🏈 From the Florida Alligator: "Tired of seeing Alabama dominate college football? You’re not alone"

[BAMANEWSBOT]

If you ask the average college football fan why the sport trumps all others, he or she might point to this past weekend as proof.

Three of the nation’s top-four teams were upset, with two of the upsets coming against unranked teams.

It’s that randomness — that ability for any team to win any given game — that makes college football special. That, along with the disproportionate disparity between teams compared to other leagues.


After all, if the Browns beat the Cowboys, that’s an upset, sure. But since both teams have similar resources and the ability to draft the same players, it’s not Earth-shattering.

Meanwhile, when Appalachian State beat No. 6 Michigan in 2007 or when Georgia Southern beat Florida in 2013, small earthquakes undoubtedly ensued on those respective campuses. It’s just a better story when a bunch of two-star recruits take down a team of five-stars. Sports fans appreciate that kind of drama.

But what happens when one team manages to be so far ahead of the others that it shifts that disparity, changing the college football dynamic from “elite” programs against “regular” ones to one super-elite program against everyone else?

Well, Alabama happens. And it’s made the game less fun.

Actually, I’m sorry.

Alabama is happening.

Just yesterday, the Crimson Tide hauled in a commitment from four-star offensive tackle recruit Jedrick Wills to regain their spot atop the national recruiting rankings. The last time the Tide didn’t finish with the No. 1 class was in 2010.

And it shows on the field. Up and down Alabama’s depth chart you’ll find nothing but five- and four-star players. Which makes sense given that Alabama coach Nick Saban can basically promise potential recruits a national title. Every class he’s ever brought to Tuscaloosa has won at least one.

There are many other metrics that could put the Tide’s dominance into perspective, but I’ll only use one. Alabama hasn’t lost to an unranked team since 2007.

Think about that for a second.

Most college football teams — even elite ones — lose to underdogs. It’s what makes the game fun, and again, it’s why No. 3 Clemson losing to unranked Pittsburgh and No. 2 Michigan losing to unranked Iowa on Saturday had fans storming the field in Iowa City and staying in their seats in Death Valley.


But against Alabama, that fun no longer exists. Even though the Tide aren’t infallible, going undefeated only once under Saban, they only lose to the toppest of top-tier teams. Thanks to Saban’s recruiting efforts, there’s just no chance for anyone outside the top-10.

And yes, that does create a scenario where every team targets ‘Bama. Just look at ESPN’s College Gameday for evidence. Seemingly every week someone in the show’s audience brings out a sign reading “(Insert school name here) wants Bama!”

Yet even the good teams rarely contend. They might not be infallible, but the Crimson Tide regularly massacre the best competition in the Southeastern Conference.

Watching them is like hoping against hope you’ll get the present you wanted for Christmas only to find s--- in your stocking. Even if sometimes you get the present, there’s only so many times you’ll stick your hand in s--- before you just stop trying and walk away.

And I don’t want to put any blame on Nick Saban for making the game boring. He can’t help being the best at his job.

Nevertheless, the sport will be better for everyone outside Tuscaloosa with him gone.

Tired of seeing Alabama dominate college football? You’re not alone

 

[Bamabww]

No, not at all.

 

[BamaFan334]

I hate it that this country has come to comdemn success. Sure, ESPN has shoved Alabama down everyone's throat, but the disdain from everyone outside the program is because they can't stand sustained success. It's a society of quick hits. Love making money and blowing it on the newest phone or shoes, yet hates to save and invest and later in life buy that million dollar beach/lake house and live comfortably. It's all jealousy because they themselves are incapable of being successful for longer periods of time so they sulk and want the ivory tower to fall. It's unfortunate, but telling them to step up their game goes in one ear and out the other, but hey, they got that new iPhone and pair of Jordans while we stock the gold and mutual funds.

 

[TUSKtimes]

For everyone that saw the latest ESPN playoff ranking show, that was pretty amazing stuff. The talking heads, including Herbie, were literally trying to decide which teams should be in the top 4 based on their ability to beat Bama. Not who has the most talented team and most deserving based on SOS and record, but which team would match up with one single football program the best. Going to be interesting to see how the committee treats Ohio St and Louisville if they don't make their conference championship game.

 

[jdpas29]

 

[It Takes Eleven]

I'll admit I had USC fatigue.

 

[TUSKtimes]

I'll admit I had USC fatigue.

I get it, but it sure beats all that Bama fatigue I was feeling during the DuBose/Fran/Shula regime. :over:

 

[sean]

i know this is long-winded, but i just gotta say it. so bear with me:



i've said it before and i'll say it again, nothing lasts forever.

college football is a game (no pun intended) of ups and downs. the successes of a team ebbs and flows like the tide (again, no pun intended......well, maybe just a little ). no one can stay on top forever.

when Bear was at BAMA, some looked at us as the best in the land and also as a measuring stick of how to build a winning program. it did seem that more often than not, though, other fans and programs looked at BAMA with a bit more respect than they do nowadays. was it because Coach Bryant was so well-liked by just about everyone that it was hard to dislike his team? was it because what he did, he did it with class and respect for the other teams? it's quite possible.

fast-forward to today. the disdain we have from just about every other program and fan-base is palpable. and what is the reasoning behind that? years ago, the ncaa created rules to help with parity among those teams who couldn't sign a 4- or 5-star recruit if they paid them (some even tried....and succeeded, but that's a story for a different day). they put caps on the number of players you could sign in any given signing period. they tried to make it more equal so the "little guys" would have a better shot at the "big dogs". and it worked........for a while.

then came Coach Saban.

when at lsu, he was known as a good football coach. he won a national championship there. but he wasn't known as "Nick Satan" to everyone, like he is now; and has been called a few times, even by other head coaches. he wasn't reviled by other coaches, programs, and fans like he is now. so what changed?

i like to think it had something to do with the school he chose to come to on that fateful january day back in 2007 (once again, THANK YOU SO MUCH MAL MOORE AND MRS. TERRY!)

the world had seen BAMA at the top once before. they'd seen us fall to the bottom and stay there. they all laughed when it happened, saying we would never be an elite program and if we did, it would be a fluke and only last for a year or two, at most.

then came Nick Saban.

in his second year, he got one of the best (if not the best) recruiting classes in the nation. his 2007 class was decent, but most of those were hold-over from Coach Shula. even though there were some pretty good players (Rolando McClain, Marquis Maze, Josh Chapman, Darius Hanks, Kareem Jackson), that class paled in comparison to the full complement of a recruiting class from Coach Saban. and he's been able to do that year in and year out. not only that, he's been able to develop that talent. he's also been able to develop that talent into nfl-caliber talent where several of his recruits have gone on to be major players (i.e., starters) in the nfl.

and as was noted in the op, every recruiting class he's had at ALABAMA has won at least one national championship. you can't sit there and tell me that isn't impressive, because it is. and winning that many championships in that short amount of time will certainly keep your name and your program at the forefront of the news. which, in turn, will keep it front of everyone's face. and which, in turn, will make them that much more tired of seeing your name and your program talked about day in and day out.

what Coach Saban has done is nothing short of astounding, especially in today's college football world. there have been glimmers of hope and flashes of light from other programs, but nothing sustainable or substantial. too often, programs and fan bases want it now, now, now. they don't want to wait for the next big thing, they want to be the next big thing.....right now. not tomorrow, or the next day, or next week...NOW! more often than not, they are impatient and ill-tempered when they don't get what they want when they want it. the older generation is much more relaxed and patient. we know that winning takes time. building a program takes time. getting players, fans, etc. to believe in what you can do takes time. but when that times comes, look out! it will hit you like a ton of bricks and may never let you get back up. and i think that's what Coach Saban has done while at ALABAMA.

he built something so big, so momentous, so strong that it may quite a while before you stop seeing our name in your face; even after he's gone.

so to those who don't like it, all i can say is suck it up and deal with it. if you don't want us here, if you don't want us to keep winning, come do something about it. we're waiting......



RMFT!!!!!

 

[MunchyOs]

Alabama's losses since 2008:

2008-Florida- SEC Championship Game- Eventual National Champions
Utah-Sugar Bowl-Drama surrounded this game, i.e. Andre Smith. Should not have lost to Utah, but they did go undefeated that season

2010-South Carolina-USCe played unquestionably the absolute BEST game in program history that sunny October day. Stephen Garcia played lights out
LSU-had this game won. It was the hatter's 4th quarter, 4th down trickery/luck that got us
auburn-had the HUGE lead, had the foot on $cammy's throat, should have applied just a tad more pressure (if Trent does not drop that pass in the end zone, or if Mark does not fumble, then it's 31-0 and auburn is done. Again, it took lights out QB play from the opponent.

2011-LSU (regular season) An OT loss to an undefeated team where we left many points on the field. It was the last noteworthy thing the hatter would do at LSU. We would get those points back in the re-match and kill LSU's 2011 season and many seasons to come after that.

2012-Texas A&M-Again, lights out QB play from JFF

2013-auburn-stupid, stupid, stupid luck for the fighting malzahns
Oklahoma-again, lights out QB play from Trevor Knight. Not to mention, the team did not show up for that game due to what happened at the end of the 2013 regular season

2014-Ole Miss-crazy game. Kenyan Drake gets horribly injured. Even though the team looked out of sorts and played poorly, they STILL had a chance to win at the end.
Ohio State (Playoffs-Sugar Bowl)-akin to the 2010 IB. Had a significant lead and let them back in the game. Again, it took lights out play from the opposing QB.

2015-Ole Miss-Bama beats themselves that night. Turnover after turnover, PLUS, once again, lights out QB play from the opposing QB.

 

[BamaFan334]

For everyone that saw the latest ESPN playoff ranking show, that was pretty amazing stuff. The talking heads, including Herbie, were literally trying to decide which teams should be in the top 4 based on their ability to beat Bama. Not who has the most talented team and most deserving based on SOS and record, but which team would match up with one single football program the best. Going to be interesting to see how the committee treats Ohio St and Louisville if they don't make their conference championship game.

I was listening to Greg McElroy and Taylor Zarzor this morning and Taylor was discussing if Penn State won the Big Ten Championship they definitely deserve to be in the Playoff. I personally think they would get killed worse than Michigan State did last year. The point I am making falls in line with your post that they want this Playoff deal to work out and be a hit, and I do not think it will happen if they don't take into consideration the matchups as you mentioned. Yes, most teams would get it handed to them by us, but Louisville would give us a better game than Penn State, but Penn State may have a Conference Championship in their pocket, but two bad losses to go with it. Do I think they deserve it more, heck no. I think your point is a solid one in that they need a pool of qualified teams, and then pair the best games.

 

[UAgrad93]

I still don't see why the CFP committee just didn't use the BCS computer rankings to determine the spots. I listened to Bill Hancock skate around about 10 minutes of questions from Finebaum yesterday. Finebaum asks about transparency, let the public know what and how these teams are being discussed. Hancock replies anonymity!! We think they would lose their candor if it was revealed how they voted each week. To me, the BCS always seemed to get the matchups pretty good, not only the title game, but for most all of the bowls. Now we get some really shitty ones!!

 

[AFF]

Too bad for him then. Doubt he complained much when Spurrier was at the height of his SEC Championships run at Florida in the 90's.

Here's proof that even the NYT gets it right occasionally: (SIAP)
http://www.nytimes.com/2016/11/15/s...l-playoff-ap.html?smid=tw-nytsports&smtyp=cur

 

[PCRammer]

Think about this as a great stat:
Alabama has not played a regular season game without National Title implications since 2010. Meaning each and every regular season game we've played for 6 seasons; a shot at the title has been on the line. 8 of 10 Saban seasons: each a every regular season game has involved the NC.

 

[PhillyGirl]

Enjoy the hate while it lasts. Won't last forever. Then everyone will be whining about the next hot team .. CFB ADD.

 

[SnakeFan]

Back to the original question..,
Hell no just like UM & OK fans weren't bothered back in the day when their winning streak was double digits. Roll Tide!

 

[TUSKtimes]

Have you heard Alabama alumnus, ESPN Brad Edwards, this week, boldly state that the Iron Bowl has 'zero implications' this year? Zero implications? Brad must have stayed only long enough to get a degree. The new college football, nothing is relevant to the media unless it gets you to the playoff.

ESPN analyst says Iron Bowl has ‘zero implications’ thanks to playoff

 

[BamaFan334]

Have you heard Alabama alumnus, ESPN Brad Edwards, this week, boldly state that the Iron Bowl has 'zero implications' this year? Zero implications? Brad must have stayed only long enough to get a degree. The new college football, nothing is relevant to the media unless it gets you to the playoff.

ESPN analyst says Iron Bowl has ‘zero implications’ thanks to playoff

If you're talking from an Ohio State, Michigan, Clemson, or any outsider position he's correct. We can lose the Auburn and still make the Playoffs. To us, the team, and the school, it means a hell of a lot, but to other programs, they don't care about the Alabama-Auburn rivalry.

 

[UAgrad93]

Have you heard Alabama alumnus, ESPN Brad Edwards, this week, boldly state that the Iron Bowl has 'zero implications' this year? Zero implications? Brad must have stayed only long enough to get a degree. The new college football, nothing is relevant to the media unless it gets you to the playoff.

ESPN analyst says Iron Bowl has ‘zero implications’ thanks to playoff

I wouldn't disagree with his comments. Dropping the IB, but then winning in ATL would still have BAMA in the CFP. Brad did state that the game still meant a lot to the people that either live here in BAMA or root for either team.

 

[JoshB]

 

[We All Bleed Crimson]

The IRON BOWL is always relevant! It's our chance to kick fanny on the barn!
ROLL TIDE ROLL!!!! :tank: