Fact or fiction: Alabama football will make CFP? And more SEC questions

Kalen DeBoer’s second season at Alabama produced miserable bookends. In between, a lot of good things happened. That included a first-round playoff win against Oklahoma.

DeBoer received a contract extension, solidifying his job security, but his task in Year 3 remains lofty: Get Alabama back to the playoff, and, ideally, go deeper than the quarterfinals. Will the Tide even make it that far, with a new starting quarterback?

On this edition of “SEC Football Unfiltered,” a podcast from the USA TODAY Network, hosts Blake Toppmeyer and John Adams play a round of fact or fiction as they examine eight scenarios within the SEC.

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First up, they debate Alabama’s playoff potential and how it compares to LSU.

Georgia’s chance for an SEC championship three-peat is also featured among their topics.

On this round of fact or fiction …

Adams: Fiction. Very fiction. Nick Saban saw that college football’s evolutions would make Alabama’s superiority difficult to maintain, so he got out. Saban’s not wrong. Alabama is trending in the wrong direction.

Toppmeyer: Fact. Alabama’s schedule is tough but more manageable than some in the SEC, and I’m a believer in the upside of redshirt freshman quarterback Keelon Russell, a former five-star recruit.

Toppmeyer: Inside Lane Kiffin’s LSU ‘ghost’ mode and the Michael Jordan meme

College football sleepers: Why an under-the-radar SEC team can win it all in 2026

Adams: Fact. Tough schedule, but Lane Kiffin built a roster that can handle it.

Toppmeyer: Fact. I’d feel better about this if I knew transfer quarterback Sam Leavitt would return to top form after injuring his foot last season.

Texas A&M will win more games than Texas

Adams: Fiction. I like both teams, but I like Texas’ roster more.

Toppmeyer: Fact. I like both teams, but I like Texas A&M’s schedule more.

At least three SEC coaches will be fired

Adams: Fiction. I’ll go with two firings.

Toppmeyer: Fiction. After a particularly active spin of the carousel last season, it’ll slow down. Two firings.

Georgia will win the SEC title

Adams: Fiction. Nothing against Georgia, but if given the chance to take the field versus one team, I’ll take the field.

Toppmeyer: Fact. Georgia is built for national title contention, the schedule breaks nicely, and I’ll take Kirby Smart against anyone in a one-game clash in Atlanta.

Arch Manning will win the Heisman Trophy

Adams: Fiction. He’ll be better in 2026 than he was in 2025, but he faces a lot of competition for the award.

Toppmeyer: Fiction. In preseason Heisman debates, always take the field.

Four SEC teams will make the playoff

Adams: Fact. The SEC produced three qualifiers in 2024 and five in 2025. That’s an average of four.

Toppmeyer: Fiction. I’m already on the hook for three SEC qualifiers. Georgia, LSU, Alabama, … plus two more. Five qualifiers, not four.

Florida‘s Jon Sumrall will be the most celebrated new coach after Year 1

Adams: Fiction. He’ll be an upgrade on Billy Napier, but other coaches are better positioned for a first-year breakthrough, like Auburn’s Alex Golesh.

Toppmeyer: Fiction. Six SEC schools having a new coach crowds this conversation. I, too, like Auburn’s breakout possibilities with Golesh.

Where to listen to SEC Football Unfiltered

Blake Toppmeyer is the USA TODAY Network’s senior national college football columnist. John Adams is the senior sports columnist for the Knoxville News Sentinel. Subscribe to the SEC Football Unfiltered podcast, and check out the SEC Unfiltered newsletter, delivered straight to your inbox.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Fact or fiction: Alabama football will make CFP? And more SEC questions

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