Fans aren’t going to settle for anything less than a playoff run in Tuscaloosa this year. Kalen DeBoer’s 9-4 debut is respectable but not up to Bama standards. If Year 2 doesn’t end with the Tide back in the sport’s biggest stage, there’s going to skeptics all around. But this conversation isn’t even about the playoffs. It’s about a single October Saturday where Alabama might not walk out with a win. 

Last fall, Alabama was pushed back to the brink in Bryant-Denny by a team nobody saw coming. A narrow 27-25 escape was the only thing standing between them and outright embarrassment. This year, the rematch is on the road in one of the most underrated hornet’s nests in the SEC. In a new episode on The Next Round on August 8, Jim Dunaway predicts Kalen DeBoer and co. will lose to Shane Beamer at South Carolina on October 25. “Alabama loses a game. You typically get some of the best quarterback play out there,” he said. “LaNorris Seller is very, very capable of that. That is a very hostile environment that is underrated.” Ryan Brown echoed the sentiment saying, “It’s either 2:30 or prime time kick. It’s going to be at night. It’s going to be hot.” But it’s who is leading the team that’s going to give Alabama a hard time. 

For LaNorris Sellers, this isn’t the first time he’s facing a Kalen DeBoer-led Alabama. The 6’3 QB threw for 257 yards and two TDa against the Tide in 2024, nearly engineering a second-half stunner. And this time, it’s going to be in Columbia. Williams-Brice at night, the “Sandstorm” entrance shaking the press box, and a fan base sensing blood. This gives you the kind of environment where even the most polished Alabama teams have struggled historically. For the 2025 Tide still figuring out its identity, that’s a dangerous outlook.

LaNorris Sellers isn’t shying away from it. At SEC Media Days, he said the key to winning is “just building on what we did last year. Limiting those plays that lost us the game, those two or three plays. Two or three plays make a big difference.” He’s already dissected Alabama’s defense up close. The speed, the disguises, and the physical linebackers. And he’ll have a new offensive coordinator in former Alabama HC Mike Shula, whose NFL pedigree includes mentoring both Eli Manning and Cam Newton.

South Carolina’s case for an upset doesn’t stop at QB. On defense, Dylan Stewart is the headline. “He’s the LaNorris Sellers of the defense,” as Lance Taylor said. He’s a pass rusher disruptive enough to command double and triple-teams, even if the rest of the Gamecocks’ front seven is in rebuild mode. Shane Beamer has turned plug-and-play into an art form, shuffling in new pieces midseason without letting the team lose its bite. Last year’s narrow loss to Alabama was the turning point of their season, sparking a late run that built belief in the locker room. The warning signs are flashing. But for Bama, the upset risk is only one of several big-picture problems lurking under the surface.

More concerns for Alabama in 2025

First, the QB room looks more like a three-way jam than a smooth lane toward playoff success. Ty Simpson’s been in the program the longest. Austin Mack is the only one with a touchdown pass. Meanwhile, Keelon Russell comes in with hype but no college snaps. None of them, at least yet, give off the vibe of an elite QB who can win you a playoff game with sheer talent.

Then there’s the pass rush, or lack thereof. Alabama finished 13th in the SEC in sacks last year. There’s still no sign of a Will Anderson Jr. type terror coming off the edge. Veterans like LT Overton, James Smith, and Tim Keenan bring leadership, but chasing QBs isn’t exactly their superpower. If the Tide are going to generate pressure, it might have to come from the interior, not ideal in an SEC loaded with mobile QBs.

And finally, there’s the schedule. The season opens at Florida State, a program desperate to erase last year’s embarrassment. It’s followed by a home date with Wisconsin, and midseason trips to Missouri and that October 25 date in Columbia. Add in Tennessee, LSU, Oklahoma, and the Iron Bowl at Auburn, and you’re looking at a slate where a slip-up or two is almost built in. If Alabama slips in Columbia, don’t call it a shock. Call it the game everyone should’ve seen coming.