The SECw is opening up.

We *should be* improving but I wouldn’t say it’s opening up. Bama is still Bama

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We *should be* improving but I wouldn’t say it’s opening up. Bama is still Bama

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Not in the same way. They struggled all season. It was more of a fluke that they didn't drop more, than the other way around.

I think you'll see a weaker team next season. I don't give a shite what their recruiting stars are. They aren't going to be easy, but they aren't the team of Saban's youth either.

I need more than like 5 game sample size before declaring them on the decline, sorry. Much more likely they’re dominant again

Yeah Auburn has a tough outlook I think. Everyone else has significant reason for optimism. Auburn with Calzada/Finley next year could be rough and then you’re probably looking at a new coach

Bama is still Bama but the cracks are showing. Saban losing to Jimbo and Kirby means something. Saban going over 70 means something. I don't see a major decline but the appearance of invincibility is not what it was. They could play horribly though and still win 10 games, they just have far superior talent to all but a couple of teams on their schedule. Hell I don't see anyone but A&M even giving them a real contest with LSU and Auburn rebuilding and the Mississippi schools and Arkie just not having the talent. They get Vandy from the East to go with Tennessee. Texas is their best OOC opponent.

I do think it sets up well for A&M. We have a lot of dangerous games but we should be favor in every one except Bama. We have to play with a lot more consistency though and start to see our talent separate us to make those dangerous games into easier wins.

I didn't say they would fall off the map, I said they were rebuilding. I also have been around long enough to remember when LSU did fall off the map though and it can absolutely happen if they aren't careful. LSU has dominated Louisiana recruiting not because every kid grows up wanting to go to LSU so much as LSU has been so good the last 20 years. Kelly is also a really awkward fit and is the kind of guy who could burn a lot of bridges.

The conservative answer is LSU will rebuild and be back in the next couple of years but I think it is just as likely they stumble further and realize it is not so easy to get back up.

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Saban losing to Jimbo and Kirby means something. Saban going over 70 means something. I don't see a major decline but the appearance of invincibility is not what it was.

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It doesn't mean shite. Bama got caught having to beat the same team twice which is extremely hard to do. They had a bad first half against us and gave up a kickoff for a TD. That almost never happens. Our win was far more on the lucky side of things than it was us turning a corner or Bama falling off. Hell, Saban only has 2 undefeated seasons and one of those came in the COVID year.

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Saban losing to Jimbo and Kirby means something. Saban going over 70 means something. I don't see a major decline but the appearance of invincibility is not what it was.



It doesn't mean shite. Bama got caught having to beat the same team twice which is extremely hard to do. They had a bad first half against us and gave up a kickoff for a TD. That almost never happens. Our win was far more on the lucky side of things than it was us turning a corner or Bama falling off. Hell, Saban only has 2 undefeated seasons and one of those came in the COVID year.

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Prior to this year Saban had never lost to an assistant. If you don't think the aura of Bama and Saban matters we will just have to disagree. There is a mental side to the game.

As for our game against Bama we led most of that game, much of it by double digits. Bama also got some big breaks with the blocked punt TD and some of the penalty calls (such as the 2 Defensive Delay of Game Penalties and the inexplicable non call of not being set at all on the last Bama TD). We made the plays and beat them and we could have easily beat them by a good bit more with a few breaks.

Maybe Saban has another 5 years of being at the top, it's possible. It's just very unlikely. Paterno and Bowden started to drop off quite a bit at his age. Bear dropped off even younger. Every year the odds stack up more and more against him staying at the level he is at. You rarely see the drop off until it hits as well. The amount of energy required to maintain a program like Bama is extremely difficult for a younger man much less a 70 plus year old.

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Acknowledging Paterno and Bowden are great coaches, but they respectfully can't hold Saban's jock with what he has accomplished. It's not really close. There isn't modern a day precedent for the juggernaut Alabama has built, so you can try to predict their demise and all that but it seems like a fool's errand. I would much rather see us win a title when they're still a monster anyway

And the assistant beating him thing is fodder for shows like Finebaum. It is absolutely meaningless

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Agree strongly with this take. As I said in my earlier post, Saban is a machine and I dont think he will taper off much. One day he will get tired and throw in the towel and quit, but it wont be because he's lost his touch and Bama is all of a sudden going 8-4 a bunch of seasons.

Him finally losing to two former assistants isnt that big of a deal, has happened to a bunch of other coaches over the years, they just liked having something to talk about on broadcasts.

Finally, I'd rather beat them and win it all during their dynasty than after. Makes it even that much more of an achievement.

End of the day, SEC West is still going to be one of the hardest divisions in college football for the forseeable future, focus less on other teams and on what we can control, ourselves, and keep building our program up on a good foundation.