The Alabama Crimson Tide got back in the win column in a big way with a 34-0 shutout victory over the Missouri Tigers at Bryant-Denny Stadium in Week 9.
At the top of the Top 25 polls, there was no change from last week, a marked contrast in what we’ve seen for much of the first half of the season. The Oregon Ducks held on to the No. 1 spot in the polls, followed by the Georgia Bulldogs at No. 2 after their bye week.
The Penn State Nittany Lions stayed at No. 3 with the Ohio State Buckeyes at No. 4 and Miami Hurricanes at No. 5.
As they do each week, USA TODAY Sports updated its weekly College Football Playoff and bowl game projections following Saturday’s action. Analyst Erick Smith and crew still have Alabama on the outside looking in of the Playoff race and currently favor the Tennessee Volunteers to be the last of four SEC teams projected to make the playoff.
Georgia was the projected SEC champion in Smith’s updated projections, followed by Texas. the Texas A&M Aggies, and Tennessee in SEC seeding. Oregon remained the projected No. 1 overall seed by USA TODAY Sports with Georgia No. 2. Miami (No. 3) and the Iowa State Cyclones (No. 4) are favored to win the ACC and Big 12, respectively.
RELATED: SEC Power Rankings: Texas A&M on the rise after Week 9 slate
As for Kalen DeBoer and the Crimson Tide, Smith sees Alabama squaring off against the Indiana Hoosiers in this year’s Citrus Bowl on Dec. 31 in Orlando. Indiana is led by first-year coach Curt Cignetti, a former Nick Saban assistant at Alabama who was the Crimson Tide’s recruiting coordinator and wide receivers coach from 2007-10.
Alabama is 6-2 and ranked No. 14 in the US LBM Coaches Poll entering its second bye week of the season. Up next for the Crimson Tide is the annual showdown with the LSU Tigers on Nov. 9 in Baton Rouge. Kickoff for Alabama-LSU is set for 6:30 p.m. CT on ABC.
A win over the Bayou Bengals in the most hostile environment the Tide will face for the remainder of the regular season would improve Alabama’s playoff chances significantly.
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