The Alabama Crimson Tide is a college football team program that represents the University of Alabama. The Alabama Crimson Tide currently competes in the NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision as a member of the Southeastern Conference or SEC. Since the team’s first play in 1892, the team has claimed twelve national championships. The team was led by Hall of Fame coach Paul Bryant from 1958 to 1982. The team is currently being led by head coach Nick Saban. The team’s signature colors are crimson and white, with an elephant as its mascot. The team’s games are played in the Bryant-Denny Stadium, located on the campus in Tuscaloosa, Alabama with a capacity of 92,138.
The team was first known as the “Cadets”, The “Crimson White” or simply as “the varsity”. The sport came to be known in the university, when a law student started teaching the sport after learning it himself. Later on, an official team of 19 players was formed, with law student William G. Little as the captain and E.B. Beaumont as the head coach. The team played only one game during the 1897 and 1898 seasons because of a ban restricting student athletes from traveling off campus. When the ban was lifted, the team adopted the name “Crimson Tide”.
The team rose to prominence after Wallace Wade was hired to become the head coach. Wade led the team to two more national titles before he was replaced by Frank Thomas. Under Thomas, the team was led to win two more national championships. Paul Bryant then came to be the team’s head coach. Under his wing, the team came to be known as the most dominant teams in Football College.
Over its 112 year history, the Alabama Crimson Tide has amassed the seventh most victories in Division I with 799 for a sixth best 709 winning percentage. The team has won 25 conference championships (four Southern Conference and 21 Southeastern Conference championships). The team has made an NCAA-record of 56 postseason bowl appearances, with 31 victories. Other NCAA records garnered by the team includes an eight perfect, undefeated and untied seasons, 21 10-game win streaks, and is second to the Championship Games.