The 2025 college football season certainly had its ups and downs for the Alabama Crimson Tide football program, which finished the season at an 11-4 mark.
By all means, it was a successful season — finishing first in the SEC regular season standings with wins over rivals Georgia, Tennessee, LSU and Auburn. The season also presented its lowest of lows, losing to a 5-7 Florida State and getting trounced late in the season by Georgia and Indiana.
Highs and lows are a watermark for every team, but some won the season overall.
Winner: Keelon Russell
Perhaps the biggest winner of any one person in the Alabama football program is true freshman quarterback Keelon Russell.
Russell, the highest-rated recruit in Crimson Tide history by 247 Sports, saw action in just two games this season. He played well in those games, completing 11 of 15 passes for 143 yards and two touchdowns.
With the offense struggling down the stretch thanks to a lack of run game and an uncomfortable Ty Simpson, fans now look to Russell as the next great Alabama signal caller.
“I think when you can build, and you continue to build on the knowledge base and understanding of the system, he’ll just keep getting better,” offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb said of Russell. “He’s a really, really calm, excellent player with great vision.”
Russell’s announcement on Tuesday that he will return to Tuscaloosa next season is the first step in Alabama’s future being a reality.
Loser: The Calendar
Less than two days after the Rebels took care of rival Mississippi State in the Egg Bowl, Ole Miss head coach Lane Kiffin agreed to become the next head coach at LSU. This led to Rebels Athletic Director Keith Carter asking Kiffin to step down in hopes the team could unite ahead of their playoff run.
Kiffin himself might be the biggest loser in the entire situation, as the Rebels are now one game away from a National Championship.
The college football calendar is a mess, and thanks to the Kiffin-Ole Miss debacle, fans are starting to take note.
“We need to change the calendar,” legendary Alabama head coach Nick Saban said. “So, chaos in college football starts tomorrow. The portal opens. There’s already been 120 starters say they’re getting in the portal from big Power Four schools.”
To fully understand the tragedy of the calendar, we should take the NFL as an example — imagine if the NFL Playoffs and free agency happened at the same time. It would be chaos.
Oregon running back Jayden Limar had the Duck’s longest play against Texas Tech in their College Football Playoff Quarterfinal. This weekend, Limar entered the transfer portal.
Winner: Lotzeir Brooks
Head coach Kalen DeBoer’s staff received backlash from some fans after signing three-star wide receiver Lotzeir Brooks in 2024, but so far, it looks like a home run.
Brooks finished 2025 with 32 catches for 441 yards, both stats ranking top five on the team. He flashed his talent in the Crimson Tide’s first-round playoff game against Oklahoma where he reeled in five passes for a team-high 79 yards and two touchdowns.
“There’s timing, because the windows are smaller. There’s focus. You can see the plays he’s made,” DeBoer said of Brooks. “He’s been more consistent than not. That’s impressive for a freshman.”
Brooks re-uped with Alabama on Tuesday, creating excitement amongst the fanbase for the return of the star freshman.
Loser: The Group of Five
Tulane and James Madison did Group of Five fans no favors.
The American and Sun Belt Champions waltzed into their first-round playoff games just to be escorted out quickly. They combined for nine first-half points in two practically no-contests.
“I mean, would we allow the winner of the Triple-A Baseball League, the International League, whatever they call it, would you let them in the World Series playoffs?” Saban said. “But I’m saying, that’s the equivalent of what we do when JMU gets into the College Football Playoff and Notre Dame doesn’t.”
Saban isn’t the only one to disapprove of the G5’s place in the playoff as fans, coaches and analysts alike don’t appreciate knowing the outcome of a College Football Playoff game before kickoff.
After their subpar performance this season and the transfer portal taking most of their top talent, it is unclear if the next playoff structure will allow such easy access for the little guys in an attempt to make a run.
Winner: The FCS National Championship
The FCS National Championship in Nashville, Tennessee, garnered much success, from the competitiveness of the game itself to its highest attendance since 1996.
The game itself was cinematic.
The Bobcats rode a 13-game win streak into the title, and it showed. The Bobcats jumped out to a 21-7 lead at halftime with quarterback Justin Lamson having just one incompletion. However, much like their playoff run as a whole, Illinois State did not quit.
The Redbirds answered, tying the game at 28 late in the fourth and even taking a 34-28 lead in overtime.
Despite their valiant effort, the Bobcats returned the favor, scoring a game-tying touchdown on fourth and 10 and kicking a game-winning extra point to take home the National Championship 35-34.
Between the competitive nature of the game, attendance and buzz on social media, the FCS was a huge winner this season.
Winner: Ty Simpson’s Draft Stock
On Wednesday morning, Alabama quarterback Ty Simpson declared for the NFL Draft.
Simpson was not on the NFL radar, so to be widely considered a first-round draft pick seems like a win. On the surface level, it is, but in the middle of the season during his hot streak, Simpson was getting potential No. 1 overall smoke.
The shakiness of his play down the stretch, in part due to a lack of run game and undisclosed injuries, made Simpson begin to fall, making him consider if he would even enter the draft.
The NFL front offices, Simpson and his father, FCS UT Martin head coach Jason Simpson, were still getting good feedback. He is widely considered QB3 in this class behind Indiana’s Fernando Mendoza and Oregon’s Dante Moore.
“Nobody said second round,” Jason Simpson told ESPN’s Pete Thamel.
Only time will tell if entering the draft is the right move for Simpson, but for this to be in question is a huge win for the four-year member of the Crimson Tide.
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