Kalen DeBoer won't have to look far for bulletin board material if he wants extra motivation for his team heading into the College Football Playoff.
Along with all the wailing and gnashing of teeth over the fact that Alabama got into the playoff to begin with, there's also nationwide doubt over this team's ability to make any kind of run.
Alabama will get an opportunity to avenge a regular-season loss to Oklahoma, but with the Crimson Tide's offensive struggles of late, it's fair to question how much success they might find in Norman.
Since the calendar flipped to November, Alabama is just 3-2, with losses to Oklahoma at home and then last week's three-touchdown defeat to Georgia in the SEC Championship Game. Even the wins haven't been inspiring: Alabama beat LSU 20-9 in Tuscaloosa and went on the road to knock off 5-7 Auburn by a touchdown on the Plains.
Alabama hasn't been playing good football as of late. Not even diehard Tide fans would deny that. The team that beat four straight ranked opponents in the middle of the season feels like a distant memory.
But they can change the narrative with a strong performance next Friday night in Norman and a win that puts them into the Rose Bowl against Indiana. But according to CBS Sports analyst Aaron Taylor, Alabama fans should hold off on booking the trip to Pasadena:
"Against elite defenses, Alabama's getting outcoached, they're getting outplayed, and I believe that happens again when they play Oklahoma."
— CBS Sports College Football 🏈 (@CBSSportsCFB) December 10, 2025
— .@AaronTaylorCFB is taking the Sooners over Alabama in their upcoming duel pic.twitter.com/ECnkiLelbo
Aaron Taylor believes Oklahoma will beat Alabama again
Opinions will vary on what Alabama needs to do in the playoff to constitute a successful season in Tuscaloosa. For some, simply beating Oklahoma will be enough. That would mean an 11th win, put the Crimson Tide in the Rose Bowl against No. 1-ranked Indiana, and serve as a big step forward from last season.
For others, the very vocal minority, anything short of winning the National Championship is always a disappointment.
The truth is that this season, as frustrating as it has been over the last month, has already been a step forward for DeBoer in year two. Combined with an excellent recruiting class, things are looking up for the Crimson Tide.
But it would be nice to get over the Oklahoma hurdle. Brent Venables has had DeBoer's number, going 2-0 against the Crimson Tide as the Sooners' head coach. It's not necessarily about "revenge", but about showing that the narrative that this team can't beat good defenses is nonsense.
Fair or unfair, DeBoer and Alabama opened themselves up to criticism with how they played last weekend in Atlanta. The only way to remove that memory is to replace it with a better one, and going on the road and winning a College Football Playoff game would go a long way in doing that.