Alabama Lands at No. 11 in Preseason Coaches Poll, Lowest Preseason Ranking Since 2008

Entering their third season under head coach Kalen DeBoer, Alabama is coming off a quarterfinal finish in last year’s College Football Playoffs, where they ended the season ranked No. 9 in the final coaches poll. The Crimson Tide appear poised for another postseason run, landing inside the top 15 in On3’s recently released coaches poll top-25.

On Tuesday, On3 announced the Preseason Coaches Poll, voted on by a group of FBS head coaches and compiled by USA Today. Alabama was ranked No. 11, making them the sixth-highest SEC team, with five other conference schools in the top 10: Georgia (No. 3), Texas (No. 4), Texas A&M (No. 8), Oklahoma (No. 9), and Ole Miss (No. 10). In total, nine SEC teams appeared in On3’s top-25.

On3’s full preseason coaches poll is listed below.

This is Alabama’s lowest preseason ranking since 2008, when the Tide began the year outside the top 25. Last season, Alabama was No. 8 in the preseason coaches poll and ranked No. 5 in 2024.

The preseason AP Coaches Poll will be released on August 17. Alabama holds the second-longest streak of appearances in this poll with 295 consecutive weeks, trailing only Nebraska’s 348-week streak from 1981 to 2002.

Alabama will open fall camp this Wednesday as the team seeks to determine its starting quarterback for the September 5 season opener against East Carolina. The competition between Keelon Russell and Austin Mack remains undecided.

Micah Nichols covers Alabama baseball, football, and basketball for Tide100.9. Follow @MicahNichols0 on X for in-game updates, highlights, and more Crimson Tide content.