Debunking the grand conspiracy

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Ten facts that totally debunk conspiracy theories regarding Alabama and the SEC

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1] Alabama can still make the College Football Playoff with a loss on Nov. 3. LSU can’t. If anything the league would want to try and get a second team in for the bigger payout. Last year it was an extra $6 million for each team that made the semifinals.

2] Ratings. It only makes sense that the more people who think LSU has a chance to beat Alabama the higher the ratings for the game.

3] Which SEC team has benefited the most from penalties made by opponents this season? That would be LSU. In eight games the opposition has been flagged 72 times for 636 yards for an average of 79.5 yards per game. Alabama is tied seventh in the SEC along with Auburn. In a 14-team league you can’t get any more average than that.

4] Can you remember the last time an opposing player was called for holding? Alabama is leading the league in sacks yet there’s been only one holding call against the other team over the last five games. It came against Missouri.

5] Alabama’s opponents had the fewest penalty yards per game (31.7) last season. Not in the SEC, but the nation.

6] Crimson Tide opponents had the fewest penalties called against them in 2016, ranking No. 128 out of 128 teams. They were flagged just 58 times for 471 yards. If Alabama's opponents had been called for their average number of penalties, there would have been 86.8 flags thrown.

7] The chippy play of late. There was a lot during the last two games as players from Missouri and Tennessee got increasingly frustrated. Sometimes the result was a penalty, but not always. Among them was a late hit to defensive lineman Quinnen Williams against Missouri.

8] History, part I: How many of you remember the quote about how Alabama was “absolutely staring down the barrel of a gun.” Cahoots? Yeah, right.

9] History, part II: In 2010, Saban’s worst at Alabama, the Crimson Tide played six straight SEC teams coming off a bye. The league responded by passing a rule stipulating that no team had to play more than three league opponents coming off a bye during a single season, but it never should have happened.

10] The Crimson Tide is much more dangerous when not No. 1. Last year Alabama was the last team into the College Football Playoff at No. 4. During its previous three national titles it was No. 2 heading into the title game (against LSU, Notre Dame and Clemson). It came up short both times it entered the College Football Playoff as the No. 1 seed.