Ahead of Friday's College Football Playoff semifinal against Cincinnati, Alabama coach Nick Saban said that the midseason loss to Texas A&M allowed the team to reset before its run to No. 1 in the country.
In October, the Aggies became the first unranked team since 2007 to beat Alabama after a dramatic last-second field goal sealed Texas A&M's 41–38 victory.
“... That was certainly a difficult environment to play in,” Saban said, per Bama Central. “So, I think we matured some as a team. I think we gained a little respect for what it takes to be successful, and I think our players have done a little bit better job of trying to create the right habits so that they could play with consistency and performance, which, you know, sort of defines success, and they had to overcome a lot of adversity to be here.