Alabama's history in the College Football Playoff, other notes to keep in mind

When No. 4 Alabama and No. 1 Michigan face off in the Rose Bowl semifinal on Jan. 1, it will mark the Crimson Tide’s 14th College Football Playoff matchup. Alabama is 9-4 all-time in the CFP since its inception in 2014 and is the only team to appear in eight of the 10 playoffs.

The Crimson Tide also holds the record for the most games played and wins in the history of the four-team playoff. Alabama claimed CFP national championships in 2015, 2017 and 2020 and has reached the national title game in six of its seven previous playoff appearances.

The Tide will look to make it 15 by winning this game and advancing to face the winner of the Sugar Bowl on Jan. 8 in Houston. But before the Granddaddy of Them All kicks off (4 p.m. CT on ESPN), we look at some other points of interest from Alabama’s CFP game notes.

THE ALABAMA-MICHIGAN SERIES

Alabama and Michigan will meet for just the sixth time in the history of the two storied programs. The Crimson Tide holds a 3-2 advantage all-time with the teams tied at 2-2 in bowl pairings.

Michigan (UA leads 3-2)

Date	Result	Site	Score	Total
Jan. 2, 1988	L	Tampa	28-24	24-28
Jan. 1, 1997	W	Tampa	17-14	41-42
Jan. 1, 2000	L/OT	Miami	35-34	75-77
Sept. 1, 2012	W	Arlington	41-14	116-91
Jan. 1, 2020	W	Orlando	35-16	151-107

SABAN vs. MICHIGAN

Nick Saban owns a 4-3 career record against Michigan, including a 2-0 mark during his time in Tuscaloosa. His first five matchups with the Wolverines came during his time at Michigan State, with the Spartans going 2-3 in those contests. Since arriving at Alabama, Saban has faced Michigan twice, coming away with a pair of three-plus score victories in each matchup. 

ALABAMA IN THE ROSE BOWL

Alabama has been a part of seven total Rose Bowl matchups, holding a 5-1-1 mark in those games. The Crimson Tide has played six of those contests in Pasadena with the seventh occurring in Arlington, Texas, at AT&T Stadium on Jan. 1, 2021, as part of the College Football Playoff Semifinal. Texas played host to the Rose Bowl in 2021 due to a global pandemic. Alabama in the Rose Bowl (Alabama leads, 5-1-1) 

GOING BACK TO CALI

The Crimson Tide’s appearance in the Rose Bowl on Jan. 1, 2024, will be the program’s 12th game played in the state of California. Alabama holds an 8-2-1 (.773) record in The Golden State, including a 1-1 mark under Saban. The Tide first downed then-No. 2 Texas, 37-21, in the BCS National Championship Game on Jan. 7, 2010, before falling to then-No. 2 Clemson, 16-44, on Jan. 7, 2019, in the College Football Playoff National Championship. The matchup with the Longhorns was in Pasadena while the pairing with the Tigers occurred in Santa Clara.

ALABAMA vs. THE BIG TEN

The Crimson Tide is 28-13 (.683) all-time against the current member teams of the Big Ten Conference, including a 3-2 mark against Michigan. Alabama owns a winning record against eight of the 10 total Big Ten teams that the Tide has matched up with, with a 1-1 record against Wisconsin and an 0-1 mark against Minnesota.

The Tide’s most frequent opponent is Penn State, with UA owning a 10-5 (.667) advantage in 15 contests with the Nittany Lions. Alabama has never faced Indiana, Iowa, Northwestern or Purdue in its history. 

THE TIDE’S WINNING WAYS

Alabama enters the postseason as one of four teams in the country with at least six wins against opponents that hold a winning record and one of five programs with eight wins against bowl-eligible opponents. The Crimson Tide is also one of two teams with four wins against the final regular season Associated Press Top 25 and College Football Playoff Rankings.

ALABAMA vs. No. 1

Alabama owns the NCAA record for the most wins all-time against the Associated Press Poll’s No. 1 team since the poll was introduced in 1936. The Crimson Tide has compiled 11 wins against the AP’s top-ranked team in program history, most recently against then-No. 1 Georgia in the 2023 Southeastern Conference Championship Game.

Eight of those 11 wins have come during the Nick Saban era with the first being Alabama’s victory over defending national champion Florida in the 2009 SEC Championship Game to send the Crimson Tide to the BCS National Championship Game against Texas. Three of the next four occurred in national title games, including LSU (2011), Notre Dame (2012) and Clemson (2015). The sixth win during the Saban era came when UA defeated top-ranked Mississippi State at Bryant-Denny Stadium on Nov. 15, 2014.

SABAN LEADS IN WINS vs. TOP-FIVE TEAMS

Alabama’s 27-24 win over then-No. 1 Georgia in the 2023 SEC Championship Game on Dec. 2 was Saban’s 30th career victory against a team ranked in the top five of the Associated Press Top 25 Poll, the most in college football history. Saban’s 30-15 career record in top-five contests gives him a .667 winning percentage, which is also college football’s best.

Following Saban on the all-time victory list are Bobby Bowden (18/.378 winning percentage), Barry Switzer (15/.516), Woody Hayes (15/.516), Steve Spurrier (15/.429) and Lou Holtz (15/.419).

SINGLE-SEASON TDs FROM MILROE

Jalen Milroe has accounted for 35 total touchdowns on the season, including 23 passing and 12 rushing. He is tied for sixth on the Alabama single-season touchdown responsibility list with at least one more game left to play this season. Below is a look at the Crimson Tide’s all-time list. 

Alabama Single-Season Touchdown Responsibility

Rank	Player	Total	Year
1.	Bryce Young	50 (47 passing, 3 rushing)	2021
2.	Tua Tagovailoa	48 (43 passing, 5 rushing)	2018
3.	Mac Jones	42 (41 passing, 1 rushing)	2020
4.	Bryce Young	36 (32 passing, 4 rushing)	2022
	Jalen Hurts	36 (23 passing, 13 rushing)	2016
6.	Jalen Milroe	35 (23 passing, 12 rushing)	2023
	Tua Tagovailoa	35 (33 passing, 2 rushing)	2019
	Blake Sims	35 (28 passing, 7 rushing)	2014

OFFENSE TRENDING UP

Alabama’s offense has continued to improve as the season has gone along, playing its best football in the last six weeks. During the current stretch, the Crimson Tide has racked up 245 points to average 40.8 points per game. That six-week stretch includes top-25 wins over Tennessee, LSU and top-ranked Georgia along with road victories at Kentucky and at Auburn. The first seven games of the 2023 campaign saw the Tide average 30.1 points per game. If the 56-point performance against Middle Tennessee is removed, the offense averaged just 25.8 points per game to start the year.

SCORING AFTER HALF

Alabama’s offense has come out of the halftime break on fire this season. The Crimson Tide has totaled 120 of its 456 points (26.3 percent) in the third quarter of games, its second-highest point total in any quarter in 2023. The offensive output pairs with a Tide defense that has allowed just 51 points in the third quarter, its fewest in any quarter, and only 107 total points in the second half of games.

KEEPING THE GROUND GAME IN CHECK

The Crimson Tide defense limited then-No. 1 Georgia to only 78 yards rushing in the SEC Championship Game on Dec. 2. Alabama’s defensive unit has held 22 of its last 41 opponents (dating back to the 2021 season) to less than 100 yards rushing. UA has also limited 11 of the last 26 opponents to 80 yards or less dating back to the start of the 2022 campaign, including four times in 2023.

HARD TO FIND THE END ZONE AGAINST THE TIDE

Since the start of the 2009 season, no team has allowed fewer touchdowns than the Crimson Tide. Alabama has surrendered only 366 touchdowns over the last 207 games. That is 47 fewer than second-place Iowa (413).

Fewest TDs Allowed (since 2009)

Team	Touchdowns
1. Alabama	366
2. Iowa	413
3. Wisconsin	425
4. Penn State	436
5. Ohio State	454
6. Michigan	460
7. Georgia	469

MOVING UP THE CAREER FIELD GOALS LIST

Placekicker Will Reichard ranks second on the Alabama career list for field goals with 82. Below is a look at where Reichard ranks entering the bowl game. 

Alabama Career Field Goals List

Rank	Player	Years	Field Goals (Attempts
1.	Leigh Tiffin	2006-09	83 (111)
2.	Will Reichard	2019-Present	82 (98)
3.	Philip Doyle	1987-90	78 (105)

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