Tell any Alabama fan that their basketball team would have significantly more success than their Football team; they likely would be ready to jump off a bridge. Alabama entered the season ranked 20, while the football team came in at the plateau of college football, starting the season ranked number 1, with 47 out of a possible 61 first-place votes. Now Alabama has a better basketball program than many people realize. Historically, it is arguably the second most successful program in the SEC, next to Kentucky of course. With 11 regular season conference championships and 8 SEC tournament crowns, it is a respectable resumé. However, compared to the football team, who has won everything over the past 60 years, these accomplishments look menial. So, knowing this information, one would expect that the Football team would be competing for the national championship, while the basketball team would be competing for a spot in March Madness. Fast Forward to January, Alabama’s football team had a disappointing season that included 2 losses and ended the season beating Kansas State in the Sugar Bowl. Meanwhile, Alabama Basketball is aspiring to be one of the 1 seeds in the NCAA Tournament, with a record of 18-3. What has caused this monumental turnaround of Bama’s basketball fortunes?

Arguably, it starts and ends with their coach, Nate Oates. In the 2018-19 season, Oates had taken The University of Buffalo to a 32-4 record, a conference championship, and an NCAA Tournament berth. Unfortunately, they lost to eventual Final Four team Texas Tech in the round of 32. This was enough for Alabama to offer him the head coaching gig, and he accepted. The biggest factor in Alabama’s turnaround has been the revolution in recruiting that Oates has brought to Tuscaloosa. In the three recruiting cycles that he has been coaching, Alabama has pulled in the 14th, 12th, and then the 3rd best class in the nation. This year’s 3rd ranked class has proved pivotal, with 5-star Brandon Miller being Alabama’s star man as a true freshman, with classmate Noah Clowney being good, and fellow classmate Nick Pringle coming off the bench. Fortunately for Alabama, Miller and Clowney are not their only scoring options, as Jahvon Quinerly and Mark Sears have proved to be viable options as well. 

Alabama has had some monumental moments so far this year, including a thrilling 4OT win over then-ranked #1 North Carolina. 2 games later, they came back against then-ranked #1 Houston. However, on January 28, the Crimson Tide were shocked by unranked Oklahoma 93-69 in the annual SEC/Big 12 Challenge. Fortunately for the Tide, this loss doesn’t really matter, as it was a non-conference game, meaning that they still have a chokehold on the SEC. Unfortunately for them, that might start slipping up as well, for they have difficult games coming up against #15 Auburn on Feb. 11, #4 Tennessee on Feb. 14, and Auburn again on March 1. After that, Alabama has the SEC Tournament and then March Madness. Alabama aims to add a Final Four appearance to its program resumé, and I’ve started to hear whispers of optimistic Bama fans speaking of a national title. Imagine that. Alabama winning a national championship, not in football, but in Basketball. Truly strange times.