The Alabama Crimson Tide are coming off a wild, shocking loss Saturday night at Texas A&M. The Tide came in as an 18-point favorite over the Aggies, only to fall on the road in Kyle Field.
In a vacuum, that's not a huge deal. Texas A&M is really talented, even if their record doesn't reflect it. They have the second-highest paid coach in the sport. Oh, and Alabama has won *multiple* national championships after suffering a regular season loss in the Nick Saban era.
So it's not as though the Tide find themselves in an unprecedented spot. But as Aaron explained on the most recent Aaron Torres Podcast, he believes the team is in trouble.
First off, Aaron brought up something interesting that few others are discussing. This isn't a one-off deal for Alabama. The Tide easily could've, and maybe should have lost to Florida two weeks ago in the Swamp. After jumping out to a 21-3 lead after the first quarter, the Tide were outscored 26-10 over the final 45 minutes of the game.
And when you add in the fact that we really didn't learn anything from the Ole Miss game - where the Tide were gifted 21 points thanks to Lane Kiffin repeatedly going for it on fourth down - you could make a legitimate argument that the best half of football Alabama has played all year, came in the first half of the season against Miami. It's been a long time since that game against a team we now know was overrated.
So what's the issue: While Alabama fans have discussed the team's defense under Pete Golding and o-line play Saturday in College Station, Aaron brings up another issue:
Is it possible Alabama has just lost too many good players, in too short of an amount of time?
Yes, we all know Alabama doesn't "rebuild, it reloads." And that's totally fair. But at the same time, as Aaron points out, look at who they've lost just in the last two seasons:
Two first round NFL quarterbacks - Tua (2019) and Mac Jones (2020)
The top running back in college football last year - Najee Harris (2020)
Four first round wide receivers - Jerry Jeudy and Henry Ruggs (2019) and Devonta Smith and Jaylen Waddle (2020)
Two first round offensive tackles - Jedrick Wills (2019) and Alex Leatherwood (2020)
One of the best young corners in football - Patrick Surtain (2020)
The entire offensive staff last season, including offensive coordinator Steve Sarkisian (2020)
Yes, you can argue that Alabama has lost talent before. But this much, in such a short amount of time? At the same time that they lost their entire offensive staff, including one of the best play-callers in football in Steve Sarkisian?
Add in injuries on the defense (Drew Sanders, Chris Allen), the fact that there's no fourth-year quarterback to soften the blow (Jones) and all the leadership that was lost (Jones, Harris, Dylan Moses etc.) and you can see just how transition there has been in the Alabama locker room the last 18 months or so.
In the end, maybe Alabama bounces back and is able to make another title run.
But if they do, they're overcoming a LOT of attrition to get there.
You can listen to the whole segment below, or download the Aaron Torres Podcast on Apple or Spotify.
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