A year ago, Alabama’s 20-27 loss to Michigan marked the beginning of the end for legendary coach Nick Saban. The Wolverines went onto to win the national championship 34-14 by beating the Washington Huskies, coached by Kalen DeBoer. That coach led the Crimson Tide against Michigan in the ReliaQuest Bowl in Tampa and the results were similarly disappointing for fans of Alabama.
Defending national champions Michigan defeated Alabama 19-13 at the ReliaQuest Bowl at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa. A year after playing in CFP semifinal, Alabama and Michigan met again in ReliaQuest Bowl. The stakes may not have been as high when Alabama and Michigan last met in the postseason, however the Crimson Tide and Wolverines said they were excited about their New Years Eve matchup in the ReliaQuest Bowl. The game at Raymond James Stadium was a rematch of last year's College Football Playoff semifinal won by eventual national champion Michigan at the Rose Bowl. And while some of the big names have changed — highlighted by the departures of Nick Saban and Jim Harbaugh — there was still plenty of star power on the marquee.
Former Washington coach Kalen DeBoer, who lost to Michigan in last season's CFP final, moved to Alabama after Saban retired and completed his first season with the Crimson Tide with another loss. Sherrone Moore, meanwhile, replaced Harbaugh when the former Wolverines coach left Michigan for the NFL's Los Angeles Chargers and has experienced some ups and downs in 2024, too. That was before the big win in Tampa.
Despite losing three times and failing to get to the Southeastern Conference championship game, Alabama (9-3) was disappointed to be left out of the expanded 12-team CFP field. Michigan (7-5) finished seventh in the Big Ten, but entered the ReliaQuest Bowl on a high note after defeating archrival and CFP participant Ohio State.
It wasn’t an easy task to follow Saban or Harbaugh, and the ReliaQuest Bowl wasn’t not where the Crimson Tide and Wolverines hoped to wind up when the season began. Still, DeBoer and Moore went into the game saying it was good to be in warm weather Florida with an opportunity to finish a year filled with challenges. The game was the seventh all-time meeting between the tradition-rich programs. The Crimson Tide and Wolverines have each won three. It was also Michigan's seventh appearance in the ReliaQuest Bowl, which was called the Hall of Fame Bowl from 1986 to 1995 and the Outback Bowl from 1996 to 2022.
