After a first season that fell short of where Alabama football usually finished during the Nick Saban era, Kalen DeBoer is back for his second season as the Crimson Tide’s head coach. As is typical in Tuscaloosa, expectations remain lofty for 2025.

Alabama went 9-3 in DeBoer’s first year, its first time winning less than 10 games since 2007, Saban’s first season in charge. Still, Athlon Sports’ yearly preview magazine expects big things from the Tide.

Athlon predicted that the Crimson Tide will finish fourth in the SEC in 2025. It has Alabama making the College Football Playoff as well, after a one-season absence.

Alabama sits behind Texas, Georgia and LSU in the Athlon SEC predictions. The magazine projected that The Longhorns will beat the Bulldogs in the SEC championship game.

The Athlon predictions placed Alabama against a familiar face in the first round of the CFP. The projection would have the Crimson Tide facing LSU, in Baton Rouge, for a first-round game.

That’s where the good news ended for the Crimson Tide, at least in one magazine’s projections. Athlon predicted that UA would lose to LSU in the playoff game, before the Tigers are eliminated by Texas in the quarterfinals, on the way to a Longhorn national championship.

Athlon expects big things from Alabama wide receiver Ryan Williams this coming season, naming him a second-tier contender for the Heisman Trophy. The rising sophomore also made the publication’s preseason all-America first-team, alongside UA offensive tackle Kadyn Proctor.

The second team included center Parker Brailsford, with linebacker Deontae Lawson and defensive lineman LT Overton checking in on the third team. Williams, Proctor, Brailsford and Overton were also named preseason all-SEC first-team by Athlon.

The top storyline throughout Alabama’s 2025 offseason has been the battle to replace Jalen Milroe at quarterback. The Crimson Tide’s coaches said Ty Simpson was the leader in the clubhouse after spring practice, and Athlon’s projected two-deep depth chart placed him on top, ahead of Austin Mack.

Alabama will begin preseason camp in early August. The Tide is scheduled to begin the 2025 season with a road trip to Tallahassee, to face Florida State on Aug. 30.