The last time Joe Lunardi released his early Bracketology outlook on ESPN for the 2027 NCAA Tournament, Alabama's roster was still in a state of flux.
The Crimson Tide was still waiting on clarity on Amari Allen's stay-or-go NBA Draft decision, and there had been no updates on Aden Holloway to point toward an outcome one way or another with his legal troubles.
It should go to show how much equity Nate Oats has earned as a head coach that, despite the status of his two best players still being up in the air, Lunardi projected Alabama as a 4-seed back in May.
Now, with Allen officially back in the fold for his sophomore season, and Holloway reaching a plea agreement and entering a second-chance program that could get all charges against him dropped, Alabama has the clarity it needed on both heading into the dog days of summer.
And Alabama is on the rise as a result in Joe Lunardi's latest Bracketology update.
Alabama moves up to a 3-seed in Joe Lunardi's latest NCAA Tournament projection
Only two SEC teams are higher-seeded in Lunardi's bracket update. He has, predictably, Florida as the No. 1 overall seed. He's also bought stock in John Calipari and Arkansas for next season with the Razorbacks on the 2-line. Texas joins Alabama as a 3-seed, and those four teams represent the consensus top quartet for the conference next season.
Oats did some excellent work in the Transfer Portal this offseason to fix Alabama's biggest recent weakness in the frontcourt. Alabama got bigger all over the roster this offseason, with Holloway the likely only rotational player on the team who stands under 6-foot-6.
A lot will ride on which version of Brandon Garrison that Alabama gets this season, but there's a whole lot of depth up front that Oats did not have at his disposal this past season. Whereas last year, Aiden Sherrell was the only true big on the roster for most of the season, Oats landed a trio of bigs in the portal in Garrison, Jamarion Davis-Fleming, and Drew Fielder. He also retained Keitenn Bristow and Collins Onyejiaka, giving Alabama five options between the two frontcourt spots before even having to consider playing small with Allen or London Jemison playing the four as they did so often during their freshman campaigns.
There's depth and versatility all over the roster, and with Holloway and Allen back to solidify the backcourt, Oats should have a team capable of not only competing for an SEC Championship, but one that can make a run and get back to the Final Four for the second time.
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