College football betting: Ascending Alabama looks like class of SEC - ESPN

I was wrong about the Alabama Crimson Tide.

I expected all the problems we saw early — protection issues, lack of run identity, inconsistency on the road — to be major roadblocks. I thought those flaws would linger and cost them in the SEC grind, which is why I pegged them to miss the playoff.

But they have done what elite programs do: adapt, evolve and rise. And now, the Crimson Tide are the rightful favorites to win the conference.

That opening loss to Florida State felt like confirmation of every preseason doubt. Seventeen points, eight penalties, no rhythm. But since then, Alabama has rebuilt itself piece by piece into something sharper and steadier. Quarterback Ty Simpson has gone from cautious to commanding, averaging 8.5 yards per attempt over his past four games against solid competition. The offense is balanced, explosive and efficient and has found its rhythm, buoyed by a run game that has caught up enough to sustain drives.

Defensively, the Tide have cleaned up everything that went wrong early. The front seven is not vintage Alabama, but the coverage unit has locked in, keeping opponents under 7 yards per pass since Week 1. They are winning third downs, forcing turnovers and staying composed in pressure spots.

The biggest shift, however, is in discipline. Penalties dropped, turnovers disappeared, and time of possession flipped from barely 29 minutes in the opener to nearly 36 through October. That is the sign of a mature football team.

This is not the same Alabama I was betting against in August. This is a team that rediscovered its core identity: efficient, composed, opportunistic. What started as a stumble has turned into a climb. At 6-1, Alabama is firmly part of the playoff conversation.

Which brings us to