Alabama Football

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Alabama Football has a rich history that dates back almost 70 years. They have been dominant program in college football during that time frame. They have won the most championships of any NCAA football team in the history of the game with twelve. Football is a religion in Alabama and the "Roll Tide" is at the center of attention on any given Saturday.

Alabama came into national prominence when the program was taken over by head coach Wallace Wade. Wade was a Brown alum who took over a program that had struggled in recent years. However, with Wade's coaching prowess and the help of his athletic director, the school was bringing in athletes from all over the country and not just Alabama. This is a trend that became very popular with schools across the country and a trend that continues today. Wade led the school to two national championships during his eight years as head coach at Alabama, however it was the first championship in 1926 that put the team on the map and they have remained ever since. After Wade left, it was almost a revolving door of coaches; however, they managed to win four more national championships with Athletic Director George Denny, for whom the Alabama stadium is named after, at the helm over the football program.

Alabama struggled in the early fifties and were starting to lose credibility as a college football powerhouse, however that all changed in 1958. In 1958, Paul "Bear" Bryant took over this struggling program and turned them into arguably the most successful football program in the history of NCAA football. Bryant would coach the team for 24 years before retiring in January 1983. During his time as head coach the Alabama football team seemed almost unbeatable. They won 6 national championship and 13 conference championships during his time as head coach. His Alabama teams won 232 games during his 24 years as head coach. Bryant retired following the 1982 Liberty Bowl as arguably the greatest college football coach of all-time. Ironically enough when asked what he would do now that he was retired; he said that he would probably croak in a week. Four weeks later Bryant died of a heart attack. However, the legacy of Bryant still lives today and all Alabama coaches have been compared to him.

Since Bryant left the Crimson Tide there have been many coaches that have tried to create the greatness that he brought to the Alabama program, however in the 27 years since his departure they have only won one national championship and two conference championship, with no national titles since 1992. However, with the hiring of Nick Saban in 2007, the school has a newfound confidence not seen since the days of Bryant. The Crimson Tide still remains one of the most respected teams in all of college football and probably will because of the impact Bryant had on the program.