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What's in a ring? A look at Alabama's Championship RIngs
College Football

What’s in a ring? A look at Alabama’s previous championship rings

Dave Holcomb

By Dave Holcomb

Published:

There is no doubt that sports are fun and teach young people important lessons that can be applied later in life, but the ultimate goal in football is to capture a championship ring.

The irony of that philosophy, however, is the championship ring the Alabama players won for beating Clemson 45-40 on Monday night will rarely be worn.

Sports championship rings have grown so large in size that they barely fit on even the biggest of athlete’s fingers. Below is a picture of Alabama’s 2014 SEC Championship ring. To say it is massive is definitely an understatement.

According to a New York Times’ story, Alabama first rewarded its players with a ring for winning the national title in 1961. Since then, every single new champion wants its ring to be bigger and better than previous ones. As a result, the rings have become so bulky that they aren’t comfortable to wear.

Chris Poitras, a vice president at ring maker Jostens, told the New York Times that the trend began about a decade ago. It started with Super Bowl and World Series rings and has trickled down into college and high school.

“They were smaller in stature,” Poitras said referring to early rings, “whereas now, the school wants their brand. They want to tell the entire story of that season through logos, through scores on the side of the ring, through unique sayings.”

Here is a side-by-side picture of Alabama’s championship rings from the late 1970s and its championship ring in 1992. The newer ring is noticeably larger.

The eight rings former Tide wide receiver Kenny Bell earned from 2010-2013 don’t even fit on his fingers.

If the first photo is a picture of an SEC Championship ring from a year ago, imagine how large this season’s College Football Playoff Championship ring will be.

Interestingly, though the rings continue to grow, their value stays the same. The New York Times reported that the NCAA caps bowl rewards for players at $550, so the championship ring is worth less than that.

That hasn’t prevented Alabama players from the 2009, 2011 or 2012 championship teams from being cautious with their rings. Senior linebacker Reggie Ragland placed his 2012 ring in a safety deposit box and said his mother doesn’t let him take it out.

Greg McElroy, who quarterbacked the Tide’s 2009 championship team, doesn’t wear his ring, either.

“I’d rather have it in my dresser at home, safe and sound, or my safe, as opposed to having it on my hand,” he said.

So whether due to the ring’s value to the person or its bulkiness, championship rings aren’t shown off like they used to be. Yet the drive to win one has never been higher.

Nick Saban’s drive to win a ring for his thumb started about 30 minutes after Monday’s victory.

Dave Holcomb

Dave covers SEC football for Saturday Down South.

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