Georgia finally put an end to Alabama’s mastery of the rivalry between Southeastern Conference powers by picking up a 28-7 win on Saturday. The No. 3 Bulldogs defeated Kalen DeBoer’s No. 9 Crimson Tide in the SEC championship for the first time after previously going 0-4 against them in the title game.
The win boosted Kirby Smart’s team’s case for a first-round bye in the College Football Playoff, while Alabama’s hopes of earning a playoff spot took a major hit with the defeat.
Former Alabama Players Push Back on the Crimson Tide’s CFP Case After Georgia Loss
Alabama seemed to be in a favorable spot after climbing one position in last week’s CFP rankings. However, the loss to Georgia brought renewed worry that the Crimson Tide could miss the playoff for the second straight year under DeBoer.
DeBoer’s squad falling to Georgia isn’t the main issue, but losing by 21 points certainly is. Even former Alabama standout Mark Ingram believes the Crimson Tide doesn’t merit a playoff berth this season.
“I got too much Bama in me, but you’re out! Now, Miami and Notre Dame should both get in, in my opinion,” Ingram said. “I think that is the decision that the committee is going to have to make, because if you have two bad losses in the championship game, you have to play one in the championship game.”
Alabama defeated Georgia 24-21 in their regular-season meeting in September, which no other team in the country managed to do. But as the season wound down, the Crimson Tide faltered.
In Saturday’s game, Georgia controlled Alabama from start to finish and completely stifled the Crimson Tide’s run game, which had only 10 rushing yards midway through the third quarter. Alabama failed to get anything going on the ground and ended with minus-3 rushing yards and 209 total yards.
Alabama will find out its playoff fate on Sunday. Meanwhile, former Crimson Tide running back Damien Harris was asked postgame whether his alma mater deserved a playoff spot, and his response aligned with Ingram’s.
“No, they are not,” Harris said. “Miami, I would have a lot of confidence that they would score more than seven points against this defense. Texas already did it. Vanderbilt, I believe they could do it. This Alabama team, specifically the offense, did not look playoff caliber.”
Before the Georgia loss, Alabama held the No. 5 spot in the PFSN College Football Playoff Ranking. The Crimson Tide are now 10-3, with their other two losses coming against Florida State and Oklahoma.
Only one three-loss team has made the CFP, and that was Dabo Swinney’s Clemson in 2024. The Tigers made it by winning the ACC championship over SMU.
