Fans across the state learning how fun it is to cheer a winner

Everybody who follows sports knows it’s been a good year for the Alabama Crimson Tide in football and basketball. But it’s probably been even better than most realize.

In the last calendar year (starting with Dec. 19), Alabama basketball has won 30 games and lost only five. Over that same span, the Alabama football team is 15-1. That’s only six total losses and a winning percentage of 88.2.

How about if we look at the last 35 games for both teams. While the basketball team is 30-5, the football team is 32-3. That 62-8 record is a winning percentage of 88.6.

That’s a whole lot of winning for one program and one fan base.

There isn’t much more to say about what Nick Saban has built in football, except the Tide is at the zenith of a dynasty that has never been matched in the history of the sport.

But if there was some sort of deal with the devil to produce this kind of unprecedented football success, wouldn’t the bartering include the stipulation that fans of the school would have to suffer through the other major sport?

It has to be galling for opposing fans to admit on top of the football dynasty, Alabama now has a legitimate top 10 college basketball team.

After reaching the Sweet 16 last season and then losing NBA lottery pick (Josh Primo), the SEC Player of the Year (Herb Jones) and one of the top shooters in program history (John Petty), Alabama is unquestionably an improved team this year.

While last year’s tournament run was a blast for Alabama fans, nobody would settle for only reaching the Sweet 16 this year. That’s a testament to how well Nate Oats built a team but also a program for years to come.

Among Alabama’s wins this year is a 73-68 slugfest at home against South Alabama. That game was even closer than the five-point margin would suggest. With two minutes left, it was a one-possession game, then the Tide made seven of eight free throws to win a tough game.

It wasn’t an off game for Alabama. The Jaguars of Richie Riley are really just that good.

Through the first 10 games, the Jaguars posted eight wins, including wins over San Diego and Hawaii to win the Las Vegas Classic.

They beat Southern Miss by 30. South Alabama’s only two losses are to Alabama by five and Wichita State by six, both road games. 

Anything less than a Sun Belt Conference championship and a berth in the NCAA Tournament will be considered a letdown for a team that plays hard, plays smart and has a roster full of transfers who have previously been contributors at such programs as Texas A&M, LSU and Auburn.

Just like in Tuscaloosa, it’s a fun time to cheer for the local basketball team in Mobile.

Of course, Oats and Riley are just trying to get a view from the top of the mountain that Auburn and Bruce Pearl have already reached.

Auburn was in the Final Four in 2019 and probably would have won the national championship if not for a missed double-dribble call against eventual champion Virginia in the closing seconds of their semifinal game.

But even those Tigers were not as talented as Pearl’s current team.

Freshman Jabari Smith is the kind of talent who normally ends up at Kentucky or Duke before becoming a top NBA pick. Smith was ready to contribute the day he stepped on campus, and he’s getting better every time he takes the floor. One season may not be enough time for him to establish himself as the best player in Auburn basketball history. But there is no doubt the 6-foot-10 freshman is already as talented as any player who has ever worn the Auburn uniform.

Now that the NCAA has ruled Auburn is in the clear after Pearl served a two-game suspension, anything less than another Final Four appearance would be disappointing for this team.

When this basketball season is over, we may very well look back and realize Auburn and Alabama are the two best teams in the SEC, while South Alabama is the best team in the Sun Belt.

That’s exciting for traditional football fans in this state who are realizing how fun it can be to cheer for an elite basketball team. 

Randy Kennedy, who has been a leading voice on the Gulf Coast sports scene for 19 years, writes a weekly column for Lagniappe. His sports talk show airs weekdays from 2-6 p.m. on Sports Talk 99.5 and the free iHeart radio app.