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Journey to Atlanta: Alabama’s division championship road map
By Jessi Lee
Published:
The journey to Atlanta is never an easy one for SEC teams, but it gets especially complicated once a team has lost. The Crimson Tide was down, but it was never out. It just needs some things to go its way in the next six weeks. All things considered, December looks good for a team that only partially controls its own destiny.
With four SEC opponents left in the regular season, let’s take a look at Alabama’s road map to the SEC Championship Game.
MOST IMPORTANT GAME
LSU on Nov. 7 in Tuscaloosa. This matchup is always a big one for both the Tigers and the Tide, and in seven of the last 10 years it has been an indicator of which team would win the SEC West. This year is no different.
The Tide has a single loss — delivered by the Rebels — and LSU is undefeated. An LSU win would dash Alabama’s SEC Championship hopes, but an Alabama win would put the Tide in prime position to spend Dec. 5 in the Georgia Dome. Beating LSU doesn’t guarantee Alabama a spot in the championship game, but it does keep the Tide in the running.
POTENTIAL LET-DOWN
- The Iron Bowl on Nov. 28 in Auburn. When it comes to big rivalry games, it doesn’t always matter who the better team is. Nick Saban has been mostly successful in the past at teaching his players to keep the emotion off the field and out of their minds, but it will always be a battle.
- Ole Miss could still win the SEC West. Ole Miss controls its own destiny. If the Rebels win out the rest of their season, they also win the tiebreaker for having beaten the other one-loss team in the SEC West, which in this scenario would be either Alabama or LSU. Texas A&M (Oct. 24) and LSU (Nov. 21) are the teams with the best shot at taking Ole Miss out of the running.
X-FACTOR
Turnovers. The turnover margin doesn’t look as bad as it did a week ago thanks to Saturday’s stellar defensive showing against Texas A&M, but the Tide has lost possession a total of 13 times in just seven games. If they can’t get their blunders under control, it will be all but impossible to win out the rest of their season.
It’ll be hard to forget the turnover disaster against Ole Miss, but hopefully the Crimson Tide can continue to learn from its mistakes. Undoubtedly, Alabama will continue to work on keeping the ball out of the opponents’ hands, but how that practice translates into live play will be the difference in an SEC West title and a busted season.
REMAINING SCHEDULE
- Alabama vs. Tennessee on Oct. 24
- Alabama vs. No. 5 LSU on Nov. 7
- Alabama at Mississippi Sate on Nov. 14
- Alabama vs. Charleston Southern on Nov. 21
- Alabama at Auburn on Nov. 28
- SEC Championship on Dec. 5 in Atlanta
