You’ve heard the ridicule. You’ve heard the criticism. Now, here’s the rat poison, and remember where you heard it first.

Alabama will not lose another game this season.

That’s right, the Tide will roll through the 2nd half of the 2023 schedule, punch their ticket to Atlanta, and likely take down the No. 1 team in the country – the 2-time defending champion Georgia Bulldogs.

No, I didn’t make a trip to the herbal store over the weekend. No, I didn’t break into the liquor cabinet, either. But I saw what I saw on Saturday. And I saw a football team, coached by the greatest of all time, that continues to improve and survive; one that knows what it takes to win football games.

I didn’t say that Alabama will blow out its remaining opponents. No, like in Saturday’s game, the Tide will do what it takes to come away with a victory. Whether it’s by 1 point or 10 points, Alabama is doing the things that winning teams do. And they get better at it with each passing week.

Jalen Milroe is developing into a quarterback a team can count on when needed. He came through on Saturday, in front of 108,101 fans — the 3rd-largest crowd in Texas A&M history. When the Alabama run game was shut down by the SEC’s top rushing defense, Milroe answered with the best passing game of his career. His 321 yards passing and 3 TDs were the difference between winning and losing. Both were career highs as were his 21 completions and 33 passing attempts.

MIlroe’s confidence is growing as is Saban’s and Alabama OC Tommy Rees’ confidence in him.

That coupled with a smothering defense is a combination that permeates through championship teams. On Saturday, the Alabama defense limited Texas A&M to just 15 rushing yards and 3 points in the 2nd half as the Tide overcame a 17-10 deficit by outscoring the Aggies 16-3 over the final 2 quarters.

They yielded just 67 rushing yards total for the game and the Aggies became the 20th opponent in the last 34 games to fail to reach the 100-yard mark, and 10th in 19 games to be held to 80 yards or less. That includes 3 games this season.

They’re taking the ball away as well. Caleb Downs’ interception on Saturday was the 5th time in 6 games that Alabama has come up with a pick. They’ve already matched last year’s interception total of 7.

And look at that schedule. Four of the final 6 games are at Bryant-Denny, beginning this weekend against Arkansas. Tennessee, LSU and UT-Chattanooga also come to Tuscaloosa. The only road games are at Kentucky and Auburn.

Arkansas plays just well enough to give opponents a good game. But even with standout QB KJ Jefferson, the Hogs just don’t have enough firepower to get over the hump. Tennessee isn’t anywhere near as explosive as last year’s team, which upset the Tide 52-49 in a wildly entertaining affair. In their only road game this season, the Vols were humiliated by Florida, 29-16, at The Swamp.

The LSU secondary can’t cover you or me, and it only takes a handful of stops to beat that team; ask Florida State, or Ole Miss. Auburn could very well be the toughest test still left on the schedule. But even the Tigers are still trying to find an identity and may not yet be ready to challenge a roster like Alabama’s by the end of this season.

Yes, despite all the talk about the demise of Saban and the Alabama program, nothing has changed. The Tide are still the best in the SEC West. With continued development of Milroe and this defense, by the end of the regular season I suspect they’ll be better equipped to win the SECCG than Georgia will be.

And when they get to the Playoff, anything can happen.