The party started before the game ended.
Florida State players bounced. Heads bobbed. White towels swung. “Crank That (Soulja Boy)” played. During it all, the Alabama players had to stand there and watch. Hands on hips. The Crimson Tide, fate sealed, had to bear witness to the celebration on the precipice of the 31-17 loss to Florida State.
The two-minute timeout turned dance party served as the pregame. Then the real shindig began at Doak Campbell Stadium. After a couple kneel downs, Florida State fans started plopping over the rail and onto the field.
Alabama players and coaches saw all of that too. They had to avoid running into the stream of flowing, running fans as the Crimson Tide tried to make it to the locker room. Some players jogged off. Others walked. No matter the pace, they all had to take in the same scene on that Tallahassee night.
The sight, and the feeling, have become too commonplace for the Crimson Tide over the past calendar year. Alabama has had to watch some version of that scene four times over the past 11 months.
First Vanderbilt, then Tennessee, Oklahoma and now Florida State. Alabama was favored in them all. The horror series many in Tuscaloosa hoped would end after Kalen DeBoer’s first year has now officially been renewed for a second season.
The Crimson Tide’s balloon of 2025 optimism popped and fluttered away before the calendar could even turn to September. Now, Alabama has the challenge of needing to climb out of that hole. Good thing for the Crimson Tide’s sake there are 11 opportunities still to do so.
The Sunday after every Alabama game this season, AL.com will have extra thoughts and notes. Let’s use the first one to unpack a game no one outside of maybe Tallahassee saw coming.

3 game balls
Recipients: WR Germie Bernard, P Blake Doud, C Parker Brailsford
The list of good options was not long in a loss like this one. Bernard was a bright spot on a team dimly lit. He caught eight passes for 146 yards. Alabama had five passing plays of 15+ yards, and Bernard caught four of them. No one else on the offense tallied more than five passes (wide receiver Ryan Williams) or more than 31 yards (tight end Josh Cuevas).
Otherwise, there were no clear candidates to be given game balls. Doud was solid in his first start as a Power Four punter, though. He averaged 48 yards per punt, including a long of 54 yards.
Brailsford gets the final game ball because of the hustle and determination he showed when he picked up the fumble from Ty Simpson and got past two defenders for a 13-yard run. It wasn’t good enough for the first down, but props to Brailsford for the effort. He could have decided only to fall on it with Alabama down 24-7 at that point.
Stat of the game
In carries of 10-plus yards, Alabama only had one the entire game. Florida State tallied seven of them.
“They got us on a few reverses,” linebacker Deontae Lawson said. “That kind of shot us in the foot. Got a big play downfield. It just hurt us. I felt like we were well prepared. We just didn’t capitalize. Some people weren’t doing their job.”
On offense, the Crimson Tide started well on the ground with almost 60 yards rushing on the first drive. Then, Alabama rushed for only 29 yards after the first quarter.
“There needs to be a better consistency,” DeBoer said. “We didn’t have, I can think of, any explosives that we need to have. It’s hard to put drives together when you don’t have chunk yardage plays.”
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Defensive back Earl Little Jr. was Florida State’s most productive player in the victory. If that name sounds familiar, it should. He transferred from Alabama to FSU for the 2024 season.
In his performance against his old team, Little tallied nine tackles and one tackle for a loss.

2 areas to fix
- Tackling/physicality.
- QB decision making
There are plenty more, but these are two that stand out. Alabama’s defense looked lackluster at times in its tackling. Too often, Florida State won the battle on the line of scrimmage and pushed the Crimson Tide around.
On offense, Simpson showed he has the tools. But he looked unsure at times as he surveyed the field.
“He’s got to just trust his reads and just cut it loose sometimes,” DeBoer said. “Just let it fly. He can make the throws.”
Simpson also needs to grow in his decisiveness for how he decides to run or pass. His decision not to run on fourth down at one moment in the third quarter cost Alabama a first down. It was there for the taking.
3 parting thoughts
- The season isn’t over, but Alabama sure didn’t look the part of a College Football Playoff contender. Not the one everyone seemed to talk about heading into the season. Still, there’s plenty of time to change that perception. Alabama’s got to get to work, though. And fast.
- The Crimson Tide sorely missed running back Jam Miller and defensive tackle Tim Keenan III. Alabama felt their absence at both spots, struggling to run and struggling to defend the run.
- DeBoer must figure out how to get his players ready to play on the road against opponents perceived to be lesser. The Wisconsin game in 2024 was only time he has managed to keep his team on track in those scenarios. Struggles on the road against not-as-good teams has been an unexplainable struggle so far for DeBoer.
Nick Kelly is an Alabama beat writer for AL.com and the Alabama Media Group. Follow him on X and Instagram.
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