College football Top 25: Will No. 9 Alabama bounce back after missing CFP in Kalen DeBoer's first year?

Yahoo

11 hours ago

College football officially begins this month.
Now that it's August, there are less than three weeks until Kansas State and Iowa State meet in Dublin to begin the 2025 regular season. And since the season is quickly approaching, we're rolling out our preseason Top 25.
Next up in our rankings is the No. 9 team, and the rest will be revealed in the coming days. (All odds are from BetMGM.)
Previously: Nos. 11 through 25, No. 10 Miami
No. 9 Alabama
2024 record: 9-4
2025 national championship odds: 12-1
Odds to make College Football Playoff: -185
2024 in 100 words
Alabama was not a consistent football team in 2024. The Crimson Tide demolished Wisconsin on the road and then followed that up with one of the best halves of football anyone played all season in a 41-34 home win over Georgia. From there, things got odd. Alabama lost at Vanderbilt, hung on to beat South Carolina at home by two and then lost at Tennessee. The Tide smashed Missouri and LSU in Tuscaloosa to get back in the playoff mix … and then promptly lost 24-3 to Oklahoma. Oh, and then they lost the ReliaQuest Bowl to Michigan.
The quarterback
Ty Simpson
Simpson hasn't officially been declared the starter for Week 1, but all signs point to him taking the opening snap against Florida State. Coach Kalen DeBoer has repeatedly said that Simpson is the frontrunner for the job and he's the QB with the most experience on the Alabama roster.
Simpson spent the past two seasons as Jalen Milroe's backup and is working with his third offensive coordinator in three seasons. Tommy Rees was Alabama's coordinator in 2023 and Nick Sheridan called plays in 2024 during DeBoer's first season.
Now, Ryan Grubb is back on DeBoer's staff. Grubb was the coordinator for Washington as the Huskies made the College Football Playoff in 2023 with a dynamic passing offense. He became the Seattle Seahawks' offensive coordinator after that season, but spent just one year in the NFL before rejoining DeBoer.
Don't expect Simpson to put up numbers like Michael Penix Jr. did in 2023, but Alabama's passing offense could be one of the SEC's best.
Non-QB to watch
WR Ryan Williams
Williams is again going to be a big part of the Alabama passing game. In almost any other year, Williams would have been the best freshman wide receiver in college football. Alas, Jeremiah Smith exists.
Williams had 48 catches for 865 yards and eight scores in 2024. Many of those receptions were highlight-reel grabs, including his 75-yard TD catch to get Alabama the win over Georgia late in the fourth quarter.
Opposing defenses were able to slow Williams down some in the second half of the season, however. After scoring six touchdowns in Alabama's first five games, he had just two the rest of the season. And after he had three catches for 82 yards in that loss to Vanderbilt, Williams never had more than 73 yards in a single game the rest of the season. He shouldn't have that type of a slump again in 2025.
Best position group
Linebackers
Finding more pass rush is key for Alabama in 2025. The Crimson Tide had just 25 sacks last season; Alabama hadn't had fewer than 32 sacks in any of the previous six seasons. With Jihaad Campbell and Quandarrius Robinson (nine sacks combined in 2024) no longer on the roster, getting pass rushers to step up is imperative.
The good news is that Alabama has a lot of talent at both linebacker and on the defensive line. Deontae Lawson returns after he was the team's second-leading tackler along with Justin Jefferson and Qua Russaw. Russaw could make a big leap after 36 tackles, a sack and two interceptions as a true freshman in 2024.
Alabama also added Nikhai Hill-Green from Colorado in the offseason and edge rusher Kelby Collins from Florida. Hill-Green had 82 tackles for the Buffaloes in 2024.
Biggest game
Sept. 27 at Georgia
Both teams enter their late September clash off bye weeks as they'll have plenty of time to prepare for familiar opponents. Each team should also be 3-0, though Georgia visits Tennessee in Week 3. That should be a good test for the Bulldogs.
Alabama has also owned its series with Georgia recently, though much of that could be due to Nick Saban's brilliance. After Georgia won three straight games in 2002, 2003 and 2007 (Saban's first year), Alabama has won nine of the last 10 games against the Bulldogs. The only loss came in the national title game at the end of the 2021 season when Georgia beat Alabama, 33-18.
The last two games between the schools have been thrillers. Georgia nearly pulled off an epic comeback a year ago in Tuscaloosa, and Alabama beat Georgia 27-24 for the SEC title (and a spot in the College Football Playoff) in 2023.
Why Alabama is at No. 9
Alabama can't be one of the most penalized teams in college football for a second straight season, right? The Tide had 10 penalties in that win over Georgia, 15 penalties in their loss to Tennessee and just one SEC game with fewer than six penalties.
Too many of those fouls were procedural on the offensive side of the ball too. Grubb's arrival could help clean that up.
Even though Alabama added just 11 transfers — a small number for a contending power conference team — this is still a roster loaded with talent. The defense actually gave up fewer points (17.4) in 2024 than it had in any of the previous five seasons under Saban.
The schedule includes games at South Carolina, Missouri and Auburn in addition to the trip to Athens and home matchups with Tennessee, LSU and Oklahoma. It's no cakewalk. But Alabama could and should be favored in every one of its non-Georgia games. A playoff trip should be in order this season. And if it isn't, DeBoer will be feeling even more pressure entering Year 3.