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This is an opinion column.

It’s not the job of a sports reporter to correctly predict the future or pretend to be smarter than the average fan.

It’s a big misconception in my industry.

There are a lot of really smart football fans in the Deep South, and especially in the state of Alabama. I can tell you with confidence that a large percentage of those people know just as much or more about football than pretty much all of the nerds in the press box during games and all the silly suds talking on TV or the radio during the week.

Sometimes we get lucky, though, and someone hit the big jackpot in the press box at halftime of Alabama’s unlikely 34-20 victory against Tennessee at Bryant-Denny Stadium. It was the second largest comeback for Alabama in the history of the Third Saturday in October rivalry and the biggest comeback of coach Nick Saban’s time in Tuscaloosa. With the memorial plaque of sports writing legend Cecil Hurt as a witness, a sports columnist was standing near the press box popcorn machine with Alabama losing 20-7 to Tennessee and correctly predicted Alabama’s historic second-half comeback for the ages.

How did it go down?

What was the conversation that led to such a sudden wave of dumb genius?

And, most importantly, who was the brave soul who had the gut feeling that Alabama was about to turn a sour stadium into the stuff of sweet, delicious, smoking dreams?

For something so important, no sources will be protected from the light of truth and the sharp gaze of scrutiny. I can now reveal all the details, how it happened and also who was present — besides Cecil’s wise gaze — to verify the halftime press box prediction that will forever eclipse all other halftime press box predictions.

That person was me, and this is my triumphant victory lap for one of the greatest calls in the history of Alabama football. I dedicate it to Cecil, who I miss dearly, and who was one of the smartest sports journalists I’ve ever known. Cecil might have called me crazy for this one, though.

But then he would have given me a high-five after the game and told me I definitely had to write a column about believing in Alabama when no one else could.

First, what makes a good sports columnist?

It’s not about being right all the time. In fact, a good columnist is going to be consistently wrong in the eyes of readers throughout their career. Why is that? It’s because the gold standard for column writing is to have half the people who read a column agree with an opinion, and have half the people who read that column strongly, vocally, bitterly disagree.

If you’re trying to write columns to impress the coaches or players, then you’re not a columnist at all. You’re just a shill with an agenda.

There are two sides to a good opinion. For example, either I was the luckiest person in the press box on Saturday, or I was the only stupid fool who thought Alabama had a chance after such a dreadful first half. I’m not going to pretend to be smart because everyone already knows the truth about that.

I’ve enjoyed writing about this Alabama team. No one knows what to expect from one moment to the next. The dynasty looked all but over after the collapse against Texas. That feels like ages ago, doesn’t it? Turns out, Alabama is beautifully imperfect, but its flaws turn into strengths at the end of games.

Have I been wrong about this team? Oh, absolutely. I questioned this team’s toughness at the beginning of the season, but grit and determination are proving to be Alabama’s greatest qualities.

The off week is here, thankfully. Everyone needs a break. Steal a breath and exhale while I take this victory lap for finally nailing down the most unpredictable contender in college football. No.9 Alabama (7-1, 5-0 in the SEC) is living on the edge of elation and despair from one week to the next, but, after everything, this team somehow sits atop the SEC West with an outside chance to still make the College Football Playoff.

It’s not going to be easy, but it’s going to be exciting. Saban is having fun, so I will, too.

I just wanted some popcorn on Saturday, after all, but in so doing walked directly into a conversation about Alabama’s 13-point halftime deficit to the Volunteers. It was me and my Grateful Dead jean jacket, John Talty of 24/7 Sports, Alex Scarborough of ESPN.com and Harold Graeter, the associate executive director for the Liberty Bowl.

“What’s the Joe Goodman headline going to be for this one?” Talty asked.

I paused. Cecil’s plaque was to my left, and I could sense it giving me the courage the moment demanded. This would not be the end of Alabama, but the beginning of something epic.

Headline: “Jalen Milroe leads amazing comeback,” I said.

“Going positive, eh?” Talty said.

Not for Tennessee.

Joseph Goodman is the lead sports columnist for the Alabama Media Group, and author of “We Want Bama”, a book about togetherness, wild times and rum. You can find him on Twitter @JoeGoodmanJr.