Alabama fires former Wisconsin top assistant coach
Alabama Crimson Tide head coach Kalen DeBoer dismissed safeties coach Colin Hitschler on Friday, as first reported by ESPN’s Pete Thamel.
The move is a significant one after Hitschler spent just one season with the Crimson Tide. The program recently finished 2024 at 9-4 after a bowl loss to Michigan, clinching its first non-double-digit-win season since 2007 — Nick Saban’s first year in charge. DeBoer is making significant staff changes after that disappointing campaign.
This news matters to Wisconsin because Hitschler was one of Luke Fickell’s top assistants and leading recruiters before leaving the Badgers for the Crimson Tide after the 2023 season. The veteran assistant coached under Fickell at Cincinnati as a quality control coach (2018), senior defensive assistant (2019), safeties coach (2020-21) and co-defensive coordinator/safeties coach (2022). He then followed Fickell to Wisconsin, where he held the same co-defensive coordinator/safeties coach title (2023).
Hitschler was a big loss when he left for the Crimson Tide. He was the leading recruiter for Badgers’ top class of 2024 signees OT Kevin Heywood, RB Dilin Jones, DL Ernest Willor Jr. and CB Omilio Agard, in addition to coaching a strong safety group.
Sources: Alabama co-defensive coordinator and defensive backs coach Colin Hitschler has been informed he will not return to the Crimson Tide next year. He has a year remaining on his initial two-year contract.
Wisconsin hired Alex Grinch to replace Hitschler for the 2024 season. Grinch has since left to be the defensive coordinator under Scott Frost at UCF. The Badgers then promoted assistant defensive backs coach Jack Cooper to fill its safeties coach vacancy last week.
Despite the position being filled, a reunion with Hitschler shouldn’t be out of the equation. The veteran assistant has spent the majority of his career coaching under Fickell. That connection could lead to a support position with a chance to quickly reclaim a primary on-field coaching role.
Fickell is still working to install his program at Wisconsin and recreate the success he experienced at Cincinnati. Proven assistants and accomplished recruiters like Hitschler should be key pieces of that puzzle.
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Here’s what Kalen DeBoer had to say after Alabama’s 19-13 loss to the Michigan Wolverines.
The Alabama Crimson Tide ended their 2024 season in ugly fashion, falling 19-13 to the Michigan Wolverines in the ReliaQuest Bowl on Tuesday afternoon at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa.
Alabama finished 9-4, marking its first season with four losses since 2007. Michigan finished 8-5 and closed the year on a positive note with wins over both the Crimson Tide and Ohio State.
Here’s what Kalen DeBoer had to say after Alabama’s loss to the Wolverines.
Kalen DeBoer opening remarks after Alabama lost to Michigan
“Just congrats to Michigan here. Obviously, we dug ourselves in a hole in the first quarter. The turnovers gave them great field position. I thought our guys did did a good job on both of those drives holding them to field goals. They gave us a chance. I love the fight in our team at the end of the first half to gain some momentum. Just got to finish some drives there and at the end of the fourth quarter. That’s what it comes to: make a throw, make a catch.
“Guys played their hearts out, though. Never going to question the competitiveness. Some guys out there playing through a lot, even when it comes to just the physical pain that they’re trying to grind through and trying to finish this thing off right. So, I feel for those guys. I want the guys that are obviously going to be coming back here to remember this feeling and remember some of the feelings throughout the year, but we’ve got to keep building, continue to move forward.”
Kalen DeBoer explains fourth-down decision in final quarter
DeBoer opted to go for it on fourth-and-7 at the Michigan 34-yard line early in the fourth quarter with Alabama trailing 16-10 instead of trying a long field goal from Graham Nicholson that could have made it a one-score game. Here’s what DeBoer said of the decision.
“Yeah, you think about it. Felt like at the time — and obviously now we know he can kick the one at the end from that distance (51 yards) — I just felt like we were on the fringe of what the percentages were. Understanding who we are, and again, it sounds like you don’t have confidence in your kicker, which I do. But I just felt like we could convert a fourth-and-7. … And unfortunately we didn’t. Felt like the passing game, when we were executing — that’s the big part of it, right? — that we could find a way to convert and get the ball in the right guys’ hands and go make a play.”
DeBoer explains decision to stick with Jalen Milroe at QB after brutal first quarter
Milroe had three turnovers, one off an interception and two fumbles in Alabama’s first four drives against Michigan.
“Well, I think there are some elements. I know that even the pick, that’s a really nice play. You throw it maybe two inches out further and it’s a catch for us and I’m not sure if we run out of bounds there or what, but they made a nice play. You guys were there. You saw the elements on the snap. You’ve got to field it, you can’t turn it over. Fortunately for them, (Michigan) had the field position to where they didn’t have to really press until the rain moved through, but that certainly didn’t help us.
“We kind of dug ourselves a rut and had to play a kind of different style again. But hats off to our guys there at the end of the first half just understanding, ‘Hey, just get one score’ and then one score led to two. I wish we could have done something there I think in the end of the third quarter, beginning of the fourth quarter where we get maybe a field goal, get some points on the board, put the ball in the end-zone.”
Kalen DeBoer’s answer when asked if he’d considered a change at quarterback
“No, I didn’t. I just felt like there’s things that we still did. We scored a field goal with (Milroe) using his legs. We went 95-plus yards in less than a minute, and so just that factor and what we needed with him and his mobility added to the run game. I felt that was ‘the swap’ right there. The interception early, and a lot of those situations happened in downs and distances early that weren’t favorable, or backs to the wall and we had to throw the ball at the end of the first half, end of the second half. So I know that gets away from you with the completion percentage, but I thought there were still a lot of good plays that he made, too. I saw a fighter, the fight in his eyes, and as long as I see that, I want to hang in there with the guys this program means a lot to.”
DeBoer when asked about Alabama not trying to run the ball more vs. Michigan
“I think that they were one of the top five rushing defenses, and I know that there was personnel on both sides that were different maybe from what you would see in the regular season. Both us and them. But I think there was certainly part of our game plan where we felt we needed to spit the ball out and get the ball in the right guys’ hands. We were trying to do that. Whether it was slipping or incomplete passes, some of those plays didn’t get executed the way that you practice them for the last two or three weeks.
“There were some runs where Jam (Miller) at the end of the game shored up in there. At the end of the first half, I thought he did a really nice job getting us from behind our end-zone there. He ran hard and I think just having a little bit of balance was importance for us in this game just because of who (Michigan) were and a little bit of what we felt we could do to attack them.”
Kalen DeBoer when asked if he felt Alabama’s 2024 season was ‘successful’
“I mean, every time you’re in the locker room and you have something like this, it’s disappointing. But I think there’s a lot of things that you take from it. I know that the guys that hung in there that probably played their last game in the Crimson and White, they wouldn’t have had it any other way as far as to show the grit, show the determinations, show the competitiveness. They stayed the course. There’s a whole lot more that I just think goes into the last 12 months. People see what happens on a Saturday, but it’s guys choosing to stay here; guys choosing to go from one week to the next when you’re on a little bit of a roller coaster through the middle of the season.
“As long as we learn from it, then to me it can be a success moving forward. We’re going to take all these things that happened — and there are some things that happened in the game today, too — that we’ve got to learn from and make sure that those mistakes don’t hurt us a year from now. I don’t care if it’s turnovers, penalties. It’s everything. So to me, it’s a success if we move forward and we take advantage of the lessons, even though we don’t want to learn those lessons sometimes because they’re hard. We’re going to learn from those lessons and move forward and be better next year because of it.
“I told the guys that played their last game how much I appreciate them. I know the teammates shared how much they appreciate them, as well, in the locker room. I know they’re going to make us proud when they move on to the next level, and I promised to them that we’re going to continue to make them proud with the fight and the standard of competitiveness that they instilled in this program here moving forward.”
Watch the rest of DeBoer’s postgame press conference here:
Excited to see what these guys do in maize and blue. #GoBlue
TAMPA, Fla. — The transfer portal is a tricky thing: You gain some and you lose some.
For Michigan football this past offseason, it lost up-and-coming safety Keon Sabb to Alabama, a team it had just played and is about to play in the ReliaQuest Bowl.
When the most recent transfer portal period opened in December, Alabama coach Kalen DeBoer learned two players he had hoped would suit up for him in the final game of 2024 will sit out, transfer to Michigan and play for the Wolverines in 2025.
Former five-star defensive tackle Damon Payne signed with the maize and blue just over a week ago. Former five-star running back Justice Haynes hasn’t been announced as a Wolverine, meaning he hasn’t signed. As a result, Sherrone Moore wouldn’t speak on the duo leaving the Crimson Tide for the Wolverines. However, Kalen DeBoer shared what it’s like to lose both to his up-and-coming opponent.
“Toughquestion!” DeBoer said. “I’m justgoing to saythis:I thinkI’m alwaysgoing towish theguys thatare in ourprogram thebest andthose aretwo reallygood,solid youngmen andI’m alwaysgoing towish themthe best. And Ihear theword fitcoming from coachMoore’sconversation,talk hereand that’swhat youalways hopeis that thecollege experiencefor anyonethat youget tocoach,you wantit to bein yourprogram,you wantit to bein yourprogram,but ultimatelythis timecomes andgoes reallyfast andso I’malways goingto wishthe guysthe bestthat werepart ofthe yearthat wehad hereor anytime I’vecoachedthroughout mycareer.”
Both players have a strong shot to be starters for the maize and blue given the departures at both defensive tackle and running back. As for the bowl game, the Wolverines are thin at both positions, but we should see more Rayshaun Benny and Trey Pierce on defense and Jordan Marshall and Ben Hall on offense.
See who the experts think will win the ReliaQuest Bowl matchup between Alabama and Michigan.
The Alabama Crimson Tide will face the Michigan Wolverines in a matchup of two powerhouse college football programs playing in a non-powerhouse bowl game on New Year’s Eve.
Unlike a season ago when Alabama and Michigan met in “The Granddaddy of Them All” in the Rose Bowl in Pasadena with national championship implications at stake, the Crimson Tide (9-3 overall) and Wolverines (7-5) will meet in the ReliaQuest Bowl at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Fla., on New Year’s Eve.
Kalen DeBeor’s first season as Alabama’s coach included big rivalry wins over the Georgia Bulldogs, LSU Tigers and of course, the Auburn Tigers in his first dance with the Iron Bowl rivalry. Losses to Vanderbilt, Tennessee and Oklahoma cost the Crimson Tide a shot at the first 12-team College Football Playoff.
Michigan also has a first-year head coach in Sherrone Moore, who took over for Jim Harbaugh and guided the Wolverines to a winning season and a huge upset over the Ohio State Buckeyes in Columbus.
On Friday, USA TODAY Sports’ college football experts released their early predictions for every 2024-25 bowl game, including Alabama-Michigan. All six members of USA TODAY’s panel — Paul Myerberg, Dan Wolken, Eddie Timanus, Scooby Axson, Jordan Mendoza and Erick Smith — picked the Crimson Tide to win.
Similarly, ESPN college football writer/analyst Adam Rittenberg also predicted an Alabama win (subscription required).
Kickoff for Alabama vs. Michigan is set for 11 a.m. CT on Dec. 31. It will mark the seventh all-time meeting between the Crimson Tide and Wolverines. The series is split 3-3.
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Some good news from Jalen Milroe and Jihaad Campbell.
The Alabama Crimson Tide won’t be spending December where they had hoped to in the 12-team College Football Playoff.
Kalen DeBoer’s team will instead be in Tampa, Fla., for this year’s ReliaQuest Bowl (formerly the Outback Bowl) at Raymond James Stadium. Alabama will face the Michigan Wolverines on Dec. 31 at 11 a.m. CT. The game will be televised on ESPN.
On Thursday, we gained some clarity on whether Alabama’s best players (those with future NFL careers) would suit up against the Wolverines. Quarterback Jalen Milroe, for one, confirmed that he would play in the Crimson Tide’s bowl game.
“The mission right now is to complete the season,” Milroe told reporters. “We have one more mission ahead, which is attacking Michigan. And that’s the whole thought process right now, being our absolute best so we can take care of our business when it goes to playing in Tampa.
“It’s all about going 1-0… and that’s where my focus is at. Winning this game, preparing the right way, and take care of my body so we can be at our best us,” Milroe added.
Stud linebacker Jihaad Campbell was a bit more direct when asked if he would also play in the ReliaQuest Bowl.
“Hell yeah I’m playing,” Campbell told AL.com’s Nick Kelly. “I didn’t even think about that. I wanted to play with my brothers. It’s another opportunity to showcase my talents and for everybody else to showcase their talents and all the hard work they put in.”
Two years ago, Alabama’s two best players were quarterback Bryce Young and linebacker Will Anderson. Both were taken in the top five of the 2023 draft. Young was the No. 1 overall pick by the Carolina Panthers; Anderson the No. 3 pick by the Houston Texans.
Milroe was asked about his thought process and what led to him deciding to play against the Wolverines.
“One of our core values is finish,” Milroe said. “Despite anything, we entered into the season together and we’ll finish the season together, my teammates, my brothers. It’s all about unfinished business. We have one more game on our schedule. I think it was ultimately just (about) doing what was best for our team.”
The matchup between Alabama and Michigan will mark the seventh all-time meeting between the two blue blood programs. The Wolverines defeated the Crimson Tide, 27-20 in overtime in the Rose Bowl on New Year’s Day in what would turn out to be Nick Saban’s final game as Alabama’s coach.
The Tide and Wolverines also met in the 2019 Citrus Bowl, the 1999 Orange Bowl, and twice before in what’s now known as the ReliaQuest Bowl (after the 1996 and 1987 seasons).
The all-time head to head series is split 3-3.
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What seemed to draw Smith’s ire was Alabama athletic director Greg Byrne’s comments this week that the university would “need to assess” scheduling future Power Four nonconference games after the Crimson Tide (9-3 overall) missed the College Football Playoff.
Smith wasn’t buying it and reminded viewers (and Byrne) that Alabama’s three losses had all come in SEC play: to the Oklahoma Sooners, Vanderbilt Commodores and Tennessee Volunteers.
Said Smith:
“Alabama makes me sick. This AD, let tell you what the AD was doing. He was still trying to act like Nick Saban was still the coach. ‘Well, maybe we’ll blame it on our conference schedule,’ like he got screwed over or something; like something was owed to them. Nick Saban is gone and the program has taken a step back. DeBoer is not Saban. Why do I say that? You lost to Vanderbilt.”
The loss to Vanderbilt on Oct. 5 was a first for Alabama football in 40 years. The Crimson Tide fell 24-17 at Tennessee two weeks later, and their lifeless 24-3 loss to Oklahoma on Nov. 23 came at a time when the Crimson Tide was still in control of their playoff destiny.
Smith continued:
“You scored three points against Oklahoma. We forgot Oklahoma had a defense over the last decade and a half until they reminded us when they went up against Alabama and held them to three points.
“The nerve of Alabama. They have been a huge disappointment. I was very happy they were left out because the standard that Nick Saban had established over the last nearly two decades took a dive, and the fact is they needed to be held accountable for it. I don’t have a problem with them missing the playoffs at all.”
Alabama will face Michigan in the ReliaQuest Bowl (Outback Bowl) on New Year’s Eve at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa. Kickoff is set for 11 a.m. CT The game will be televised on ESPN.
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Where does Kalen DeBoer rank among first-year college football head coaches at the Power Four level?
Kalen DeBoer’s first season as Alabama football coach has been far from perfect. It’s been far from disastrous, too.
The Crimson Tide lost to Vanderbilt and Oklahoma, two 6-6 teams that were both heavy underdogs when hosting Alabama, as well as the arch rival Tennessee Volunteers in DeBoer’s first dance with the ‘Third Saturday in October’ rivalry.
But Alabama also won nine games and has a chance to finish in the top 10 of the polls and to reach 10 wins for the 17th consecutive season (a streak that began back in 2008).
On Thursday, USA TODAY Sports’ Paul Myerberg gave letter grades to every first-year college football coach at the FBS level after their respective debut seasons. DeBoer received a B.
Myerberg said:
“There were good moments, including wins against Georgia, South Carolina, LSU and Missouri. There were also some pretty sour moments, most recently in the 24-3 loss to Oklahoma that held Alabama out of the playoff. DeBoer’s first year reinforced how hard life will be for Alabama in the post-Nick Saban era.”
DeBoer’s grade was in line with that of Michigan coach Sherrone Moore. Alabama will face Michigan in the 2024 ReliaQuest Bowl (Outback Bowl) on New Year’s Eve at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa. Kickoff is at 11 a.m. The game will be televised on ESPN.
Alabama announced DeBoer as its head coach on Jan. 12, less than 48 hours after Saban’s sudden retirement from the sport. DeBoer took the Washington Huskies to the national championship game last season before falling to a 15-0 Michigan team.
DeBoer ranked just above his Washington successor, Jedd Fisch, who was given a B- grade. Indiana Hoosiers head coach Curt Cignetti topped USA TODAY Sports’ grades with an A++.
Among the three first-year SEC coaches, Texas A&M’s Mike Elko received an A- grade after guiding the Aggies to an 8-4 regular season. Mississippi State’s Jeff Lebby received the lowest grade of any FBS coach with a D after the Bulldogs finished 2-10.
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Official dates are set for Alabama’s 2025 SEC football schedule. Take a look at who the Crimson Tide play and on what date.
The Alabama Crimson Tide already knew which teams they would be facing in SEC play for the 2025 season. Now, the official dates of those conference games have been finalized.
The SEC unveiled its full 2025 conference slate for all 16 teams Wednesday night on SEC Network. For Alabama, the Crimson Tide will be making road trips to Athens to face Kirby Smart and the Georgia Bulldogs, to CoMo for a showdown with the Missouri Tigers, to Columbia, S.C., for a date with the South Carolina Gamecocks, and to Auburn for the Iron Bowl rivalry with the Auburn Tigers.
Alabama’s trip to Athens will be their first since Oct. 3, 2015 when Nick Saban’s team defeated Georgia 38-10 in the rain at Sanford Stadium. The trip to Mizzou will be the first since the 2020 season opener on Sept. 26, a 38-19 Alabama victory at Faurot Field.
Moreover, the Crimson Tide’s game at South Carolina will mark their first trip to Williams-Brice Stadium since opening SEC play in 2019 with a 47-23 win over the Gamecocks.
For Kalen DeBoer, his second year in Tuscaloosa will feature the ‘Third Saturday in October’ clash with the Tennessee Volunteers at Bryant-Denny Stadium, as well as conference home games against the LSU Tigers, Vanderbilt Commodores and Oklahoma Sooners.
Outside of conference play, Alabama opens the 2025 season in Tallahassee against the Florida State Seminoles on Aug. 30. The Crimson Tide also welcome the Wisconsin Badgers to Tuscaloosa on the back-end of their home-and-home series with Luke Fickell’s team.
Two more nonconference teams visit Bryant-Denny in 2025: the ULM Warhawks and the FCS Eastern Illinois Panthers.
Here’s the full 2025 Alabama football schedule.
Alabama football schedule 2025
Aug. 30: at Florida State
Sept. 6: vs. ULM
Sept. 13: vs. Wisconsin
Sept. 20: BYE
Sept. 27: at Georgia
Oct. 4: vs. Vanderbilt
Oct. 11: at Missouri
Oct. 18: vs. Tennessee
Oct. 25: at South Carolina
Nov. 1: BYE WEEK
Nov. 8: vs. LSU Tigers
Nov. 15: vs. Oklahoma Sooners
Nov. 22: vs. Eastern Illinois
Nov. 29: at Auburn Tigers
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The selection committee makes its final call on whether Alabama is a College Football Playoff team in 2024.
The Alabama Crimson Tide learned their 2024 College Football Playoff fate after the selection committee released its final CFP rankings Sunday.
The Crimson Tide (9-3 overall) were ranked No. 11 in the final rankings and did not qualify for the first ever 12-team College Football Playoff. The final at-large berth that Alabama had been hoping to grab went to the ACC’s SMU Mustangs (11-2).
Even with three losses, it took a perfect storm of sorts for the selection committee to keep Alabama out of the playoffs.
Despite ugly losses to the Vanderbilt Commodores (40-35) and Oklahoma Sooners (24-3), Kalen DeBoer’s team went into championship weekend Saturday needing either SMU to defeat the Clemson Tigers in the ACC Championship Game — or for Dabo Swinney’s Tigers to win big against a Mustangs team who had an inferior schedule compared to Alabama’s.
Alabama’s strength of schedule was ranked No. 16. SMU’s strength of schedule was No. 60.
Neither one happened. In what was previously described as a “doomsday scenario” for Alabama, SMU fell behind 14-0 in the first quarter against Clemson and trailed 31-14 heading into the fourth quarter at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte.
Kevin Jennings rallied the Mustangs from 17 points down, only for Clemson to win as time expired on a 56-yard game-winning field goal from kicker Nolan Hauser. Final score: Clemson 34, SMU 31.
With Alabama out of the CFP for only the third time since the playoff’s four-team inception in 2014, the Crimson Tide now await their bowl game destination, as well as which players will invariably enter the transfer portal amid roster attrition.
One bowl option for Alabama is the Citrus Bowl in Orlando. Another is the ReliaQuest Bowl (formerly the Outback Bowl) in Tampa.
The top four seeds in the final CFP rankings were the No. 1 seed Oregon Ducks, No. 2 seed Georgia Bulldogs, No. 3 seed Boise State Broncos and No. 4 seed Arizona State Sun Devils. Those four teams will receive first-round byes and play in the quarterfinal round of the playoff.
Desmond Howard took a swipe at Alabama football’s CFP resume on ‘College GameDay’ Saturday.
ESPN’s “College GameDay” featured a lively debate segment on the résumés of two CFP hopefuls entering play Saturday: the Alabama Crimson Tide and the SMU Mustangs.
Alabama (9-3 overall, 5-3 SEC), ranked No. 11 in the recent CFP rankings, would be the last team to reach the 12-team College Football Playoff field based on the selection committee’s latest bracket barring any significant movement Saturday.
Where it gets tricky is what will happen to the Crimson Tide’s CFP hopes if the ACC-leading Mustangs (11-1, No. 8 CFP) lose in an upset to Dabo Swinney’s Clemson Tigers in their conference championship matchup at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte.
An SMU loss to Clemson would boil the final playoff spot down to a debate between a three-loss Alabama team vs. a two-loss SMU team. One reached its conference title game; the other didn’t.
CFP chairman Warde Manuel briefly joined GameDay host Rece Davis and reiterated what he said Tuesday night: that teams who weren’t playing on championship weekend would not change in the ranking order regardless of Saturday’s game. For instance, the 12th-ranked Miami Hurricanes would not jump No. 11 Alabama.
But Manuel seemed to leave the door open to the possibility of SMU getting the final at-large berth over Alabama, if the Mustangs indeed lose to Clemson Saturday night in an upset.
After Manuel’s brief conversation with Davis, former Alabama coach Nick Saban weighed in with his thoughts on Alabama vs. SMU for the final playoff berth.
“I hear these guys talking over here about who they lost to, but who did you beat? Yeah, they’re looking at record, but who did you beat? SMU, how many top 25 teams did they beat? How many top 25 teams did Alabama beat? And I don’t think that we want to go down the road with this whole playoff thing where we enhance people for playing a weaker schedule to get more wins.”
Alabama beat four teams that are (or were) ranked in the Top 25: the Georgia Bulldogs, Missouri Tigers, LSU Tigers (8-4) and South Carolina Gamecocks. SMU beat two: the Louisville Cardinals and Pitt Panthers. Neither Louisville (8-4) or Pitt (7-5) are still ranked.
Moreover, Georgia (10-2, No. 5 CFP) is playing for the SEC championship and a first-round bye in today’s conference title game at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta. South Carolina (9-3) is ranked No. 14 in the CFP rankings, while Missouri (9-3) is ranked No. 19.
When pointing to the Crimson Tide’s name on a video screen, fellow GameDay analyst Desmond Howard said the biggest problem he had was the number next to Alabama’s loss total. Howard took a shot at Alabama for having three losses — mostly notably to the Vanderbilt Commodores (6-6) and Oklahoma Sooners (6-6).
Howard said:
“To me, if you handle your business, then you don’t put it in the committee’s hands. But this team lost a game where they were a three-touchdown favorite, and then lost another game where they were a 13-point favorite and only scored three points. In that situation, you need to handle your business.
“To me, you forfeit your right to bitch about what Warde and the committee said moving forward because you didn’t do what you were supposed to, especially in your conference where ‘It Means More.'”
Saban countered Howard by pointing to Alabama’s wins:
“So this team here, they beat three top 15 teams. They lost some games they shouldn’t lose, but I think the windup of all this is very simple: there is not one coach in the country that should complain about the fact that they don’t get in the playoffs because the people who aren’t going to get into the playoffs, regardless of who they are, did not take care of business against a team they should have beat.”
If SMU loses to Clemson, especially in a close game, get ready for an even more spirited debate Saturday night and Sunday morning over the Crimson Tide and Mustangs for the final at-large CFP bid.
