Dec 6, 2025; Atlanta, GA, USA; Alabama quarterback Ty Simpson (15) throws against Georgia at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Gary Cosby Jr.-Tuscaloosa News

Alabama football nearly experienced an unexpected — and detrimental — hit to its College Football Playoff outlook in the final week of the regular season in the Iron Bowl against Auburn.

One week later, and No. 10 Alabama (No. 9 in CFP rankings) now has its CFP picture hanging in limbo following a 28-7 loss to No. 3 Georgia (No. 3 in CFP rankings) in the SEC championship game on Saturday, Dec. 6.

The loss to Georgia is the first under Kalen DeBoer after he opened with a 2-0 record vs. Kirby Smart and the Bulldogs in 2024 and 2025 (both in the regular season). The defeat drops Alabama to 10-3 on the season.

Georgia's Gunner Stockton paced the Bulldogs offense, completing 20-of-26 passes for 156 yards and three touchdowns, one each to Zachariah Branch, Dillon Bell and Roderick Robinson II. Nate Frazier also ran the ball for a 9-yard touchdown.

Georgia's defense was arguably more impressive, limiting Alabama to 209 total yards and negative-3 yards rushing.

Following Alabama's defeat, it poses the question of whether the Crimson Tide can still make the College Football Playoff. Here's what to know about what the Crimson Tide's loss to the Bulldogs does to their CFP outlook:

Alabama football rankings: Can Crimson Tide make CFP after Georgia loss?

The odds were in Alabama's favor entering conference championship weekend, with ESPN's Football Power Index giving the Crimson Tide a 96.3% chance of making the playoff. The Crimson Tide also had a strength of record ranked eighth nationally and strength of schedule that ranked 11th.

Alabama entered the game with a resume worthy of getting an at-large CFP bid, featuring four wins over top opponents ranked in the top 25: a span that stretched from late September through mid-October against Georgia, Vanderbilt, Missouri and Tennessee.

The CFP selection committee also gave Alabama some small breathing room in the fifth CFP top 25 rankings release, moving the Crimson Tide up to the No. 9 spot previously held by Notre Dame — a move that took DeBoer's squad off the "final team in" line of the bracket.

That followed a rather uninspiring Iron Bowl performance for the Crimson Tide, while Notre Dame steamrolled Stanford. It may have tipped the committee's hand as to how it views the Crimson Tide's resume and strength of schedule, the latter of which is supposed to be weighed more this year in the selection process of the field.

On the other hand, only one three-loss team has made the College Football Playoff: Clemson, in 2024. And the Tigers made it not as an at-large, but by virtue of winning the ACC championship game over SMU, becoming one of the five highest-ranked conference champions in the process. In that game, the CFP committee also set a precedent of not punishing teams that lose their conference title game, as SMU was the last team in — over Alabama.

In an interview with ESPN's Rece Davis during the fifth CFP top 25 rankings show on Tuesday, Dec. 2, CFP committee chair Hunter Yurachek mentioned the committee will "evaluate the results of the championship game over the weekend after they are all completed over the weekend."

Yurachek, the Arkansas athletic director, doubled down on those comments in a media call following the Dec. 2 rankings, saying the committee "will judge all of the conference championship games when they are completed, the results of them, and then rank the teams 1 through 25 accordingly."

The committee must now pit two of its precedents against each other. Alabama could still get in as a three-loss team, but that also may depend on how the selection committee views the Crimson Tide's performance in the SEC championship game.

When do new CFP rankings come out? When is Playoff bracket released?

  • Date: Sunday, Dec. 7
  • Time: Noon ET

The CFP playoff bracket will be released at noon ET on Sunday, Dec. 7.

Alabama football schedule 2025

Here's a look at Alabama's 2025 schedule, including past scores:

  • Saturday, Aug. 30: Florida State 31, Alabama 17
  • Saturday, Sept. 6: Alabama 73, UL Monroe 0
  • Saturday, Sept. 13: Alabama 38, Wisconsin 14
  • Saturday, Sept. 20: BYE
  • Saturday, Sept. 27: Alabama 24, No. 5 Georgia 21 *
  • Saturday, Oct. 4: Alabama 30, No. 16 Vanderbilt 14 *
  • Saturday, Oct. 11: Alabama 27, No. 14 Missouri 24 *
  • Saturday, Oct. 18: Alabama 37, No. 11 Tennessee 20 *
  • Saturday, Oct. 25: Alabama 29, South Carolina 22 *
  • Saturday, Nov. 1: BYE
  • Saturday, Nov. 8: Alabama 20, LSU 9 *
  • Saturday, Nov. 15: No. 11 Oklahoma 23, Alabama 21 *
  • Saturday, Nov. 22: Alabama 56, Eastern Illinois 0
  • Saturday, Nov. 29: Alabama 27m Auburn 20 *
  • Saturday, Dec. 6: No. 3 Georgia 28, Alabama 7 **

* Denotes SEC game

** Denotes SEC championship game

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Alabama CFP rankings: Can Crimson Tide make Playoff with three losses?

Reporting by John Leuzzi, USA TODAY NETWORK / USA TODAY

USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect