Happy Thursday, everyone. The women’s basketball team won big over Mizzou in their first SEC tournament game, and will now face Tennessee tonight.
The No. 25 Crimson Tide (22-9) led by just four points heading into the final quarter, but three straight Ace Austin 3-pointers pushed the Crimson Tide lead to 13 on the way to a 65-48 win over the Tigers on Wednesday, March 4, in Greenville, South Carolina.
Austin led the way with 14 points, all coming in the final quarter. Diana Collins added 13 points as
Ta’Mia Scott rolled to 12 points. Karly Weathers brought down 16 rebounds with six assists.
Alabama advances to play 6-seed Tennessee on Thursday at 7:30 p.m. CT. The game will air on SEC Network. Alabama got its first SEC Tournament win since 2022.
Another win would be huge for the ladies where tournament seeding is concerned. Whoever wins will have a tall task on Friday against 4th-ranked Texas.
Matt Stahl took a look at Alabama football players with something to prove this season. OT Jackson Lloyd tops the list.
Lloyd was a highly touted prospect out of high school last season, joining up as the No. 7 offensive tackle in the class according to the 247Sports composite. He saw playing time, as well, taking the field in five games, including the College Football Playoff win against Oklahoma, and preserved his redshirt.
Lloyd was a highly touted prospect out of high school last season, joining up as the No. 7 offensive tackle in the class according to the 247Sports composite. He saw playing time, as well, taking the field in five games, including the College Football Playoff win against Oklahoma, and preserved his redshirt.
If Lloyd can step up this season, it would be huge for the Crimson Tide moving forward. That can start in spring ball, if he can work toward cementing a spot in the starting lineup and prove his development last year was successful.
Lloyd could factor in at multiple spots. One would assume that Mississippi State transfer Jayvin James was brought in to start at one tackle, given that he started in the SEC last season. Michael Carroll seems to be locked in at the other tackle, leaving Lloyd to play a “swing” tackle role or compete at guard with the litany of transfer portal additions.
One position that Alabama won’t be sweating this season is cornerback.
Zabien Brown is heading into Year 3, taking a step up as a tackler and ball hawk in 2025 with career highs in tackles (39), tackles-for-loss (2.5) and pass deflections (6). Brown allowed three touchdowns all season, per Pro Football Focus, with receivers recording catches on 54.7% of targets against the Alabama corner.
Dijon Lee Jr., who emerged as Brown’s counterpart as a five-star freshman, faces a spring as a secured starter, recording 34 tackles, 4.5 tackles-for-loss, two interceptions and five pass deflections in his first season.
Brown and Lee give Alabama one of the best cornerback rooms not only in the SEC, but in college football by themselves. But reinforcements are on their way too, adding five-star freshman Jorden Edmonds in the 2026 class.
Those two are elite, and Red Morgan came on strong last season at nickel.
Stewart Mandel sees a rough road in 2026 due to the young offense.
Realistic expectations for Alabama should include annual CFP appearances, near-annual SEC contention and regular national title contention. Basically, what Georgia has become since 2023. Kirby Smart’s program has not made the semifinals the past three seasons, but it has won back-to-back SEC crowns, earned No. 2 seeds and remains widely regarded as one of the sport’s elite programs.
There’s no reason DeBoer can’t get there, but I do fear 2026 could be another choppy ride. At a time when championship teams are getting older, Alabama will be young again this season, especially on offense. Receiver is its only position with considerable experience. Mercifully, the Tide’s early schedule is light, but come mid-October, they’ll face a run of Georgia, at Tennessee, Texas A&M and at LSU.
So there will be growing pains. But with ample retention, virtually that entire side of the ball could be back in 2027, at which point DeBoer would have a team capable of meeting those expectations.
Last, things got a little heated in the women’s Sun Belt tournament last night.
That’s about it for now. Have a great day.
Roll Tide.
