Alabama Players Recount Past CFP Experiences Ahead of Oklahoma Game

Crimson Tide left tackle Kadyn Proctor played in the 2024 Rose Bowl, while wide receiver Germie Bernard reached the National Championship at Washington.

Sep 7, 2024; Tuscaloosa, Alabama, USA; Alabama Crimson Tide head coach Kalen DeBoer talks to wide receiver Germie Bernard (5) at Bryant-Denny Stadium. Alabama won 42-16. Mandatory Credit: Gary Cosby Jr.-Imagn Images | Gary Cosby Jr.-Imagn Images

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — A lot has changed since Alabama's last College Football Playoff appearance.

Following the 2024 Rose Bowl loss to Michigan, longtime Crimson Tide head coach Nick Saban retired, two days later UA named Kalen DeBoer his successor, a couple dozen players transferred and Alabama missed the 2024-25 CFP after finishing with under 10 wins for the first time since 2007.

Fast forward to today, Alabama is back in the 12-team postseason and will face Oklahoma on the road on Friday. The Crimson Tide's roster looks a lot different than the Rose Bowl team, but left tackle Kadyn Proctor is a member of both. The junior shared the message that he's given his teammates about the CFP.

"Really it's just a whole other season," Proctor said during Tuesday's press conference. "No matter how bad your body feels, you've just got to push through it. Like I said, it's another season, the preparation isn't really different at all. Just new teams. New players. Really just got to focus on the preparation throughout that week and go 1-0."

In terms of preparation for this high-stakes contest, Proctor stress that "it's all the same" as other games.

"It's the College Football Playoff," Proctor said. "We already know the task at hand. We know the team we're playing. We know how to prepare each week. It's really just the same as Week 1 to Week 15. It's the same thing."

While Proctor has played in the CFP semifinal, he is yet to reach the National Championship. DeBoer came to Alabama after leading Washington to an appearance in the title game. Following DeBoer's move to Tuscaloosa, numerous Huskies joined him, including wide receiver Germie Bernard.

Bernard, who DeBoer labeled as the most consistent player on Alabama's entire roster, deliberated if Washington's CFP preparation was different than the Crimson Tide's current approach.

"Obviously, you know, you evolve and learn new things as a person, but coach DeBoer, he's the same person," Bernard said. "He's going to prepare as hard as whatever it is.

"Whether we're playing the University of Lousiana Monroe or we're playing Ohio State. It really doesn't matter about who we're playing or what type of game it is or whether we're in the playoffs or not. He's going to prepare just how he always does."

Alabama's first-round matchup against Oklahoma is set to kick off on Friday at 7 p.m. CT in Gaylord Family Oklahoma Memorial Stadium on ESPN and ABC.

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