The championship legacy of Alabama Football will always be the measure of any Crimson Tide team and every head coach. In the Playoff era, a 10-win season is no substitute for not making the Playoff. With the expansion to 12 teams, such a failure is exponentially worse.
No Alabama football fan likes it, but longtime Crimson Tide critic, Kevin Scarbinsky was correct when he recently wrote that "nothing lasts forever" and college football's "longest modern dynasty" is no more. What a joyous ride it was! Alabama may again become a college football dynasty, but it is hard to imagine it will ever match what Nick Saban achieved.
Many naysayers from last winter and spring weren't far off about the Alabama Crimson Tide. It wasn't just the exit of Nick Saban. Even though Alabama led in the 4th quarter of the 2021 season, National Championship Game, the game's result was a sure sign of slippage. Alabama Football has not been dynastic since the 2020 season.
Alabama Football and Future CFB Playoffs
The current CFB Playoff structure will change. It might change slightly for the 2025 version. The changes for 2026, which will not require a majority vote for revision, will be significant. An easy prediction is that the SEC's Greg Sankey and the Big Ten's Tony Petitti will agree on what they want and have little need to compromise. As reported by Ross Dellenger, Texas AD, Chris Del Conte recently stated that "Eighteen schools in college football account for 65% of the television revenue." Even more noteworthy is the claim that just six of the 18, produce the majority of the TV revenue; Alabama, Ohio State, Georgia, Michigan, Texas, and Notre Dame.
There is a simple reason to predict a Sankey-led restructure of the Playoffs. Money will be the determining factor. The most important calculation is how the expanded Playoffs will be divvied up. Future splits will follow the reality of what brands generate the most revenue.
What will not change are expectations for the Alabama Crimson Tide. Kalen DeBoer probably has a three or possibly four-season window to get Alabama back to a National Championship Game. If he wins it, the DeBoer-Alabama Era could last a long time. It might even produce another college football dynasty.
There is also pessimism among some Crimson Tide fans that DeBoer is not 'The Guy' to bring Alabama back. Paul Finebaum is more correct than wrong, that losing to Michigan and finishing 9-4 would be "catastrophic." Casting such sensationalism aside, Alabama football fans would benefit from discovering a never-before level of patience. No one, not Greg Byrne, and not even Kalen DeBoer knows if the Tide's DeBoer period will or will not be a success.