Alabama projected by ESPN to appear in Gator Bowl after loss to Florida State
By Sydney Hunte
Published:
Alabama’s Week 1 loss to Florida State put its College Football Playoff hopes in early jeopardy. On top of that, it was the first time in nearly a quarter-century that the Crimson Tide have lost a season opener.
In their post-Week 1 Playoff and bowl game projections, both ESPN’s Kyle Bonagura and Mark Schlabach slotted the Tide in the Gator Bowl. Bonagura projects SMU as Alabama‘s opponent, while Schlabach projects Georgia Tech.
Of course, that’s far from where Tide fans would like to be after the regular season. While there’s obviously precedent for 1, 2, or even 3-loss teams to get to the Playoff, starting the season 0-1 won’t do them many favors.
Neither will missing the Playoff in back-to-back seasons. The Tide have made 8 out of a possible 11 Playoff appearances, the most of any school in the country. They’ve never missed the Playoff in consecutive years.
Alabama should have a much easier time in Week 2 as it faces Louisiana-Monroe in its home opener at Bryant-Denny Stadium. After that, though, is Wisconsin, followed by a trip to Georgia. Could the Tide finish the month of September with 2 losses on its ledger to further dim their CFP chances?
Sydney is an Atlanta-based journalist who has covered everything from SEC and ACC football to MLS, the U.S. men's national soccer team and professional tennis. His work has appeared on such platforms as SB Nation, Cox Media Group and FanSided.
