is to be undefeated in Big 12 play. CFN has the Longhorns with the 5th hardest Big 12 schedule and the No. 16 toughest in the FBS. Alabama is ranked with the SEC’s toughest schedule and the No. 5 toughest schedule among FBS teams.
On the basis of that projection, the Crimson Tide probably needs to win on Sept. 9, more than Texas.
A counter thought is a 2-loss SEC Champion has a better chance to make the Playoff field than a 2-loss Big 12 Champion.
Should Alabama Football or the Texas Longhorns win?
The Longhorns are garnering more preseason love than the Crimson Tide. A big reason why is Texas quarterback, Quinn Ewers is considered by some experts to be ranked as high as college football’s third-best QB. Alabama’s still-to-be-resolved QB battle is unlikely to lead to the starter being projected inside a top-15 list of QBs at the start of the 2023 season.
There are also claims Texas has a better roster than Alabama Football. Recently, Urban Meyer made an even bolder claim, stating Texas might have the “best roster in college football.”
Very few, if any, Alabama football fans assign credibility to anything Urban says, but there is no argument, Texas in 2023 will be better than Texas in 2022.
Many pundits will end up picking Texas to beat the Crimson Tide. Short of early season injuries to key Alabama players, oddsmakers will favor the Crimson Tide.