National media outlets present grim outlook for Alabama Crimson Tide’s 2026 season after release of way-too-early top 25 polls
It’s safe to say that the national media isn’t high on the Crimson Tide for 2026.
It may not have felt like it at the time, but the Alabama Crimson Tide finished the year as a top-eight team in the sport following the Rose Bowl. Sure, the team was throttled by the Indiana Hoosiers, who just finished the season 16-0 and capped off the year with a memorable win in the national championship.
But heading into next year, it’s obvious that the national media isn’t viewing Alabama as a top-eight team, or even a top-10 team when looking at the average of the Crimson Tide’s rankings.
Alabama ranks 16th on average in national media’s way-too-early top 25 poll
When accounting for rankings from On3, ESPN, The Athletic, Sports Illustrated, CBS Sports, USA Today, Yahoo Sports, Fox Sports, and Fansided, the average ranking for the Crimson Tide in the way-too-early 2026 rankings is 16th.
The highest ranking the Crimson Tide received was 11th from USA Today. Not one outlet has the Crimson Tide inside the top-10, despite Alabama finishing 9th in the final AP-Poll of the 2025-2026 season.
What this tells me is that the groupthink regarding the Crimson Tide is to be bearish. Alabama has experienced a ton of turnover since the Rose Bowl, but the Crimson Tide totally rebuilt its trenches in the transfer portal. The big question is the quarterback position, but here’s the thing.
If Keelon Russell starts, it will be the first year where Kalen DeBoer has his hand-picked quarterback starting. Sure, he opted to start Ty Simpson over Russell, but DeBoer didn’t recruit Simpson. Say what you want about DeBoer, but we know he can scout and coach the quarterback position. If Russell is a hit, Alabama will finish much higher than 16th on average. For more on the rankings, here is analysis from A to Z Sports Alabama contributor Josh Taylor.
“Fans obviously won’t like seeing Alabama ranked 16th on average as we look ahead to 2026, but it’s honestly very reasonable. The Crimson Tide has a lot of new pieces, especially on offense. A new quarterback, which could very likely be Russell, an entirely new offensive line, minus Michael Carroll, and a young wide receiver room that will have to help their QB out.”
“A lot of new movement can take time to iron out all of the wrinkles, and they’ll need to lean on the run game early, which struggled all last season. The defense has some exciting new additions up front that bring size and speed, and Yhonzae Pierre is looking to have a major season to become a top draft pick. Bray Hubbard and Keon Sabb will help bring a veteran pressence on the backend while Pierre, Thompkins, Green, and others get after the quarterback up front. Being ranked 16th on average is honestly respectable when you zoom out and see the full picture of how different Alabama will look next season.” – Taylor
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