College Football’s National Voice Forced to Take Surprising Alabama Call After $20M Recruiting News

Alabama fans, get ready because the bad news keeps rolling in. Not only did No. 8 Bama fall to Florida State 31-17, ending a 23-game season-opening winning streak, but it was also only their second non-conference regular-season loss since 2008. If that wasn’t tough enough, CBS Sports’ Josh Pate is rubbing salt into the wound with a Week 2 prediction that Tide fans won’t like. If Week 1 was a disappointment, Week 2 could be even worse. Pate isn’t just questioning Alabama’s abilities; he’s wondering if the Tide can weather the challenges already surfacing in Tuscaloosa.

Losing to Florida State could be the most humiliating defeat for Kalen DeBoer’s Alabama team. The Crimson Tide didn’t just lose; they plummeted to No. 21 after getting crushed by a team that struggled to a 2-10 record last season. That’s a tough pill to swallow, especially considering previous losses to Vanderbilt, Oklahoma, and Michigan. DeBoer entered 2025 under pressure, and now the heat is really on. And the bad news keeps coming for Alabama.

Josh Pate dropped a bomb on X, giving out his Week 2 prediction, saying, “🚨WEEK 2 COMMISSIONERS POLL🚨 These are my rankings.” Now, the list has some expected names, like Ohio State climbing to the 1st position and LSU, Miami, Texas, and Oregon making it to Pate’s top 10. But here comes the shocker: Kalen DeBoer’s team didn’t even make it to the list. That’s right. A six-time championship-winning team under Nick Saban couldn’t even make it to the Week 2 prediction. That’s a huge drop.

But can we blame him? The numbers tell the story of a tough situation. DeBoer’s record at Alabama is now 9-5, and he’s lost four games as a two-touchdown favorite in just 14 games. In comparison, Nick Saban only lost three such games in 139. Against unranked teams, DeBoer is 6-4, while Saban was an astounding 124-4. The Tide, favored by 13.5 points against a Seminoles team that went 2-10 last year, got dominated. Florida State rushed for 230 yards at 4.7 yards per carry, while Castellanos ran 16 times for 78 yards and a touchdown and passed for 152 yards at 10.9 yards per attempt.

The difference in coaching impact made the loss even harder to swallow. Alabama brought DeBoer together with offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb after his time with the Seattle Seahawks, but the Tide faltered on seven trips inside FSU territory, scoring only 17 points. Conversely, Mike Norvell’s decision to hire Gus Malzahn as offensive coordinator paid off instantly. Malzahn’s creativity, combined with Thomas Castellanos’ dual-threat skills, tore apart Alabama’s defense.

For Alabama, mistakes compounded: Roydell Williams had a key fourth-and-1 run, James Smith committed a 15-yard penalty for a late hit, and Gavin Sawchuk sealed the game with a touchdown. DeBoer called the loss unacceptable, stating, “No excuse… Last year isn’t this year.” With Georgia, LSU, South Carolina, and Tennessee on the schedule, boosters are already wondering how much longer they can accept this decline. And with that, another misery hits them.

Alabama’s $20 million NIL hit

Several coaches and analysts have been saying that college football programs are spending $40 million or more on their rosters, but the figures don’t seem to align. Oklahoma State’s Mike Gundy mentioned Oregon’s budget was “about $40 million,” and A.J. McCarron speculated that some teams might have reached $50 million this year. But sources within the industry confirm that no team’s roster costs have exceeded $40 million yet. Ohio State is currently at the top, spending over $35 million, followed by Texas Tech at over $28 million. Meanwhile, Steve Sarkisian denied reports of Texas spending $40 million.

Even NIL collectives invested millions in high school recruits and transfer portal players, often providing upfront payments before revenue sharing was fully implemented. Approximately 15 to 20 programs now spend at least $20 million on their rosters, including Ole Miss, South Carolina, Texas A&M, and Notre Dame, while others—like Illinois, which had a successful 10-win season—operated with budgets as low as $5 million. Just five years ago, a $10 million budget seemed impossible, but now $20 million is the baseline for contending at the highest level.

Alabama finds itself at the heart of the NIL discussion. While McCarron stated the Tide’s spending was under $20 million, sources disagree, citing a $5.2 million recruiting budget for 2024 and increasing support from its collective, Yea Alabama. With Kalen DeBoer securing the nation’s No. 3 recruiting class in 2025, estimates suggest Alabama is nearing the $20 million mark through revenue sharing, upfront deals, and NIL initiatives. Though lacking a major donor like Oregon’s Phil Knight, the program has improved since DeBoer’s arrival, benefiting from recruits prioritizing tradition and relationships over solely financial gains.

This is where the challenge lies. Former Alabama quarterback AJ McCarron offered a pointed assessment of the Crimson Tide’s NIL situation, expressing concerns about the program’s future if it can’t compete financially. On the McCready & Siskey show, McCarron stated, “And another thing that hurts Alabama right now is you look at these other teams that have $40-50 million in NIL. Alabama, and I know this for a fact from talking to multiple people inside the program, has less than $20 million in their NIL. OK?” Look, sure, the $40 million roster is a myth, but momentum is building.