Alabama entered the SEC Championship hoping to disrupt Georgia’s postseason momentum, but instead walked away with one of its most deflating losses in recent memory.

No. 3 Georgia controlled nearly every phase of the game in a 28-7 win over No. 10 Alabama on Saturday in Mercedes-Benz Stadium, shutting out the Crimson Tide for three full quarters while overwhelming them at the line of scrimmage.

Following the loss, head coach Kalen DeBoer opened his postgame press conference by acknowledging both the magnitude of the matchup and the competitive history between the two programs.

“Congratulations to them, Coach Smart, but you got two teams out there, know each other pretty well over the last two seasons, and what the strengths are,” DeBoer said.

“Two teams that fight. Two teams that play hard. Got to this point, laid it out on the line. I'm proud of our guys. I'll never question the heart, the fight, what these guys bring. You can see at the end of the game these guys still giving everything they got, both sides of the ball, all phases. Fell short today, but proud of the season, getting to an SEC Championship, getting to this spot. A lot to build off of.”

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The defeat drops Alabama to 10-3 and puts the program’s College Football Playoff hopes in serious jeopardy, and complicates their position heading into Sunday’s CFP reveal. With heavy contenders such as Notre Dame, Miami, and BYU competing for the final at-large spots, Alabama’s blowout defeat makes their path uncertain, even after jumping ahead of Notre Dame in last week’s rankings.

In the Championship game, the Crimson Tide's offense never found rhythm, and their field general, Ty Simpson, endured one of his toughest outings of the season.

With Georgia’s defensive front collapsing the pocket throughout the night, Simpson finished 19-of-39 for 212 yards with one touchdown and one interception while taking three sacks. As a unit, Alabama’s offense looked stagnant and a step behind from the opening series.

Early mistakes also cost the Tide dearly, including a blocked punt and an interception that allowed Georgia to build an early advantage that Alabama never threatened. Still, DeBoer and Simpson expressed confidence that the Crimson Tide has done enough to earn inclusion. Whether the committee agrees will define how Alabama approaches its next chapter.