Another College Football Power Overtakes Alabama for Best Record of the Last Decade

After boasting the best winning percentage of the last decade for nine straight years, Alabama has ceded that distinction to another college football powerhouse following four-loss seasons in each of Kalen DeBoer's first two years in Tuscaloosa.

Alabama and head coach Kalen DeBoer are now looking up at another power program after ceding the best winning percentage of the last decade in college football. | Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

After boasting the best winning percentage of the last decade for nine straight years, Alabama has ceded that distinction to another college football powerhouse. The Crimson Tide have lost four games in each of the last two seasons, which has dropped them to No. 2 on the list of best winning percentages of the last decade.

Following Nick Saban’s arrival in Tuscaloosa in 2007, Alabama embarked on one of the greatest dynasties in college football, winning six national championships and seven SEC titles in 12 seasons. 

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— Larry A. Johnson (@R2X_Rushmen1) February 17, 2026

When Saban retired following the 2023 season, Alabama hired Kalen DeBoer as his replacement. The Crimson Tide lost four games in each of DeBoer’s first two seasons, a number the program has not reached in the loss column since Saban’s first season in 2007.

It may be too early to declare the Alabama dynasty officially over, but the program has lost the title of being the winningest team in college football for the previous decade, a distinction the Crimson Tide have held since Saban’s tenure in Tuscaloosa comprised a full decade.

Ohio State Buckeyes now on top

The Nick Saban (left) era in Tuscaloosa ended in 2023, and now Alabama has fallen behind Ohio State and head coach Ryan Day (right) for CFB's winningest program over the last decade. | Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

With five straight seasons of 11-plus wins, Ohio State now holds the title of being college football’s winningest program in the last decade. Their mark of 87.12% tops Alabama’s last decade winning percentage of 86.43%, with Georgia sitting third at 84.78% and Clemson fourth at 81.16%.

Although Ohio State has not won a Big Ten Championship since 2020, the Buckeyes did win a national title in 2024 and have made the College Football Playoff in five of the last seven seasons. If you remove the COVID-shortended season of 2020 in which they played just eight total games (and won seven of those games), Ohio State has not won fewer than 11 games going back to the 2012 season. 

Ohio State head coach Ryan Day has lived in the shadow of his predecessor, Urban Meyer, since taking over for Meyer just ahead of the 2018 season. In eight seasons as head coach, however, Day’s winning percentage of 87.23% is slightly ahead of the Buckeye’s 10-year winning percentage which includes Meyer’s final two seasons at the helm.

The Georgia Bulldogs have a chance to overtake Ohio State or Alabama if either of those programs stumble next season. | Geoff Burke-Imagn Images

Georgia won back-to-back National Championships in the 2021 and 2022 seasons, and has the third-best winning percentage of the last decade. The Bulldogs could pull closer to the top two of Ohio State and Alabama, and possibly even overtake one or both, next year if they put together a strong 2026 season. 

Georgia’s 2016 season, in which they went 8-5, will no longer count in their previous decade total following next season. If that season is removed, Georgia’s previous nine years winning percentage is 87.2%, slightly better than Ohio State’s previous decade winning percentage. 

With its move to the Football Bowl Subdivision ranks starting in 2022, James Madison is now eligible to rank on this list, and currently stands at No. 5 with a 78.4% total following a 2025 season in which the Dukes went 12-2 and earned a berth in the College Football Playoff. The majority of James Madison’s record over the last decade, however, includes competition at the Football Championship Subdivision level, including the 2016 season in which they went 14-1 and won the FCS National Championship.

If James Madison is going to stay among the Top 5 winningest teams of the last decade, it will need to recreate the 2025 season's success. | Craig Strobeck-Imagn Images

Ohio State will have its work cut out for it next season to maintain its spot atop the list of winningest college football programs of the last decade. The Buckeyes play one of the most difficult schedules in the Big Ten next season, and have a date with the Texas Longhorns in Austin in the early part of their non-conference schedule in September.

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