Alabama's football program is so dominant under Nick Saban that it reached the College Football Playoff national championship game in a self-described "rebuilding year."
The head coach called the 2021 campaign as much during an appearance on McElroy and Cubelic In The Morning (h/t Brad Crawford of 247Sports):
"Last year, we had kind of a rebuilding year, so we should have nine starters back on offense and nine back on defense but six guys go out early for the draft. So now we have five back on offense and seven back on defense, so that in and of itself creates a few more question marks but also creates opportunity for other players to shine in the program and contribute in a positive way.