You might be tempted as an Alabama fan to feel like the Crimson Tide is playing with house money in Saturday night's Elite Eight matchup against Duke. It would be understandable to feel that way, considering how little success Alabama has had with deep NCAA Tournament runs in program history until recently.
Saturday night in Newark will be Alabama's third Elite Eight game in program history. They were routed by eventual national champion UConn in 2004 and then beat Clemson in the West Regional Final a year ago to get to the Final Four for the first time ever.
Making it to back-to-back Elite Eights feels almost inconceivable for long-time fans of this program. Just being a consistent NCAA Tournament team was always the hope. Nate Oats arrived in 2019 and changed expectations entirely.
So if you want to go into tomorrow night's game thinking it's house money, win or lose, I understand. Just don't tell that to Oats.
"We’re not going in there just hoping we can play with them," said Oats.
Perhaps in last year's Final Four against UConn, that was more of the expectation. Alabama had never been there before, and I believe even the Tide fans with the most crimson-colored glasses didn't see a path to victory against an elite Huskies squad. But Alabama competed and proved they belonged. They proved they could play with a team of that caliber.
This team was built to cut down the nets. Not just for winning a Regional, but for being the last team standing when all is said and done.
"The expectation is you win. That’s what we expect around here now," said Oats.
Oats has burdened Alabama fans with expectations. Expectations beyond the wildest dreams of those who have been fans of this program for the long haul. Getting to the second weekend of March Madness no longer feels that special. It's still an accomplishment, but it feels more like an expectation, as Oats has led the program there for three consecutive seasons and four out of the last five.
Duke is a Goliath of the sport. The bluest of blue bloods led by the best player in the country, the sure-fire No. 1 pick in the 2025 NBA Draft, Cooper Flagg. But Alabama has been on equal footing with the Blue Devils, at least in the last three seasons.
In those three years, Alabama was the No. 1 overall seed in the tournament in 2023 before falling short in the Sweet 16. Last year's team made the Final Four. This year's team is back in the Elite Eight, one win away from a second straight trip to the national semifinals.
Beating Duke will take a monumental effort. It would be arguably the biggest win in program history. It would also not be a surprise. Not for fans, not for Oats, and not for the players on the team.