Alabama makes huge jump into top 10 of ESPN’s power rankings after Week 1

The Alabama Crimson Tide entered the 2026 college football season with their lowest AP Top 25 ranking in nearly two decades. Through 60 minutes of action, though, their perception is already on the rise.

Following its 48-10 victory over East Carolina in Week 1, Kalen DeBoer‘s team climbed six spots in ESPN’s power rankings. The Crimson Tide entered the top 10 after out-gaining the Pirates 487-162 and limiting them to just five first downs in their matchup.

ESPN’s Andrea Adelson broke down Alabama’s leap and quarterback Keelon Russell’s strong starting debut:

Russell showed exactly why his coaches have raved about his natural playmaking ability. [He] threw for 249 yards… but it was [his] ability to take off and run that helped the Crimson Tide open up their ground game. Russell led Alabama with 86 yards on 13 carries — some on designed runs, some on scrambles — and the Crimson Tide finished with 227 yards rushing, a huge step in fixing their biggest flaw from a year ago.

The Crimson Tide averaged 104.1 rushing yards per game in 2025, the second-lowest figure in the SEC. Their 227 rushing yards versus East Carolina were a nice start, but their performance on the ground against the Kentucky Wildcats this weekend will be the first true indication of them potentially having fixed their woes.

Alabama and Kentucky kick off at 3:30 p.m. E.T. on Saturday (ABC).