Michigan-Alabama football history, series record before ReliaQuest Bowl

Michigan football looks to end the first year of the Sherrone Moore era on a high note with a victory in the ReliaQuest Bowl on Tuesday in Tampa, Florida.

The opponent the Wolverines must defeat to achieve this feat is a familiar foe they faced in the College Football Playoff this time last year: Alabama.

Michigan (7-5) will take on No. 11 Alabama (9-3) in the ReliaQuest Bowl at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida on New Year’s Eve at noon ET.

Required reading:Michigan Football Bowl game vs. Alabama: Time, TV, prediction for the ReliaQuest Bowl in Tampa

While the rosters have changed and both teams’ coaches have gone their separate ways – with Michigan’s Jim Harbaugh returning to the NFL and Alabama’s Nick Saban retiring – both teams are well acquainted with one another as Tuesday’s ReliaQuest Bowl marks the seventh meeting of both programs.

Here’s a look at the series history between Michigan and Alabama ahead of Tuesday’s bowl game:

History of the Michigan-Alabama Series,

According to Michigan’s game notes for this week, Tuesday’s ReliaQuest Bowl will be the seventh all-time meeting between Michigan and Alabama.

It will also be the third consecutive time the Wolverines and Crimson Tide have shared the gridiron in the postseason – first in the 2020 Citrus Bowl and then in last year’s CFP semifinal game at the Rose Bowl.

Michigan record against Alabama

Series record: 3:3 draw
Michigan’s last win: 2024 (27-20, OT)
Alabama’s last win: 2020 (35-16)

According to Michigan’s record book, Michigan is tied at 3-3 in its last six meetings with Alabama – with the Wolverines winning the last game against the Crimson Tide.

The first meeting between the two teams took place in the Hall of Fame Bowl in 1988. With 48 seconds left in the game, Wolverines quarterback Demetrius Brown had a three-point deficit and John Kolesar in the left corner of the end zone for the game-winning touchdown on fourth-and-3.

Required reading:Kirk Herbstreit chooses Michigan over Alabama in the ReliaQuest Bowl after his son chose the Wolverines

Michigan and Alabama did not meet again until the 1997 Outback Bowl, the first of two bowl game meetings between the two teams in four years. The Wolverines and Crimson Tide split both meetings, with Alabama winning in 1997 and Michigan winning in overtime in the 2000 Orange Bowl.

Then both teams’ only regular-season showdown came in Week 1 of the 2012 season in a neutral site game at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. The Crimson Tide defeated the Wolverines 41-14 behind a big day from quarterback AJ McCarron, who finished the game with 199 yards and two touchdowns and a pick-6 return from linebacker CJ Mosley. Mosley’s interception was one of three against Michigan quarterback Denard Robinson on the afternoon.

Since then, the Wolverines and Crimson Tide have only met twice: at the 2020 Citrus Bowl and the 2024 CFP.

In a back-and-forth between Michigan and Alabama in January in Pasadena, California, the Wolverines’ defense stopped Jalen Milroe in overtime after the Crimson Tide quarterback couldn’t get into the end zone to extend the game after taking a punt had received low snap on fourth-and-1 on a quarterback draw.

Play Michigan vs. Alabama

Here’s a look at the results of past games between Michigan and Alabama, according to the Wolverines’ record book:

Breaking News

Dellupodisabato

Leave a Reply Cancel reply