TUSCALOOSA, Ala.— In some ways, Alabama's current position is unfamiliar after losing to Georgia and Tennessee. No one on the roster has experienced back-to-back losses in a Crimson Tide uniform. But in some ways, it's pretty similar to what Alabama went through last season after dropping the season opener at Florida State.
Every remaining game has massive implications for No. 13 Alabama (5-2, 3-2 SEC). After losing to the Seminoles in Week 1 last year, the Crimson Tide rolled off eight straight victories, including a stretch of four in a row over ranked teams to eventually find itself back in the College Football Playoff.
"There's guys that lived this pretty much the entire year last year," Alabama head coach Kalen DeBoer said Monday. "And they understand what that urgency level is. And again, when I say those things, it makes it feel like that wasn't the case the last couple weeks or all season. These guys go as hard as any team I've ever been around every day in practice."
Alabama has five games remaining in the regular season, starting this Saturday against Texas A&M and then going into the season's lone bye week. The month of November features back-to-back road trips to LSU (5-2, 2-2 SEC) and Vanderbilt (3-4, 0-4 SEC), followed by home games against Chattanooga and Auburn (4-2, 2-2 SEC).
It's possible that there will be enough chaos around the SEC and college football that Alabama could still sneak into the CFP with a third loss, but it is unlikely, and a risk that the Crimson Tide doesn't need to take. That puts high stress on the remaining five games, but players like safety Ivan Taylor relish the pressure.
"You have to put pressure," Taylor said after Tuesday's practice. "Pressure’s a good thing. Pressure makes diamonds. With that pressure on our back, we’re going to make sure we have a point to prove.”
Alabama has shown flashes of its potential and looked like a team capable of winning a championship at times. The Crimson Tide went on the road to Starkville and dominated Mississippi State, 56-23. The team went toe to toe with Georgia in what looked and felt like a playoff matchup in Tuscaloosa. But last Saturday's performance in Knoxville left "more questions than answers" about the direction of the team, especially on offense.
Starting right guard Michael Carroll "100 percent" believes in his team and definitely thinks it's possible for Alabama to go on the type of run it did last season.
"Like you said, playoffs start now, so we’re ready for it," Carroll said.
Players come to a place like Alabama for the opportunity to compete for championships. The path to a championship is tougher after two straight losses, but not impossible.
"Everything's in front of us," DeBoer said. "And you gotta keep it really simple and you gotta hone in on what you can control. and that's about improvement today. And then it's about improvement tomorrow. Do the preparation where you have the confidence, you can go play fast and fast on Saturday. And so, all the things that you can make it really complex with, you gotta really narrow it down to the bare minimum is, focus on what you need to do today, to be the best you can be, to help us go win on Saturday."
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