Where CBS Sports ranks Alabama football's strength of schedule entering 2025 season
The Crimson Tide are less than a month out from their season opener, and while Florida State is a new addition to Alabama's schedule, facing Mike Norvell's team isn't as daunting a task as Texas and Ohio State will have when they square off on Aug. 30. Even so, Alabama won't have the luxury of a glorified warm-up scrimmage akin to last year's Week 1 opponent (Western Kentucky).
In SEC play, the opponents are the same for all 16 teams as a year ago. The only difference is home vs. away. In Alabama's case, the Crimson Tide will face Georgia, Missouri, South Carolina and Auburn on the road and welcome Vanderbilt, Tennessee, LSU and Oklahoma to Tuscaloosa. Likewise, the Wisconsin Badgers visit Bryant-Denny Stadium in Week 3 after Alabama played at Camp Randall last season.
Strength of schedule is annually the top metric used when it comes to determining the College Football Playoff field. Alabama benefited significantly from that metric over Florida State in 2023 and over Ohio State in 2017 (despite howls of protest from many national sportswriters).
With Week 1 just 30 days away, CBS Sports has attempted to rank all 16 SEC schools' strength of schedule from the toughest to the least challenging. In his 2025 schedule rankings Thursday, analyst Brandon Marcello put the Crimson Tide near the middle of the pack, giving them the 10th toughest strength of schedule in the SEC.
Marcello said:
"It's difficult to get a read on Florida State, but opening the season against a team of unknown talent is going to come with a learning curve. Road trips to Georgia, Missouri and South Carolina await later in the year. The good news is LSU, Wisconsin, Tennessee and Oklahoma are coming to Tuscaloosa."
Marcello pointed to the potential slips-ups in Alabama's schedule, pointing to the month-long stretch where the Tide will face Georgia, Vanderbilt, Missouri, Tennessee and South Carolina -- five straight Saturdays without a bye.
"The schedule sets up for a bounce-back year and CFP appearance," Marcello continued, "but there are pitfalls, particularly with Vanderbilt -- which upset then-No. 1 Alabama last season -- the week after the road trip to Georgia and subsequent games against Missouri (road), Tennessee and South Carolina (road) without a bye week."
Marcello ranked Vanderbilt with the toughest schedule in the SEC, followed by Mississippi State. Conversely, he awarded Missouri with the least challenging slate, followed by Tennessee.
Alabama's season opener against FSU in Tallahassee is set for 2:30 p.m. CT on Aug. 30. The game will be televised on ABC.
Alabama football schedule 2025
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