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Alabama’s streak of 10-win seasons, longest in FBS, snapped with ReliaQuest Bowl loss
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Alabama is held to a different standard than basically every college football program out there, because that’s what the Nick Saban era did.
But on this New Year’s Eve, there was no reason to toast anything in Tuscaloosa. Instead, the Crimson Tide saw a sign of their recent dominance come to a crashing halt with Tuesday’s 19-13 loss to Michigan in a rain-soaked ReliaQuest Bowl in Tampa.
Alabama’s loss was sloppy in the bad weather, which was fitting because it meant that the Crimson Tide finished a season with fewer than 10 victories for the first time since 2007, which ironically was Saban’s first season at Alabama. Tuesday’s loss dropped Alabama to 9-4 in 2024.
The stat was both a reminder that all good things come to an end and also a tribute to what Alabama has been able to accomplish over the past decade and a half. The Crimson Tide’s 16 straight 10-win seasons was an FBS record.
Now, suddenly, the incredible streak has come to an end in Kalen DeBoer’s first season. Oregon, Ohio State and Georgia are the new active leaders in the 10-win category at 4 straight years. Not surprisingly, the Ducks, Buckeyes and Bulldogs are all alive and well in the College Football Playoff quarterfinals, with all 3 schools playing on Wednesday to get to the semifinals and with Oregon and Ohio State playing each other in the Rose Bowl.
Cory Nightingale, a former sportswriter and sports editor at the Miami Herald and Palm Beach Post, is a South Florida-based freelance writer who covers Alabama for SaturdayDownSouth.com.
