The final USA Today LBM Coaches Poll ballot offered one last window into how college football’s top minds actually evaluated the year. Among them, Notre Dame HC Marcus Freeman’s vote stood out, and Kalen DeBoer did not receive the benefit of the doubt that has long followed the Crimson Tide, sending a subtle hint of how the sport’s coaching fraternity viewed the program’s season.

The Crimson Tide finished ahead of Notre Dame in the consensus polls, with Alabama landing at No. 9, but not on Freeman’s ballot. The $54 million Irish HC dropped his own team at No. 10 and pushed Alabama one spot behind them. The Irish finished the regular season with a 10–2 record and narrowly missed a spot in the 2025–26 CFP.

Here’s how Freeman ranked his top 10 teams on his final Coaches Poll ballot:

1. Indiana
2. Miami (Fla.)
3. Mississippi
4. Georgia
5. Oregon
6. Ohio State
7. Texas A&M
8. Texas Tech
9. Notre Dame
10. Alabama

That looked even more interesting when compared to Kalen DeBoer’s own ballot. He nudged the Crimson Tide up two spots from the consensus, placing them at No. 7 ahead of Notre Dame, which DeBoer ranked at No. 11. This was a calculated move in a season that included Alabama’s first CFP win of the DeBoer era before falling to the ultimate national champion, Indiana, in the Rose Bowl.

The result still marked Alabama’s first top-10 finish under DeBoer and the program’s 17th time reaching that mark in the last 18 seasons. Alabama was ranked as high as No. 6 by Tulane’s Jon Sumrall and Delaware’s Ryan Carty, while Navy’s Brian Newberry dropped them all the way to No. 21, placing his own Midshipmen at No. 19.

Around 20 coaches ranked Alabama at No. 10 or lower, including Curt Cignetti of Indiana, whose Hoosiers crushed the Tide in the CFP quarterfinal. For a program that finished No. 17 just a year ago after a 9–4 season and a bowl loss to Michigan, the No. 9 final ranking shows progress, but Freeman’s vote made it clear that not everyone was ready to treat Alabama like the old Alabama just yet. Still, DeBoer is quietly making a statement on the recruiting pipeline.

Then there is the added context. Some Irish fans still feel that their team should have been in the playoffs ahead of the Tide. This notion became even stronger after the committee chose Alabama in its final 12 despite them losing badly to Georgia in the SEC Championship game. To make matters worse, the final discussion didn’t even include Alabama. It came down to choosing one between Miami and Notre Dame, and the committee chose the former because of their head-to-head record over the Irish.

The Miami choice, in hindsight, proved to be right since they ended up making the national championship game. On the other hand, Alabama embarrassed itself against Indiana. Although Freeman appeared on College GameDay during the national championship game and stressed that his team shouldn’t have lost the two games they did, his ballot shows he still believes the Irish were better than the Tide in 2025.

Kalen DeBoer is dominating the recruiting trail

After the winter transfer exodus, Kalen DeBoer and his team are not slowing down at all. Alabama is already in elite territory with back-to-back top-five recruiting classes in 2025 and 2026, and early signs suggest that the 2027 cycle will be no exception.

Alabama is quietly assembling a class that might rank among the greatest, with four commitments in hand and top talents like 3-star CB Nash Johnson from Georgia and elite top-10 prospects like 4-star Edge KJ Green considering Tuscaloosa as his first choice. Freeman may be making headlines for his ballot, but DeBoer is winning the war in the recruiting trenches.

Green isn’t the only one on the radar. From helicopter flights to in-person visits to stops at top prep schools around the nation, Alabama’s staff has visited everywhere that matters most. Sophomore Jermaine Cobbins from Springfield, Tennessee, picked up an offer last week, joining a long list of 5-star targets that Alabama has checked in on.

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DeBoer’s team is making every effort, from WR Monshun Sales in Indiana, who had 37 catches for 794 yards and 9 touchdowns this season, to top linemen in Mississippi (4-star OL Caden Moss), Texas (5-star OL Ismael Camara), and Louisiana (5-star IOL Albert Simien). Aubrey Walker, a WR from Moody High School, committed just last week, joining Maurice Mathis Jr.’s already potent receiving group. Alabama is leaving no stone unturned, and 2027 is shaping up to be another statement year in Tuscaloosa.