Alabama And South Carolina Lose Bowl Games – But People Thought They Should Have Been In The CFP

Today is the last day of 2024, and what a great year it’s been, especially for us at OutKick. I can’t think of many ways that this year could end on a higher note than anything that’s already happened.

And then, it happened. The SEC got a massive reality check.

Look, I respect the SEC and its excellence. As far as national champions go, there isn’t another conference that can compete with the SEC for the past 20 years. That was a good run, in large part because some guy named Nick Saban did a pretty good job at Alabama.

Head coach Kalen DeBoer (black shirt) and the Tide suffered a humiliating loss to Michigan in the ReliaQuest Bowl. Photo: Matt Pendleton-Imagn Images

But things are changing. The SEC is not as deep as it used to be, but don’t tell that to the conference’s fans or ESPN. They still firmly believe that if you are an SEC football team (even a middle of the pack one), you are miles ahead of every team in America. 

That thought process couldn’t be more evident than when Kirk Herbstreit, Paul Finebaum, and all of SEC nation had the nerve to argue that three-loss Ole Miss, Alabama, and South Carolina belonged in the CFP over Indiana and SMU. They believed that these teams would have given us more entertaining losses and that the Hoosiers and Mustangs didn’t belong because they lost badly.

You see, in hypothetical matchups, the SEC remains undefeated. But when these teams line up on the football field, fans realize that their conference is a lot of talk, but not as much walk.

Earlier today, Alabama faced off against Michigan in the ReliaQuest Bowl in Tampa Bay. Before this matchup started, the Wolverines had a slew of star players opt out of the game for the NFL Draft or the transfer portal. That list included:

• TE Colston Loveland
• DL Kenneth Grant
• DL Mason Graham
• WR Tyler Morris
• RB Donovan Edwards
• RB Kalel Mullings
• DE Josaiah Stewart
• CB Will Johnson

If you’ve followed the Wolverines this year, you’ll know that that’s pretty much all of their impact players. Yes, Alabama had some key players sit out as well, but based on Michigan’s roster, their dropouts had more of an impact to their depth than Alabama.

You’d think this situation would favor Almighty Alabama, the flagship program of the invincible SEC, that Alabama could surely handle a washed-up team in this bowl game (and get revenge for last year’s Rose Bowl loss, no less). 

Buttttt that’s not what happened.

You see, in a non-hypothetical, real-life situation, Alabama’s conference affiliation didn’t save it from defeat. Despite putting up a valiant fight in the fourth quarter, Alabama would drop the game, 19-13, losing to a team that, in total, amassed only 75 passing yards and 190 total yards.

People thought this team would put up a fight against Notre Dame or Penn State? Yeah, I don’t think so. The committee was right to let the Tide sit out this year’s playoff.

In the same way, South Carolina had to face its own dose of non-hypothetical reality when it took on the Illinois Fighting Illini in the Citrus Bowl. Remember, this is another team that everyone who supported the SEC thought deserved to fight for a title at the Hoosiers’ or Mustangs’ expense. This matchup was a little more even in terms of star players available for both sides, but even with essentially their full roster at their disposal, the Gamecocks could not outlast the Illini, losing 21-17.

Read: We’ve Got An Almost-Coach Fight Between Shane Beamer And Bret Bielema At The Citrus Bowl

What a perfect way to end 2024. Everyone who has loudly clamored for one of these two schools to be in the playoff must now look at those score lines and wrestle with the fact that when their precious SEC squads line up, their out-of-proportion opinions of these teams are proven to be just that.

The SEC is good, but its teams do not automatically deserve to be in the CFP because of their conference affiliation. These two games are proof of that.