Alabama Football and a scary thought for the college football world

Flying under the radar of the college football world is a thought about Alabama Football's immediate future. Immediate means the 2024 college football season. Already becoming apparent is the post-Nick Saban era of Alabama Football will not be anything like the gloom and doom spread for months following Saban's retirement.

The Alabama Crimson Tide will have a rebuilding season or two under Kalen DeBoer. The same would have been true for any other coach who followed Nick Saban. Even the most optimistic Crimson Tide fans don't foresee an undefeated season. Nick Saban only had two undefeated seasons during his 17 in Tuscaloosa. Bear Bryant had only three in 25 Alabama seasons. Wallace Wade, Frank Thomas, and Gene Stallings combined produced just five in 48 Crimson Tide seasons. Alabama's 2024 schedule makes it almost possible for Kalen DeBoer to add a perfect season. The ESPN FPI gives Alabama a 3.4% chance to win out, in the regular season.

That perfect is practically unattainable means nothing more than that reality. Kalen DeBoer and the Alabama Crimson Tide can be excellent, and a strong National Championship contender. Over a month ago, Josh Pate predicted Georgia, Texas, Ohio State, Oregon, and Alabama as college football's elite teams in 2024.

Recently, Pate projected the Crimson Tide as the No. 2 college football program over the next three years. Pate ranked what he believes will be college football's top 15 programs over the next three years. Alabama was behind Georgia and ahead of Oregon and Texas. Seven of Pate's top 15 are SEC programs.

Explaining his enthusiasm for the Crimson Tide in 2024, Pate cited: Alabama's three-year recruiting average is No. 1; Alabama has top-notch infrastructure and immaculate facilities; and as important, is Pate's opinion that Kalen DeBoer is a legit, high-level coach.

Talking about the transition from Nick Saban to Kalen DeBoer, Pate said "You may be looking at one of the most high-level handoffs of the baton in the history of this sport."

Pate's statement is bold. It may take the 2024 and 2025 seasons to prove or disprove his claim. What the rest of the college football world should worry about can become evident before the end of the 2024 regular season. Alabama's tough schedule will result in losses, but if they are few and close losses, there will be growing proof of another bold claim. That claim is in 2024, Alabama Football will have its best coaching staff in many seasons. That has to be the scariest thought on the minds of Crimson Tide opponents.

The best Alabama Football team since 2020?

Take all program attributes cited by Josh Pate; add in potentially a better group of assistants than in recent seasons, and the Alabama Crimson Tide by late season could be Alabama's most formidable team since the 2020 National Championship season.