Alabama barely makes the cut in latest College Football Playoff prediction

The upcoming 2024 college football season will feature the debut of the new 12-team College Football Playoff format, which is a substantial expansion from the four-team format it had for a decade. The Alabama Crimson Tide are regular participants in the CFP, and experts don’t think the program misses the cut in its first season without Nick Saban.

Alabama football head coach Kalen DeBoer recently made the move from the Washington Huskies program to assume the same role in Tuscaloosa for the Crimson Tide. Last season, DeBoer and his Huskies team made the CFP and made an appearance in the national championship game, but fell short to the Michigan Wolverines.

Recently, Bill Bender Sporting News revealed a prediction for the full bowl season slate, including the new 12-team playoffs.

Though Alabama isn’t one of the teams to receive a BYE, which indicates that the Crimson Tide aren’t projected to win the SEC in this scenario, it does show that the team was able to put a strong enough resumé together to impress the College Football Playoff committee to make the cut.

In this projection, Alabama ranks No. 8 and will face the No. 9 Clemson Tigers. Because this is a first-round game and the Tide is the higher-ranked team between the two, this contest would be played in Bryant-Denny Stadium.

Bender’s projection has Alabama winning that matchup and places the Crimson Tide in the Peach Bowl quarterfinal against the top-ranked Georgia Bulldogs.

Unfortunately for Alabama, this is where Bender has the Tide’s season coming to an end, as the Bulldogs would advance to the semi-final Orange Bowl against the No. 5 Texas Longhorns.

According to Bender’s prediction, the national championship game would be played between Georgia and the No. 2 Ohio State Buckeyes, where the Bulldogs would be victorious in a close battle that finishes with a final score of 42-41.

It’s important to keep in mind that these are all predictions and anything can happen throughout the regular season, which can give rise to significant changes in the possible playoff picture.

Roll Tide Wire will continue to follow Alabama Football news as the 2024 college football season approaches.

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