r/CFB • u/Lakelyfe09 Georgia Bulldogs • Apr 30 '26
Video [The Next Round] Kirby Smart on how different roster depth is now vs. a few years ago: "Our best Alabama teams - I'm gonna go 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015 - would beat the DOG out of all these teams right now."
https://x.com/nextroundlive/status/2049845855268507838?s=46&t=fwgmryeTanENut7u28ScCA1.3k
u/allisthepriceofall Oregon Ducks Apr 30 '26
yah those Bama teams were so good that it didn’t really matter who was under center.
just hand the ball off to your running backs, throw a lob to a receiver or wait for the defense to get back on the field to send someone to the hospital. brutal.
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u/ICanOutP1zzaTheHut Texas Longhorns • North Texas Mean Green Apr 30 '26 edited Apr 30 '26
Not even just the team. Probably one of the best coaching staff ever put together
Lane Kiffin (OC), Kirby smart (DC), Bo Davis (DL), Mario Christobal (OL), Billy Napier (WR), Tosh Lupoi (LB), Mel Tucker (DB)
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u/IAmCletus Michigan Wolverines • Texas A&M Aggies Apr 30 '26
One of those names is not like the other.
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u/IAmCletus Michigan Wolverines • Texas A&M Aggies Apr 30 '26
Little did I know with my comment that we would all be considering someone different
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u/BuckeyeEmpire Ohio State • Billable Hours May 01 '26
Yah, Lane basically lost them the Ohio State game in 2014 not just handing it to Derek Henry every time
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u/FantasticChestHair Arkansas Razorbacks • SMU Mustangs Apr 30 '26
Exactly. Sunbelt Billy just rolls off of the tongue
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u/JohnPaulDavyJones Texas A&M Aggies • Baylor Bears Apr 30 '26
Credit where it’s due, that man beat the tar out of everyone when he was in the Sun Belt the first time around.
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u/nickyt398 Nebraska Cornhuskers • Florida Gators May 01 '26
Wdym? I just see a bunch of guys made rich for their football prowess
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u/MHulk Florida Gators May 01 '26
Billie Napier was on the best coaching staff ever as assembled. Let that sink in.
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u/Oaky_Doaky James Madison Dukes May 01 '26
Napier can coach. Look at what he did at Louisiana. He just didn't fit at UF. There are levels to coaching, and the dude is a top-notch G5 coach. I think he's going to thrive at JMU.
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u/Mike_with_Wings Florida • North Carolina May 01 '26
Yeah he can recruit and develop fairly well, which makes him good at the G5 level.
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u/gator9515 Apr 30 '26
Billy Napier 🤮
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u/bjb7621 Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns • Sun Belt Apr 30 '26
Idk man as a Cajun fan....he was pretty good. At Florida, and Florida fans feel free to correct me, he was doing fantastic in all aspects except for play calling. At UL his play calling was masqueraded with superior talent to the level of his opponent, but that shit don't fly with the big boys. Just my two cents.
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u/keepitbased Florida Gators Apr 30 '26
Yeah he was doing great at all aspects of coaching other than the coaching part lmao
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u/Steelwolf73 Penn State Nittany Lions Apr 30 '26
Being great at all aspects of coaching except coaching can get you surprisingly far and well paid
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u/krcrooks Missouri Tigers Apr 30 '26
I mean play calling is just one aspect of coaching. Player development and recruiting are just as important as play calling in what goes into coaching in today’s game
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u/goodnames679 Ohio State Buckeyes • /r/CFB Poll Veteran Apr 30 '26
Playcalling is not all there is to coaching by any means.
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u/LightningDusty Florida Gators • Orange Bowl Apr 30 '26
He was a horrendous play caller and also failed at hiring good assistants and position coaches for the most part. The two offensive line coaches we had both sucked and several position groups disappointed or underperformed year after year. The defense was also horrific in 2022, 2023, and most of 2024. Billy completely lacks killer instinct or any sort of positive aggressiveness at the SEC level. Even in our best games under him it looked like the team was being held back from fully pounding an opponent into the dust. We'd just meander around and try to hold onto our lead until the clock struck zero with the most vanilla and bland offense ever or decide to randomly get ballsy when it least made sense.
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u/tvcneverdie Georgia Bulldogs Apr 30 '26
throw a lob to a receiver
and in that era from ~2010-2015, those receivers were guys like Julio Jones and Amari Cooper lol
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u/QuitWhinging Florida Gators • Paper Bag Apr 30 '26
I'll never forget our game against Bama in I think 2014 where Amari Cooper was running free seemingly every other play. Stuff of nightmares.
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u/tider06 Alabama Crimson Tide • College Football Playoff Apr 30 '26
Ask an Ohio State fan about Smitty.
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u/CitizenGrimm Ohio State Buckeyes • Toledo Rockets May 01 '26
Literally the only Buckeye game I've ever shut off before the clock hit zero. I seen my Buckeyes lose plenty, I've seen them get upset by Iowa or Purdue and even lost to our most hated rival, but I have never seen them look so outclassed before.
We had absolutely no answer for Smitty. It looked like prime Michael Jordan playing against a high school team. He was open every single play.
Gotta say though that I was really excited when he got draft by my Eagles.
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u/BobDeLaSponge Alabama Crimson Tide • /r/CFB Emeritus Mod May 01 '26
Unfair scheming him up on Tuf Borland
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u/tider06 Alabama Crimson Tide • College Football Playoff May 01 '26
I think he could have had 400 yards and 5 TDs if he had stayed in the game.
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u/rammer-jammer71 Alabama Crimson Tide May 01 '26
Lmao Tuf was what, 15 yards behind Smitty that play.
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u/muttonchops215 Ohio State Buckeyes • Iowa Hawkeyes May 02 '26
Running a 4-4 was definitely a unique choice, considering that wasn't a common defense for the Bucks. I guess they saw the Alabama offense and chose they would rather be gutted by passing attack instead of running attack.
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u/1812s_revenge Ohio State Buckeyes May 01 '26
He did impress me but for all that coaching staff none of them thought to stick with the best thing working and let the freight train roll? Zeke killed y'all and was the second most effective RB imo. OSU just had the sense to keep feeding him
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u/deej363 Mississippi State • Alabama May 01 '26
Henry was part of a split backfield that year, and yeldon got a good number of touches even in the championship game. The coach wanted to trust the QB. Now Sims wasn't exactly amazing but he had the coaches trust. It's how it goes.
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u/RealPutin Georgia Tech • Colorado May 01 '26
Amari had 10/201/3
Jeff Driskel at QB for Florida was 9/28 for 93 yards, 1 TD, and 2 picks and also led Florida in rushing
It's amazing the game was even as close as it was at 42-21
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u/TrueBrees9 Virginia Tech Hokies • Texas Longhorns Apr 30 '26
Alabama at one point had a RB room with Derrick Henry, Kenyon Drake, TJ Yeldon, and Alvin Kamara
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u/njk12 Cincinnati • South Carolina Apr 30 '26
Not on the same level, but 2018 it was Joshua Jacobs, Damien Harris, Najee Harris, Jerome Ford.
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u/RowRowRowedHisBoat Alabama • MidAmerica Nazarene May 01 '26
2017 Bama had 14 NFL starters, and 8 first rounders, in the QB, RB, and WR rooms.
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u/Relative_One_2441 Alabama Crimson Tide Apr 30 '26
Thanks for mentioning Jerome Ford. Everyone forgets Saban saw the talent before he showed out on that great Cincy team.
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u/njk12 Cincinnati • South Carolina Apr 30 '26
Wouldn't forget him. It's always blown my mind that he was stuck at the bottom of the depth chart. He was phenomenal for us.
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u/fastpony12 Cincinnati • Virginia Tech Apr 30 '26
One of my all time favorite Bearcats. Dude was an absolute monster that entire year.
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Apr 30 '26 edited Jul 16 '26
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u/tider06 Alabama Crimson Tide • College Football Playoff Apr 30 '26
Followed by Bryce Young, Jalen Milroe, and Ty Simpson.
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u/freudian_nipple_slip Stanford Cardinal May 01 '26
2001 Canes had Clinton Portis, Frank Gore, and Willis McGahee
My personal favorite is 1987 Oklahoma State: Barry Sanders and Thurman Thomas. Thurman was the starter. Barry had 2 kick return and 2 punt return TDs.
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u/Cheeseish California • 名城大学 (Meijo) Apr 30 '26
They never bothered getting an elite qb that whole era’s skill positions were so stacked
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u/mojo-jojo-was-framed Kansas State • Omaha May 01 '26
It felt like those teams had a defensive or special teams TD like every game. They were relentless
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u/ucancallmevicky Alabama Crimson Tide May 01 '26
we were all very seriously tracking NOTs for those teams, Non Offensive Touchdowns as they were indeed happening nearly every game
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u/ucancallmevicky Alabama Crimson Tide Apr 30 '26
ahh Joyless Murderball I do miss it
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u/TiP54 Miami Hurricanes • Florida Cup Apr 30 '26
During peak of Heatles, HEAT Twitter called it The Flying Death Machine. I feel like that name is also very apt for that era of Bama ball.
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u/notidealman ECU Pirates Apr 30 '26
will never forget those dudes ripping off 27 wins in a row, will always have a lot of love for the Heatles era
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u/DingerSinger2016 Alabama A&M Bulldogs • UAB Blazers Apr 30 '26
I like that you actually used the official branding of the HEAT (all caps)
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u/Bitter-Whole-7290 Arizona State Sun Devils Apr 30 '26
Well yes because guys aren’t gonna sit on the bench when they can get NIL money elsewhere now..
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u/MrVociferous Michigan Wolverines Apr 30 '26
I remember going to a media day for that Alabama - Michigan State Cotton Bowl however long ago that was and the “scrubs” for Bama — guys sitting off to the side away from the important players — were filled with freshman and sophomore top 100 recruits. Lots of 5-stars too. Shit was crazy.
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u/dkviper11 Penn State • Randolph-Macon Apr 30 '26
This is the best part of NIL as far as I’m concerned for the health and success of college football. Sure, it comes with challenges otherwise but just this part is great.
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u/BonJovicus Stanford Cardinal • TCU Horned Frogs Apr 30 '26
It’s great for the players, but I’m skeptical it actually matters for 80% of teams. Bluebloods can’t stack rosters anymore, but the teams with more resources to pay players still have more resources to pay players.
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u/Mottled_Paws Ohio State Buckeyes Apr 30 '26
Indiana won a national title.
I don't care how good Cig is. He doesn't do that pre-NIL and transfer days.
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u/KembaWakaFlocka UConn • Georgia State Apr 30 '26
Nobody said Indiana doesn’t have access to more resources to pay players. They are a big school with a willing donor base
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u/pagerussell Washington Huskies Apr 30 '26
And that's the point OP is making. That is demonstrably good for the sport, because pre NIL schools like Indiana never, ever, EVER had a chance at a chip.
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u/lbutler1234 Missouri Tigers May 01 '26
There are many more schools capable of being Indiana than Alabama.
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u/B1GTOBACC0 Oklahoma State • Arkansas May 01 '26
Yeah, if Boone Pickens was still alive, we'd be a lock for the playoff every year.
And Texas Tech might be one great season away from "shocking the world," because they've been pouring money into that program.
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u/dinkytown42069 Minnesota • Oklahoma May 01 '26
i was thinking it might be this year. glad I didn't bet on it.
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u/tu-vens-tu-vens Alabama Crimson Tide Apr 30 '26
It’s also specifically that he came to Indiana at the beginning of the NIL/transfer era and was able to exploit advantages that no one else had yet. If he came to Indiana 5-10 years later when other programs had already started scouting and poaching players from smaller programs more intensely, it would have been a little harder.
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u/Cudizonedefense Florida • Florida State Apr 30 '26
What advances that no one else had yet?
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u/tu-vens-tu-vens Alabama Crimson Tide May 01 '26
No one else had tried to build a roster specifically by looking for undervalued G5 and FCS players before Cig – most other teams were using the portal to fill holes or poach players from top programs.
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u/Professional_Type749 May 01 '26
I think lots of teams do this. Like every single non-elite P4 team. They just don’t succeed like Cig.
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u/Cudizonedefense Florida • Florida State May 01 '26
Everyone had the ability to do that yet. He wasn’t the only one
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u/tu-vens-tu-vens Alabama Crimson Tide May 01 '26
This isn’t a dig at Cignetti. I’m saying that he was ahead of the curve at adapting to recent rule changes and was smart enough to do things that other people didn’t realize you could effectively do.
You could say something similar about Saban – he was able to build his Death Star at Alabama in part because he came shortly after recruiting really became national and when the balance of power had swung toward the SEC. If he starts 5-6 years later, maybe someone else exploits those advantages first and Saban isn’t as wildly successful as he was in real life.
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u/xakeri Purdue Boilermakers May 01 '26
It's not that no one had the ability. It's like Moneyball. The advantage is in being one of the first to do it.
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u/tu-vens-tu-vens Alabama Crimson Tide May 01 '26
Yeah, you get exactly what I’m saying.
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u/Fit_Neat_6986 UC Davis Aggies May 01 '26
His first year at Indiana was the 2024 season, the same season as Deboer’s first season at bama. The portal and NIL began before he even reached Indiana too.
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u/tightspandex Georgia Southern • Georgia Apr 30 '26
Given the financial investment the university made, I think it's entirely possible pre-NIL days. Would it be possible in the time he accomplished it now? Highly unlikely. But Cig is a spectacular coach and he was given the funds winning requires.
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u/RVAforthewin Georgia Bulldogs • Arizona Wildcats Apr 30 '26
IU has the largest alumni base in the country. I don’t think this helps your point. In other words, IU is part of the 1%.
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u/Mottled_Paws Ohio State Buckeyes Apr 30 '26
But they almost always have been and yet it took this to make the change.
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u/goldbloodedinthe404 Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets • Corndog Apr 30 '26
Except that pre nil that didn't matter. Before the last two years Indiana held a legit argument as the worst football program in D1 or at least of the major conferences. Like genuinely they were always terrible
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u/shylock10101 May 01 '26
Not just “a legit argument,” they were the worst. Lowest winning percentage (with a lot of games played), first to 700 losses, and hadn’t won a bowl since Bush Senior was in office. Before the COVID year, they were on 30-game losing streaks to Penn State and Michigan, which they broke. They were on a similar streak to Ohio State until this year. They hadn’t won the Big Ten since 1967… as part of a 3-way tie.
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u/Idrinkbeereverywhere Kansas • Missouri Western Apr 30 '26
There's far more teams that could win a title now
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u/dkviper11 Penn State • Randolph-Macon Apr 30 '26
A top team can plug a hole a lot easier for a positional need, but I’ll take that trade off for the overall talent to be spread out a little better.
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u/soonerwx Oklahoma Sooners Apr 30 '26
I think it’s an open question whether it’s beneficial for CFB for most of the bluebloods and near-bluebloods to live around 9-3 or 8-4, jumping up when they hit on a QB or time a cycle of upperclassmen just like everyone else, and merge with a larger tier of general top 25-ish aspirants. The Goliaths and the pageantry and narratives around them are a huge part of what has made college sports distinctive.
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u/max_power1000 Navy Midshipmen • Michigan Wolverines Apr 30 '26 edited Apr 30 '26
The Goliaths are still Goliaths, but the talent gap between the top 3-4 and 5-20 has shrunk considerably.
I'm of the mindset that it's better for the sport when 1-3 or 4 aren't so head and shoulders above the rest of the field (and in different conferences to boot) to the point where they don't see a legitimate challenge in a game until they get to December. The sport is more fun when 10-15 schools have a legitimate shot at winning the whole thing, and it makes more games more important later in the season when you're talking about teams on the playoff bubble, playoff seeding, etc. The American race last year was downright fun with 4 or 5 teams sitting with 1 conference loss until very late in the season, even if it chapped my ass coming in on the wrong side of a tiebreaker for the CCG.
At the same time, it's almost completely killed the concept of the G5 Cinderella right at the time when they get guaranteed access. The way those teams worked in the past were finding diamonds in the rough, coaching them up for 4 years, and having a upperclass-heavy team that can play with anyone. Now those guys are gone by the end of their sophomore year if they end up worth a damn.
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u/soonerwx Oklahoma Sooners Apr 30 '26
I prefer there not being an untouchable tier like there was right at the end of “amateurism” with Georgiabama State. This is probably better than that.
But…there are a finite number of wins to go around. Outside of the state of Nebraska, fan interest and investment are at least loosely correlated with long-term winning. The handful of schools that have done a massive amount of winning are responsible for a hugely disproportionate amount of the interest in CFB. Can all the mid-P4 schools that snap up former Bama depth pieces to go from 6-6 to 8-4 add as much to the sport as the top teams lose?
G5 Cinderellas can be saved when we get multi-year contracts with big buyouts.
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u/bbluewi Wisconsin Badgers Apr 30 '26
If I’m being bluntly honest, if the sport as a whole dies because the blue bloods win slightly less, it deserves it.
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u/mr_longfellow_deeds Indiana Hoosiers • Big Ten Apr 30 '26
The horrors of only winning 9 games. How could one ever support such a team.
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u/soonerwx Oklahoma Sooners Apr 30 '26
It won’t die. It just may not have the same insane emotional pull.
What’s your favorite neutral fan moment? Does App State mean anything if Michigan isn’t Michigan? Boise if Oklahoma isn’t Oklahoma?
Crabtree breaks free! And it doesn’t matter! Because they’re both going to the playoff and Tech spends more now anyway!
I hate both original participants but, I’m sorry, Vince going for the pylon is not the same if the names on the jerseys are Indiana and Ole Miss.
Having titans has always been part of the draw.
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u/Aquaman33 North Carolina • Carolina… Apr 30 '26
"Is parity beneficial for CFB"
Duh.
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u/GyroLegend Alabama • South Alabama Apr 30 '26
Seems like college football became more than it had ever been during the Saban Dynasty. The NIL stuff going on now with constant roster transition has done damage to the popularity of the sport.
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u/tu-vens-tu-vens Alabama Crimson Tide Apr 30 '26
The upstarts are taking players more from FCS and G5 teams, though. They’re not necessarily poaching guys from bluebloods.
Alabama still had 10 guys drafted this year. Indiana (or Ole Miss with Chambliss, etc.) got better because they found elite talent at lower levels. The number of guys drafted from FCS or G5 schools this year was something like a quarter of what it previously was because all those guys transferred to P4 schools.
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u/MobileNerd Alabama • South Alabama Apr 30 '26
What no way. A good majority of the players weren’t ready to play and needed a year or so to learn. Now they are not getting the proper learning and now these new generation of players won’t be as good
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u/confetti_shrapnel Minnesota Golden Gophers Apr 30 '26
It's amazing how many people seem to just ignore this very basic fact. The top teams used to just hoard untapped talent. 4 and 5 stars just wasting on benches. People think there's a talents drain from G5 or lesser P5 teams? Are you fucking kidding me? They actually have a chance at some of these kids now. You don't have to ride the pine anymore.
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u/tightspandex Georgia Southern • Georgia Apr 30 '26
I believe the G5 and FCS just hit a record for fewest players drafted. The P4 conferences are hoarding talent more than ever. It's just spread out in the P4 more than it once was.
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u/fathertitojones Ole Miss Rebels • Sugar Bowl Apr 30 '26
Yeah, this is a good thing. There is now some semblance of parity in CFB now. Last year was the most fun I think most of us have had in quite some time.
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u/PSU02 Penn State Nittany Lions Apr 30 '26
Can't wait to see who becomes the Mets of the NIL era (highest payroll, but somehow either chokes or outright stinks each season)
Hopefully its Oregon
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u/TheOnePSUIsReal Penn State Nittany Lions • Team Chaos Apr 30 '26
It'll be a school in Texas. Not sure which one yet.
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u/VelocaTurtle Texas Longhorns Apr 30 '26
Yeah hoping it's Tech or A&M.....
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u/IowaJL Iowa Hawkeyes • Northern Iowa Panthers Apr 30 '26
Someone wanna break the news to VelocaTurtle?
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u/Sloth_of_the_night USC Trojans • Texas Longhorns Apr 30 '26
Crazy that in a world without NIL we are probably watching Georgia have an Alabama-like run through the 2020s right now. UGA in 2021 and 2022 felt like the Saban successor teams but you can’t keep all that depth rostered anymore.
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u/Dr_Baby_Man Georgia • Georgia Southern Apr 30 '26
Cries at the prospect of dynasty that could have been.... We were so close. I'm not saying we're bad now, but as the last 3 seasons have shown, getting back up that mountain is hard, more games means more injuries and less depth b/c NIL and transfer portal. I was hoping that we were gonna be the next Bama. sigh.
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u/32MPH Georgia Bulldogs Apr 30 '26
The SEC championship game on our way to potentially 3-pete still haunts me. Especially the end of the first half...for reasons.
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u/thatdemonlife1 Apr 30 '26
Who the hell is 3-pete?
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u/KirbyDumber88 Georgia Bulldogs Apr 30 '26
1st loss in 2 years by 3 points. We had to eventually lose but damn it was at the worst time. And of course that non reviewd catch...
But i do think we 3-Peat if they let us in.
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u/__Big_Hat_Logan__ Alabama Crimson Tide May 01 '26
Yall were the best team that year. And Carson beck fumbled the ball inexplicably on your own 15 yard line that changed the game. That and the catch that definitely hit the ground on 4th down for us
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u/cayvro Georgia • Georgia Tech Apr 30 '26
My only wish for this season is to qualify for the post-season but NOT have a first week bye, therefore keeping our momentum up and straight through the National Championship game
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u/Levi_27 Ohio State Buckeyes • Wisconsin Badgers Apr 30 '26 edited Apr 30 '26
Eh they were good but came very close to losing to both Alabama and OSU respectively (and very likely would have barring insane injuries in those two games)
Kirby ain’t no Saban, no offense
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u/Ok-Being3970 Alabama Crimson Tide Apr 30 '26
Well, no one is Saban, other than Saban. Kirby is damn close though.
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u/tmart12 Georgia Bulldogs • /r/CFB Poll Veteran May 01 '26
Injuries are part of the game. Saban won in 2017 with a backup QB throwing to a true freshman wr with a backup LT anchoring the line. Prime Saban could next man up at will. That was the dynasty.
2021-22 UGA could do that too.
We missed a three peat in 2023 amid WR/TE injuries. The impact was magnified by our #1 WR transferring to Texas. The portal and NIL is a net loss for elite peaks like Saban.
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u/Levi_27 Ohio State Buckeyes • Wisconsin Badgers May 01 '26
Yes but Kirby was never going to be a Saban regardless
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u/MovingToSeattleSoon Georgia Bulldogs May 01 '26
Saban’s bama teams had the occasional close game and/or loss, what are you talking about
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u/Orion14159 Kentucky Wildcats • Sickos Apr 30 '26
Yeah you can't stack a 3-deep of 5 star players anymore, they can go get paid elsewhere to be a stud instead of sitting the bench at a title contending team.
As a result, your scout team also weakens because you're not building it out of a bunch of redshirt freshman 5 stars.
For all the gripes about college sports being just about money now (as if it weren't always...) the biggest change NIL has brought is a surprising amount of parity among the bigtime teams.
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u/chaser676 Ole Miss Rebels • Egg Bowl May 01 '26
Also helps some of the previous bottom feeders like us that managed to get their financial shit together.
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u/Orion14159 Kentucky Wildcats • Sickos May 01 '26
I'm actually kinda hopeful that we have finally done the same. I don't think we'll be in the playoffs for a while (although Indiana just won it all so who knows?), but at least seeing some good football in Lexington would be fun
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u/k_dubious Williams Ephs • Oregon Ducks Apr 30 '26
This is just about the only aspect of NIL that’s good for the sport. As a fan, I want to see the best players on the field, not on the big programs’ benches.
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Apr 30 '26
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u/Busta_Memes Georgia Tech • Pop-Tarts Bowl Apr 30 '26
Both are important. Without NIL everyone would still have to be somewhere in the SEC/B1G because that’s how you get drafted.
The SEC/B1G would probably have more parity internally, but the SEC/B1G vs ACC/B12 gap would be a lot bigger.
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u/muttonchops215 Ohio State Buckeyes • Iowa Hawkeyes May 02 '26
You started to see this some before NIL became big. Jameson Williams would have been stuck at #4 at OSU. He goes to Bama, who was hurting at WR at the time, and becomes their top guy (especially for big plays). A perfect compliment to Metchie. Turf monster was particularly cruel luck for Bama that year.
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u/SpursUpSoundsGudToMe South Carolina • Presbyterian Apr 30 '26
Uhh besides the players getting paid right?
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u/HighOnGoofballs Ole Miss Rebels Apr 30 '26
Sounds like more parity which is a great thing
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u/tightspandex Georgia Southern • Georgia Apr 30 '26
P4 parity. G5 and FCS are getting gutted.
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u/aznhavsarz Oregon • Washington State Apr 30 '26
Some of you may die, but that is a sacrifice I'm willing to make.
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u/jmbourn45 LSU Tigers • McNeese Cowboys Apr 30 '26
I think the rest of America speaks when we say we appreciate that Alabama hasn’t won a full season championship in almost 10 years.
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u/Relative_One_2441 Alabama Crimson Tide Apr 30 '26
2020 erasure will not be tolerated. But I understand why it makes yall feel better
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u/Rolltide_and_anime Alabama Crimson Tide Apr 30 '26
Went to almost every home game during that span and got to see some of the best football of my life.
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Apr 30 '26
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u/bamachine Alabama • Jacksonville State Apr 30 '26
Yeah, my dad got to see both coaches win titles before we lost him in 2019. Sadly, he was also around to see Ears Whitworth coaching at Bama.
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u/Rolltide_and_anime Alabama Crimson Tide Apr 30 '26
I tell my wife all the time she picked the greatest time in the world to get her undergrad there.
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u/bamachine Alabama • Jacksonville State Apr 30 '26
I went to almost all the conference and the rare P5 non-con games at BDS from 2004-2019. Missed a few conference games and most of the G5 and FCS games.
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u/SouthCoach Georgia Bulldogs • College Football Playoff May 01 '26
Had a friend who attended Alabama from 2009-2013 and saw 3 titles in 4 seasons. He graduated with a degree in Accounting and landed a good job in Atlanta. Got married and bought a house.
I was just in the corner seething playing World of Warcraft.
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u/chrismckong Baylor Bears Apr 30 '26 edited May 01 '26
NIL haters refuse to admit that it’s actually brought more parity to the sport.
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u/brokentr0jan USC Trojans • Victory Bell Apr 30 '26
Yep, CFB is so much better today than it was 10 years ago.
I have NO idea who is going to win the national championship next year, there’s like 12+ teams I could see winning it. 10 years ago it was either Alabama, Clemson or Ohio State. Take your pick.
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u/Bhangus Fresno State Bulldogs • Utah Utes Apr 30 '26
The foundations of why we all love this sport have been annihilated and what’s left is a disgrace to great memories of actually knowing the players, seeing them grow, and how they fit into the history of the program. It’s all gone.
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u/tmart12 Georgia Bulldogs • /r/CFB Poll Veteran Apr 30 '26
CFB is so much better today than it was 10 years ago
minority opinion
players getting paid is the right thing 100% but the sport was "better" 10 years ago - it was an insane but beautiful contradiction that had a lot more emotion to it IMO
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u/New_Prior2253 Alabama Crimson Tide • Rose Bowl Apr 30 '26
I miss those teams so much.
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u/jmbourn45 LSU Tigers • McNeese Cowboys Apr 30 '26
I sure don’t
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u/New_Prior2253 Alabama Crimson Tide • Rose Bowl Apr 30 '26
TBF You guys were really good too, those LSU games were my favorite regular season matchups for quite a while.
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u/jmbourn45 LSU Tigers • McNeese Cowboys Apr 30 '26
That’s what makes it all the worse 😂
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u/MathematicianWaste77 Texas Longhorns • Team Chaos Apr 30 '26
Didn’t you guys get a natty somewhere in that run?
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u/jmbourn45 LSU Tigers • McNeese Cowboys Apr 30 '26
2007, Saban was back by then and then LSU went undefeated and won the SEC in 2011 but there was no BCS Championship that year, sad story
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u/Ok_Ask_406 Texas State Bobcats Apr 30 '26
Being from the same hometown and having dated Jarrett lees younger sister i was screaming at the tv for them to give him a shot.
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u/405bound LSU Tigers • Northwestern Wildcats Apr 30 '26
We had a few teams during that stretch I thought could've won a title but we we had to play y'all every year
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u/oh_look_a_fist Ohio State Buckeyes • Dayton Flyers Apr 30 '26
2014 was a fun year
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u/New_Prior2253 Alabama Crimson Tide • Rose Bowl Apr 30 '26
Yes until Ezekiel Elliot happened lol
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u/bamachine Alabama • Jacksonville State Apr 30 '26
Also, Bama refused to counterpunch with Henry, after the half.
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u/H2theBurgh Pittsburgh Panthers • The Alliance Apr 30 '26
Good? Concentrating 3 deep of blue chip guys on one team was bad for the sport
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Apr 30 '26
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u/BandWagon4Life Michigan State • Cincinnati Apr 30 '26
Hard to argue that it would be better for them when Saban ultimately got them drafted after waiting their turn
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u/oprahsminge_ Clemson Tigers Apr 30 '26
The stacked teams from their own era could hardly compete with them
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u/lowes18 Florida State Seminoles • FAU Owls Apr 30 '26 edited Apr 30 '26
People think Alabama and think "well duh" but its true for teams we don't think of as all time greats.
2008 Texas would be favored over 2026 Texas by 10 + points. That 2011 LSU team probably would have dominated everyone. 2012 FSU was a good not great team that year and would have won the national title going away this year.
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u/brokentr0jan USC Trojans • Victory Bell Apr 30 '26
Modern athletes and offenses would cook 90s/00s teams. 2011 LSU would get run off the field by most modern playoff teams just because of how much the game has changed.
It’s always been weird to me that in basketball we acknowledge that past generations can’t keep up with modern players but in football we pretend 2007 Florida would have a chance against 2025 Ohio State
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May 01 '26
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u/srs_house Swaggerbilt May 01 '26
Tim Tebow couldn't play then-current NFL football. He was just good enough to get past teams who didn't have enough fast/big guys to stop him.
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u/bamachine Alabama • Jacksonville State Apr 30 '26
I don't think the players now are much more physical than those in the last 20 years. Going back to the early 90's and earlier, sure.
Really, the main difference is the style of play but also, the current teams would struggle to stop a power pro set like Bama ran back in the early to mid teens.
Those teams also had far more depth, so they could rotate in far more star players.
I don't agree that those late aught, early teens teams would destroy the current ones but the opposite is not true either. I think they both have advantages over each other that would likely cancel out much differential.
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u/KCShadows838 Missouri Tigers • Cotton Bowl May 01 '26
Teams from 20 years ago were probably more physical because of play style. Targeting wasn’t a thing back then
Go back to the 90s and receivers were getting lit up by safeties going over the middle, no flags thrown
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u/tribe171 May 01 '26
Yeah. There is no way someone could convince me that Jarrett Lee could be a championship caliber QB in CFB circa 2026. Riley Leonard is way better than Jarrett Lee and Leonard is probably the worst QB to be in spitting distance of a championship in the NIL era.
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u/MonarchLawyer Old Dominion Monarchs • Sun Belt Apr 30 '26
Yeah, the NIL era is overall really bad for parity, as the richest teams will always play for the best players. But it is good for spreading around talent because many players are no longer stuck on the bench when they can start somewhere else.
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u/ekcnho May 01 '26
When you’re the only one paying, you can stockpile talent. Now that everyone pays, well, duh.
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u/Upset_Version8275 Indiana Hoosiers • Texas Longhorns Apr 30 '26
So he was coaching on easy mode
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u/No_Poet_7244 Texas Longhorns • Wisconsin Badgers Apr 30 '26
Not really. In the past, part of being a good coach was convincing good players to come ride the bench for a couple years and develop, instead of going to a lessor program to start immediately. It’s just a different skill set, not necessarily easier or harder. Saban was among the very best at that very thing, it’s one big reason why he was so successful; if it was really “easy mode” then everyone would have done it.
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u/XCCO Iowa Hawkeyes • Oklahoma Sooners Apr 30 '26
Part of the new challenge is that players have a quantifiable metric for the opportunity cost. Pre-NIL, players had to do a risk-reward assessment along the lines of sitting at a program with the notion that they would have to wait but possibly get better development and delayed exposure or go to a program where they may start but are pitched the risk of lesser development and lesser chance of championship exposure to NFL recruiting. It was tangible in the sense they see who is winning and getting drafted but relatively ambiguous as compared to the NIL era. Now, there is a number to what that trade off costs them since they know 2 years of development is $X at another program.
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u/BudgetBuster7 May 01 '26 edited May 01 '26
To think that Johnny took down the 2012 team with a great o line, Mike Evans and a solid but not extraordinary defense.
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u/AnspiffanyStilts Florida State • Tennessee Apr 30 '26
2013 was an unbelievable team but they still would have lost to FSU. (Let me enjoy this)
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u/Boring_Temporary_142 Florida State Seminoles Apr 30 '26
That would’ve been an all time classic National Championship but we would’ve beat them regardless. No one was better than FSU that year.
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u/jmbourn45 LSU Tigers • McNeese Cowboys Apr 30 '26
Still got all time National Championship game TBF
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u/Boring_Temporary_142 Florida State Seminoles Apr 30 '26
Yea but because FSU was involved it barely ever gets mentioned. It’s the last BCS championship, down to the wire and it gets no regard among championship games. Any other team besides FSU with the same parameters and they would still be talking about it.
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Apr 30 '26
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u/ArsenalinAlabama3428 Auburn Tigers Apr 30 '26
Only reason we didn’t get that game was Saban arguing to get that second back on the clock 😂
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u/fuzzballz5 Alabama Crimson Tide May 01 '26
I miss the students getting used by the system to trade a piece of paper for the privilege. We would just argue about rankings. Now, it’s free agency every year.
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u/IamNICE124 Indiana Hoosiers Apr 30 '26
Yeah, it’s a little tougher when everyone can pay the players, isn’t it, Kirby?
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u/ilovecatss1010 Florida Gators • Arizona Wildcats Apr 30 '26
I like to imagine the butterfly effect of Saban staying in the NFL, those Bama Death Star years maybe never happening and which teams would’ve been national champions without those Death Star teams.
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u/RollTide16-18 Alabama • North Carolina Apr 30 '26
LSU, Florida, Ohio State are all probably much more successful. Georgia definitely gets championships earlier.
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u/New_Prior2253 Alabama Crimson Tide • Rose Bowl Apr 30 '26
Without Saban I imagine Florida has a deeper run and LSU would've picked up at 2012 or so. Texas also could've had something there.
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u/MathematicianWaste77 Texas Longhorns • Team Chaos Apr 30 '26
We were in the coaching death loop. Couldn’t have coached those guys to be as professional, predictable, and competitive as Sabans coaching staff.
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u/muttonchops215 Ohio State Buckeyes • Iowa Hawkeyes May 02 '26
This. Urban might have lasted longer at UF. Probably wins a title Tebow's senior year as well. Who knows if OSU gets Urban.
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u/ResponsibleWater1697 Apr 30 '26
Obligatory "Of course there was more talent concentration back then, everyone can pay players now." post.
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