By: Matthew Weatherby

Alabama and Oklahoma are set to square off on Friday night in Norman to kick off the 2025-26 edition of the College Football Playoffs.

Both of these teams enter the playoffs with more questions than answers. But, for both sides, those questions stem from injury problems that have plagued both teams in the latter half of this season. For Alabama, though, one question has been resolved, and that is whether Kalen Deboer will still be their coach for the future. While Kalen recommitted himself to the Tide on Sunday, that will do them no good in terms of the true key on Friday, who makes it off the injury report.

SPORTS TALK GEORGIA

SPORTS TALK FLORIDA

Injuries

For Alabama, they are just hoping to get some guys back on offense. Jam Miller, Josh Cuevas, and Kam Dewberry all missed the SEC Championship. A game where Alabama’s offense was only able to score 7 points and put up a total of -3 rushing yards against Georgia. Getting some continuity back on the offensive side of the football for Alabama is going to be necessary against an Oklahoma defense that ranked first in the SEC in total defense this year. Alabama is also hopeful to get standout D-lineman LT Overton back from injury after he missed the SEC title game. (It must also be noted that there is a RUMOR going around regarding a potential Ty Simpson injury that he has been dealing with over the last couple of weeks)

On Oklahoma’s side of things, they hope to get R. Mason Thomas back from injury. Prior to his injury against Tennessee, Thomas had totaled 6.5 sacks over 8 games, along with 2 forced fumbles. His play over 8 games was good enough for him to be voted to the All-SEC First Team Defense.

I do have one more thing on Oklahoma’s injuries. What about John Mateer? After his hand injury against Auburn, the Oklahoma offense has appeared handicapped. Mateer has only thrown for more than 225 yards in a game once since the injury, and that was their regular-season finale against LSU, where he also threw 3 interceptions. But I have a theory regarding Mateer’s health. His hand needed time to heal after the surgery, and that was something he was’t really afforded. The amount of time needed for the hand to heal was supposed to be a couple of weeks. The Sooners will have had 3 weeks off between games come Friday night. Was this the amount of time needed for Mateer’s hand to heal?

On the field

I talked about those Alabama injuries earlier, and they are important because the version of Alabama’s offense everyone saw in Atlanta will not be enough if it shows up in Norman, Oklahoma, on Friday night. The pieces that they hope to get back should lead to that. Jam Miller is a much more well rounded Running Back than the guys sitting behind him. But where his value lies is in his pass protection. It was something that Alabama struggled with in the SEC Championship. In addition, Josh Cuevas and Kam Dewberry will also be helpful in protecting Ty Simpson. Cuevas’s being back will have a big impact on Alabama in 3rd down situations. He was Ty Simpson’s safety blanket all year.

Bama’s offense will be in better shape health-wise, but will it be enough? All outside factors have shifted away from Alabama in this game. They will not have had the same amount of rest that Oklahoma has had. Maybe that is a good or bad thing; you never really know when it comes to longer rest for teams, but when you look at Alabama’s injury report, you would assume that fairs better for the Sooners. Not to mention, Oklahoma will be playing at home. A place where they beat the Crimson Tide 24-3 last season. For Alabama even if they get those guys back to full health will it matter?

Oklahoma’s defense, by metrics, is better than Georgia’s. People also seem to forget that, prior to Alabama losing those guys on offense to injury, they still were not a particularly efficient or effective running team. They also have not been able to stretch the ball downfield very much this year. That is an area where you need Ryan Williams to step up. He has not been the same guy that he was last year. And without the threat of explosives, the Alabama offense will then be tasked with driving the ball down the field consistently against this Oklahoma defense. When you’re asked to do that without a consistent running game, your margin for error is razor-thin.

Why Oklahoma could Roll

If Oklahoma’s offense finds itself after the break, I do not think that this game will be particularly close. People talk about Alabama’s issues after their injuries, but they were always present for Alabama. The injuries they suffered just exposed them to a greater extent. For Oklahoma, John Mateer was heisman candidate prior to his injury. All you need from Mateer and this offense on Friday is 2-3 good drives. 17 points could be enough to win this game for Oklahoma.

This game will obviously be about the defenses, but I believe that Oklahoma’s offense has a higher ceiling than Alabama’s coming out of the break. As for Bama, this is a game where they have to win the margins. Something they did not do against Oklahoma earlier in the year, or the last time we saw them against Georgia. If Alabama were to win this game, it would be because it also won the turnover battle, time of possession, and average starting field position.

Prediction + Betting/Analytics

Prediction: Oklahoma

Spread: Alabama -1.5

According to ESPN Analytics, Alabama has a 50.9% chance to win on Friday.

After a Thursday night loss to the Falcons that dropped the out of first place in the NFC South they got some good news Sunday. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have reclaimed first place in the NFC South after a dramatic turn of events. Thanks to the New Orleans Saints’ last-second rally to defeat the Carolina Panthers 17-16, Tampa Bay moved back into the division lead at 7-7 with three weeks left in the regular season. The Saints’ upset win not only spoiled Carolina’s momentum but also reshuffled the playoff picture, giving the Buccaneers renewed control of their destiny.

All Bucs the latest news at Sports Talk Florida

Saints Stun Panthers in Last-Minute Thriller

Sunday’s clash at the Caesars Superdome was a showcase of resilience by New Orleans. Rookie quarterback Tyler Shough engineered two late scoring drives, capped by kicker Charlie Smyth’s 47-yard field goal with just two seconds remaining. The Panthers, who had led most of the afternoon, were undone by costly penalties—11 flags for 103 yards—and a sputtering rushing attack that managed only 127 yards. Wide receiver Chris Olave came alive in the fourth quarter, hauling in four catches for 78 yards, including a 12-yard grab that tied for a score. Carolina’s miscues opened the door for the Saints, who completed the season sweep of their division rival and knocked the Panthers into a tie with Tampa Bay.

Buccaneers Control Their Own Fate

For Tampa Bay, the Saints’ victory was a lifeline. Despite dropping five of their last six games, the Buccaneers now sit atop the NFC South with a chance to secure a fifth straight division crown. The path forward is clear: win the remaining divisional matchups. Tampa Bay travels to Charlotte next Sunday to face the Panthers in a pivotal Week 16 showdown. They then host the Miami Dolphins before closing the season against Carolina once more1. With the Falcons and Saints effectively eliminated from contention, the division race boils down to Tampa Bay and Carolina. If the Buccaneers can steady their form, they will not only clinch the South but also lock in a playoff berth. The stakes are high, but the opportunity is theirs to seize.

The target is 18 teams in 2028.

Wanted: Someone with deep pockets who loves women’s soccer located in a city with a ready to go soccer stadium, a good corporate base and a good media market contact Jessica Berman for details. The National Women’s Soccer League is now looking for an 18^th franchise. The league awarded Home Depot co-founder and owner of the National Football League Atlanta Falcons franchise and Major League Soccer’s Atlanta United FC franchise, Arthur Blank, the league’s 17^th franchise in Atlanta. Blank’s team will begin play in 2028. “It is our intention to admit Team 18, and we are targeting a 2028 launch,” NWSL Commissioner Jessica Berman said during an appearance in Atlanta one day after announcing the league’s 17^th  franchise in November. Arthur Blank did not bid for a franchise.

“I think the philosophy around our shift in strategy as it relates to expansion remains true, which is that we will now admit teams as we and a potential bidder deem is ready and appropriate, and really use a slightly different filter so that we can make decisions more on a case-by-case basis,” Berman said. “With that in mind, we’re definitely working on expansion. It will likely always be, at least for the foreseeable future, going on in the background, and when and if we determine that a deal is ready to be presented to our board and move forward, we’ll be able to add Team 18.” In January, 2025  the National Women’s Soccer League awarded its 16^th franchise to the Denver market.  Denver got the nod beating out Cincinnati and Cleveland. Presumably those two cities are in the mix for that 18^th team along with places like Nashville, Minneapolis-St. Paul and Jacksonville. It has been a long road for professional women’s soccer leagues in the United States to find success. That may be changing.

Evan Weiner’s books are available at iTunes – https://books.apple.com/us/author/evan-weiner/id595575191

Evan can be reached at evan_weiner@hotmail.com