The Alabama Crimson Tide have not been doing well in the transfer portal, and it's clear they miss Nick Saban.
Remember when the Alabama Crimson Tide ruled the college football landscape with an iron fist? Those days seem to have come to an end.
Not only was Alabama shellacked by Indiana in the Rose Bowl, but the Crimson Tide have been getting shut down in the transfer portal.
They missed out on top running back Hollywood Smothers. Elite wide receiver Cam Coleman spurned them. They come at No. 57 in On 3's transfer portal rankings, and they are 14th in the SEC.
Yeah, Auburn is 15th, but there is only so much satisfaction Alabama can take in the misfortunes of the lowly Tigers these days.
Will Backus of CBS Sports has slapped the Crimson Tide with a harsh reality check regarding their failures in the portal, noting that the advantage they had with Nick Saban at the helm has completely evaporated in this NIL era.
Nick Saban. Credit: Gary Cosby Jr.-Imagn Images."Transfer portal players, frankly, do not care how many national titles Alabama won with Saban calling the shots," Backus wrote. "They don't care that Alabama won the SEC all but four times from 2009 to 2023. Saban isn't there anymore and, even if he was, he'd need more than just his sterling reputation to sell the Tide."
Essentially, the lure of 'Bama is no longer an actual thing. Not with so much money flying around in the transfer portal these days.
"All that matters now is the almighty dollar. There might be a handful of players that stick it out because of their love for a program -- quarterback Ty Simpson is a good example -- but a majority of stars want to be paid," Backus wrote.
Amazingly enough, Alabama has fallen behind when it comes to NIL, which is a shock considering how historic the football program is. But that doesn't matter as much anymore.
That especially rings true after a couple of rather disappointing years in Tuscaloosa. The Crimson Tide didn't even make the College Football playoff during Kalen DeBoer's first season at the helm in 2024, and some argued they shouldn't have even been in the field this year.
Will Alabama still be one of the better teams in the country going forward? Sure. That probably won't change. But the days of the Tide dominating the sport may have come to an end.