'We're Going To Beat Them Anyways': Todd Golden Calls Out Bama, Charles Bediako

Alabama men's basketball has put a target on its back. 

The Crimson Tide welcomed the return of Charles Bediako this past week after the forward was granted a temporary restraining order, allowing him to immediately rejoin Alabama, and granting him eligibility to play until his Jan. 27 hearing. Bediako declared for the NBA Draft after his sophomore season at Alabama in 2023, went undrafted and signed three two-way deals, which make him eligible for an NBA roster. While he never appeared on one, his return to college is unorthodox and was impossible before this season. And by the NCAA's current setup, is still supposed to be impossible.

So the move has been criticized by the Crimson Tide's SEC rivals and prestigious college basketball coaches throughout the nation. 

"They were able to finagle the situation, where they got a judge in Alabama, that is actually a donor at Alabama, to write a temporary restraining order to allow [Bediako] to play games at Alabama," Florida head coach Todd Golden said. "I think there are a lot of people that don't understand it, or don't necessarily agree with it, but with all this intervention from judges, there's only so much the league can do, there's only so much member schools in the league can do. We just need some people to stand up and make a stand."

"We're going to beat them anyways," Golden added.

The 16th-ranked Gators host the 17th-ranked Crimson Tide on Sunday Feb. 1. With Bediako's hearing set for Jan. 27, there's no certainty he'll still be eligible – and therefore active – for that matchup, but Golden wouldn't entertain the reality that the situation could be a distraction. 

Auburn doesn't play Alabama until Feb. 7th, but the two programs have a historic rivalry, so naturally