Alabama is the undisputed powerhouse of the last decade and a half in college football. Year in and year out, Nick Saban's team is a threat to win it all. Since Saban became the head coach of the Crimson Tide in 2007, the team has won six national championships as part of a legitimate dynasty in Tuscaloosa.
However, after an unimpressive victory against USF in Week 3, Alabama fell out of the top 10 of the AP Top 25 rankings. It marked the first time since Sept. 27, 2015, that Alabama was not ranked in the top 10 in the nation. Alabama was ranked in the top 10 for 128 straight weeks, the second-longest streak ever. That 2015 Alabama football team fought back and ended up winning the National Championship Game that year, but the 2023 version of the Crimson Tide still has a lot to figure out to achieve a goal like that. You can never count out a Nick Saban team, though.
Let's look at how the 2015 team bounced back to find glory, because Alabama's 2015 title makes you wonder if the 2023 Alabama football team can do the same.
2015 Alabama roster
QB: Jake Coker
RB: Derrick Henry, Kenyan Drake, Damien Harris, Bo Scarbrough
WR: Calvin Ridley, Ardarius Stewart, Richard Mullaney
TE: O.J. Howard
OL: Cam Robinson, Ryan Kelly, Ross Pierschbacher, Dominick Jackson, Alphonse Taylor
DL: A'Shawn Robinson, Jonathan Allen, Jarran Reed, Dalvin Tomlinson, Darren Lake, Daron Payne
LB: Reuben Foster, Reggie Ragland, Dillon Lee, Denzel Devall
DB: Eddie Jackson, Marlon Humphrey, Cyrus Jones, Minkah Fitzpatrick, Geno Matias-Smith
How Alabama last fell out of the top 10
After winning back-to-back national championships in 2011 and 2012, Alabama had fallen just short in the following two seasons. In 2013, the Crimson Tide were the No. 1 team throughout most of the year, but they finished seventh after a Sugar Bowl loss. In 2014, Alabama was ranked No. 1 going into the inaugural College Football Playoff, but they lost in the semifinal to Ohio State.
Come the 2015 season, the team was ready to prove to everyone that they were the best team in the nation and had overcome the bumps in the road over the past two seasons. However, things didn't get off to a great start for Nick Saban's team. After good but not great wins against Wisconsin and Middle Tennessee State, Alabama took on Ole Miss in Week 3. Alabama was ranked No. 2, while Ole Miss — led by Hugh Freeze — was the 15th-ranked team in the nation.
Heading into the season, Alabama's defense was supposed to carry the load for the team. The unit had 22 future NFL players on it, but things didn't start out smoothly on that side of the ball. While the offense scored 109 points in the first three weeks, Bama's defense struggled, and they allowed 43 points to Ole Miss in Tuscaloosa. The Crimson Tide couldn't stop Chad Kelly, as the Ole Miss quarterback put up 341 yards and three touchdowns in the 43-37 Rebels Victory.
Alabama's 2015 season
Alabama teams are never supposed to be embarrassed on their home field, and because of that, Alabama dropped 10 spots to 12 in the AP Poll. Nick Saban is one of the best coaches ever, though, and he quickly righted the ship.
The Ole Miss loss sparked the team, and Alabama wouldn't lose again. They were back in the top 10 by early October, and the Crimson Tide went on to win 12 straight. This included four regular-season wins against ranked opponents, as well as winning the SEC title. That was followed by a 38-0 blowout in the College Football Playoffs Semifinals over Michigan. Alabama then won a shootout in the College Football Playoff National Championship, winning 45-40 over Clemson.
How Alabama bounced back
Alabama's 2015 loss ended up being more a fluke than a sign of things to come, and their falling out of the top 10 may have been overkill, as a 10-spot drop-off for a loss against a ranked team seemed like a steep price.
After falling to Ole Miss, the Alabama team came out hungry. They didn't allow any negative momentum to get going as they secured a +75-point differential over their next three games.
The highly acclaimed Alabama defense ended up living up to expectations. With one of the best front sevens in the sport and a secondary full of NFL talent, Alabama suffocated opposing offenses for the rest of the season. Following their loss to Ole Miss, Alabama shut out Louisiana-Monroe in their next game. They then allowed only 10 points to eighth-ranked Georgia. They would only allow one more team to score at least 20 points in the regular season.
The talent and production didn't just come from the defensive side, however. Alabama's running game started to click as well, and by season's end, they had the deepest running back depth chart in college football. Five of their running backs made it to the NFL, but it was Derrick Henry who was the team's bell-cow back. Henry was unstoppable in 2015 and ended up winning the Heisman Trophy.
2023 Alabama roster
QB: Jalen Milroe, Ty Simpson, Tyler Buchner
RB: Jase McClellan, Roydell Williams
WR: Isaiah Bond, Jermaine Burton, Malik Benson
TE: Cj Dippre
OL: Kadyn Proctor, Tyler Booker, Seth McLaughlin, Darrian Dalcourt, JC Latham
DL: Justin Eboigbe, Tim Keenan III, Jaheim Oatis, Tim Smith
LB: Chris Braswell, Deontae Lawson, Dallas Turner, Trezmen Marshall
DB: Kool-Aid McKinstry, Malachi Moore, Jaylen Key, Caleb Downs, Terrion Arnold
2015 vs. 2023 Alabama differences
Overcoming a slow start is going to be a lot harder to do in 2023 than it was in 2015. For starters, the current Alabama team doesn't have nearly as much top-end talent or elite-level offensive playmakers.
In 2015, Derrick Henry ran for 2,219 yards and 28 touchdowns. Henry was too big and strong for college players to take down, and he ran for the sixth-most yards in a single season in college football history. Defenses had to focus on Henry, and they still couldn't stop him. This opened up things for Calvin Ridley. While it was only Ridley's freshman season, he ended up having his best year. The eventual first-round draft choice had 89 receptions for 1,045 yards. Henry and Ridley supplied Alabama with a one-two punch that the current edition of the team simply doesn't have.
Jase McClellan and Roydell Williams do supply Alabama with a solid by-committee approach to the running game, but neither are near the level of Henry (or even some of his 2015 backups). McClellan and Williams are most likely to be Day 3 picks in the NFL Draft. Isaiah Bond has been the team's top receiving threat so far in 2023, but he is not up to par with Ridley's abilities as a pass catcher or route runner.
2015 vs. 2023 Alabama similarities
However, there are plenty of notes the 2023 team can take from the 2015 squad. Both teams have/had quarterback questions. Jake Coker was not an elite quarterback in 2015, yet the team still found a way to win football games. He ranked 30th in passing yards and 36th in passing touchdowns, and he didn't add much on the ground either. While Coker wasn't capable of taking over a football game, he was a smart enough quarterback that he wouldn't lose games for his team. His 66.9 completion percentage was 11th in the nation, and Coker only threw eight interceptions. He let his defense and running game do most of the work for him, and it was enough for Alabama to overcome his limitations.
The 2023 Crimson Tide football team has a similarly stacked defense. Kool-Aid McKinstry, Dallas Turner, Malachi Moore, and Terrion Arnold are all expected to be selected within the first three rounds of the 2024 NFL Draft. The team's secondary is stacked, and they are going to allow their offense extra opportunities; the offense just has to take advantage.
Alabama's current quarterback situation is somewhat of a mess, but there is potential for it to be even better than it was in 2015. Jalen Milroe has struggled with decision-making and turnovers in the early part of the season, and that led to his benching. Those are exactly the kind of struggles Milroe needs to avoid on a team like Alabama, and if he can do that, he should be able to hold the starting position that he regained ahead of Alabama's Week 4 matchup. Milroe has an incredibly high ceiling and definitely a higher ceiling than Coker had as an individual player. Milroe is a gifted runner and has impressive arm talent. If he cuts down on the turnovers, he can provide more to his team than Coker did for the 2015 Crimson Tide.
Will Alabama regain a spot in the top 10 in 2023?
When Alabama fell out of the top 10 in 2015, it was at the hands of an Ole Miss loss. Now, after falling out of the top 10 for the first time since, Alabama looks to regain a position amongst the game's elites in their Week 4 matchup. Ironically, they take on none other than the Ole Miss Rebels in that game.
The 2015 version of Alabama had a lot more depth than this year's team, but it is not like the current version of the Crimson Tide is full of slouches, either. According to 247 Sports, Alabama has the most five-star athletes in the nation, and they have the highest composite ranking for the talent on their roster.
There is still plenty enough talent for Alabama to not only climb back into the top 10, but to potentially still make the College Football Playoff. The team has a long way to go and a lot to figure out to make that happen, but the 2015 team already supplied the formula. Plus, you really can't ever count out a Nick Saban-led football team.
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