Alabama Crimson Tide The University of Alabama has 21 varsity sports teams . Both the male and female athletic teams are called the Crimson Tide . They participate in the National Collegiate Athletic Association ' s ( NCAA ) Division I as a member of the Southeastern Conference ( SEC ) Western Division . In 2002 , " Sports Illustrated " named Alabama the # 26 best collegiate sports program in America . Athletics facilities on the campus include the 101 , 821 - seat Bryant - Denny Stadium , named after football coach Paul " Bear " Bryant and former University President George Denny , the 15 , 316 - seat Coleman Coliseum , and the renovated Foster Auditorium , Sewell - Thomas Stadium , the Alabama Soccer Stadium , Sam Bailey Track and Field Stadium , and Ol ' Colony Golf Complex , the Alabama Aquatic Center , and the Alabama Tennis Stadium . National championships . Alabama has won NCAA Division I national championships in the following varsity sports : Rivalries . Main rivalries for the program include those with Auburn University and the University of Tennessee . The rivalry with the Auburn Tigers is especially heated , as the two compete annually in nearly all sports . The annual football meeting , nicknamed the Iron Bowl , is considered among the most intense college football rivalries , as well as one of the top rivalries in all sports — behind the New York Yankees – Boston Red Sox baseball rivalry according to " Sports Illustrated " and ESPN . Other rivalries include those against Mississippi State University ( baseball and basketball ) - ( Alabama - Mississippi State rivalry ) , Louisiana State University ( football ) - ( Alabama - LSU rivalry ) , the University of Mississippi - ( Alabama – Ole Miss rivalry ) , the University of Florida ( softball ) , and the University of Georgia ( gymnastics ) . Football . University of Alabama law student William G . Little learned how to play American football while attending school in Andover , Massachusetts and began teaching the sport to fellow Alabama students in early 1892 . Later in the year , the school formed an official team of 19 players , with Little as captain and E . B . Beaumont as head coach . Early newspaper accounts of Alabama football simply listed the team as the " varsity " or the " Crimson White " after the school colors . Headline writers then made popular the nickname " The Thin Red Line " . It was not until 1907 that the name " Crimson Tide " was used to describe Alabama . The name was supposedly first used by Hugh Roberts , former sports editor of the Birmingham Age - Herald . Roberts coined the nickname to describe the 1907 Alabama - Auburn game , played in a sea of mud . Although Auburn was favored to win , Alabama played well in the red mud and held Auburn to a 6 - 6 tie . Since then , the program has won 23 Southeastern Conference ( SEC ) championships and accepted 14 national championship s . In addition to the championships claimed by the university , Alabama has been recognized by the NCAA as National Champions for the 1945 , 1962 , 1966 , 1967 , and 1977 college football season s . However , those championships are not claimed by Alabama . On January 9 , 2012 , Alabama finished the season ranked # 2 and beat # 1 LSU 21 - 0 in the BCS Championship game to take the BCS national title . Although the NCAA only lists the Crimson Tide as having 12 national championships , the claim of 14 includes six championships from the period before 1950 that were retroactively claimed by Alabama . The team has also made 58 bowl appearances throughout their history ( an NCAA record ) , beginning with the 1926 Rose Bowl to , the most recent , the 2012 BCS National Championship Game . In those bowls , Alabama has a 33 – 22 – 3 record . Since 1913 , Alabama has 98 first team All - Americans , 29 consensus . In 2009 , Alabama also recorded their first Heisman Trophy winner , Mark Ingram , in the closest Heisman Trophy race . Men ' s basketball . Alabama ' s men ' s basketball program has a respectable tradition with numerous SEC Championships and players becoming NBA stars and international professional players . In the conference , it trails only Kentucky in basketball wins , SEC tournament titles , and SEC regular season conference titles . The men ' s basketball program has risen in stature nationally , achieving a No . 1 national ranking briefly in 2002 . The Crimson Tide has become a regular conference basketball contender much as it was in the ' 80s under the direction of Coach Wimp Sanderson . Under head coach and former point guard Mark Gottfried , the Tide advanced to postseason play for six consecutive years , culminating with the team ' s advancement into the Elite Eight of the NCAA Tournament for the first time in school history in 2004 , where the team lost to eventual champion Connecticut in the Phoenix Regional Final . In January 2009 , Head Coach Mark Gottfried resigned after eleven years at Alabama . Soon afterwards Anthony Grant was hired as the new Head Coach . Under his watch the Crimson Tide battled through a tough first year , finishing 17 - 15 and achieving a top - 10 ranking in points allowed on defense . Grant ' s second season with the Tide resulted in the SEC Western Division Championship , finishing 12 - 4 in the SEC and an overall record of 25 - 12 . They entered the 2011 NIT Tournament with a # 1 seed and made it to the NIT Championship Game and finished as the runner - up . The Crimson Tide was unbeaten at home with a perfect 19 - 0 season , a school record . In 2012 the Crimson Tide was a participant in the NCAA Tournament and finished its season with a 21 - 12 record . Women ' s basketball . Alabama ' s women ' s basketball team competes in Foster Auditorium . The team played its first game in 1974 and has since been a varsity sport . The team has had eight head coaches , including Rick Moody , who guided the club to the 1994 NCAA Women ' s Final Four . Wendell Hudson was named head coach on March 15 , 2008 , replacing Stephany Smith . The Crimson Tide has appeared in 10 post - season Tournaments for the NCAA Women ' s Division I Basketball Championship , including an eight - year streak of consecutive appearances in the tournament stretching from 1992 to 1999 . In 10 NCAA tournament appearances , Alabama has advanced to the " Sweet Sixteen " six times and the " Elite Eight " and the " Final Four " in 1994 . The most successful season was 1996 - 1997 when the Tide finished in second place in the Southeastern Conference ( 10 - 2 record ) and had a mid - season national ranking of # 2 in polls by the AP and USA Today ( November 12 , 1996 ) , and finished with a 25 - 7 overall record . The University of Alabama Women ' s Basketball program shares the national record with Duke University for the most total points for both teams when Alabama defeated Duke 121 - 120 ( in four overtimes ) in 1995 in the NCAA Tournament , a game that ESPN has declared as one of the " best all - time women ' s basketball tournament games " . Seven former players for the University of Alabama have made rosters of teams of the WNBA . Alabama has had an active player in the WNBA through every year of its existence . The current head coach for the Crimson Tide is Wendell Hudson . The team played its first season of 1974 – 75 in Foster Auditorium , but moved to what is now Coleman Coliseum the following season . After Foster Auditorium was extensively renovated in a project that began in 2009 , the Tide returned to their original home on February 13 , 2011 . Baseball . Alabama has a long winning tradition in baseball . The Crimson Tide is second to LSU for the most SEC titles with 14 ( including 13 regular season titles and one tournament title that was won in 1983 , during an era in which the tournament decided the overall SEC title ) . Alabama is also second to the Tigers with seven SEC Tournament championships , including the 1983 one that decided the overall SEC title . Tide baseball teams have participated in the NCAA College World Series five times ( 1950 , 1983 , 1996 , 1997 , 1999 ) , finishing second in 1983 ( to Texas ) and 1997 ( to LSU ) . Home games are played at Sewell - Thomas Stadium , known as " The Joe " to Crimson Tide fans . They are currently coached by head coach Mitch Gaspard , an assistant for two different stints under his predecessor , Jim Wells , and assistant coaches Andy Phillips and Dax Norris , both of whom played for Crimson Tide College World Series teams in the 1990s . Softball . The Alabama softball team was started in 1997 . They are currently coached by head coach Patrick Murphy and assistant coaches Alyson Habetz and Stephanie VanBrakle . They have won six Southeastern Conference championships ( two regular seasons and four tournaments ) , made 13 consecutive NCAA tournaments ( every year since 1999 ) and have advanced to the Women ' s College World Series 8 times , including back - to - back 3rd place finishes in the 2008 and 2009 series . On June 7 , 2012 , Alabama became the first team in SEC history to win the WCWS Championship defeating Oklahoma in three games . The team ' s current overall record stands at 708 – 224 ( . 759 ) . Alabama has won the SEC Softball Tournament five times ( 1998 , 2003 , 2005 , 2010 and 2012 ) . Golf . Alabama ' s men ' s and women ' s golf teams have become two of the top programs in the nation since head coaches Jay Seawell ( men ) and Mic Potter ( women ) took over in the 2002 and 2006 respectively . They have combined to make the NCAA Tournament 13 out of 14 chances since they arrived , and have each lead their teams to a Southeastern Conference Championship . Overall the Crimson Tide golf teams have combined to make the NCAA Tournament 31 times , won the SEC Championship 3 times , and have had over 30 players honored as All - America ns . The men ' s golf program finished 6th in the nation in 2007 while being consistently ranked in the top three in the 2007 – 2008 season . The home course for the Tide has been the Ol ' Colony Golf Complex since 2005 . In 2012 , the Crimson Tide has two of the best teams in the country with the women ranked # 1 , and men ranked # 4 , by Golf Week . The women ' s golf team won their first national title in 2012 while the men finished as the national runner - up . Gymnastics . The women ' s gymnastics squad at The University of Alabama first competed in 1975 . The squad did not have a winning season until the arrival of Sarah Patterson in 1979 . In the intervening 33 years under Patterson and her husband David , the squad has won 6 national championships , 8 SEC championships , 26 regional titles , and 248 All - America n honors . It has placed in the top 5 at the NCAA Championships 25 of the past 29 years and won national championships six times : in 1988 , 1991 , 1996 , 2002 , and most recently won back to back titles in 2011 and 2012 . Alabama has also won 8 SEC Championships including 1988 , 1990 , 1995 , 2000 , 2003 , 2009 , 2011 and 2012 . The gymnastics squad also hosts an annual fundraiser for breast cancer , where the crowd is encouraged to " Think Pink " and support the cause by turning out in pink clothing . As of the 2009 fundraiser , the effort had raised in excess of $ 750 , 000 . Gymnastics meets have an average attendance of over 13 , 000 at Coleman Coliseum . Meets against the team ' s arch - rival , the University of Georgia Gymdogs , often sell out . Alabama holds seven of the eleven NCAA records for the largest gymnastics crowds of all time , including an attendance of 15 , 162 fans on January 20 , 2006 . Alabama ' s gymnastics team competes in Coleman Coliseum . Track and Field . The Crimson Tide ' s Men ' s Track and Field Program has produced numerous individual National Champions , including Calvin Smith , the former world record holder in the 100m dash , Jan Johnson ( pole vault ) , Gary England ( shot put ) , Jeff Woodard ( high jump ) , William Wuycke ( 1000 yards and 1000 meters ) , Emmit King ( 100 meters ) , Keith Talley ( 55 - meter and 100 - meter hurdles ) , Andrew Owusu ( long jump ) , Miguel Pate ( long jump and NCAA national record ) , Mats Nilsson ( javelin ) , David Kimani ( 3000 meters indoor and 5000 meters ) , Kirani James ( 400 meters ) , and the 4 X 100 meter Relay Team of Richard Beattie , Brad McQuaig , Eduardo Nava , and Clive Wright , and the Mile Relay Team of Joe Coombs , Darroll Gatson , Tony Husbands , and Ike Levin . Individual National Champions from the Crimson Tide Women ' s Track and Field Team have included Disa Gisladottir ( high jump ) , Iris Gronfeldt ( javelin ) , Lillie Leatherwood ( 400 meters ) , Liz McColgan ( formerly , Lynch ) ( mile ) , Pauline Davis - Thompson ( 200 meters ) , Flora Hyacinth ( triple jump ) . Many of the track and field athletes at the University of Alabama have been Olympians . Coach Dan Waters is the head coach for both the men ' s and women ' s track and field program , assuming the position in 2012 . The University hosts the Alabama Relays and the Crimson Classic annually , which brings many of the top programs in the country to compete at the University ' s Sam Bailey Track and Field Stadium , built in 1975 with seating for 4500 fans . The renovation project occurring in 2012 is destined to make Alabama ' s track and field stadium among the best in the nation , with a track that is expected to be among the fastest in the nation due to its premier surface and wider curves . Women ' s soccer . Women ' s soccer was a varsity sport from 1986 to 1988 , and was revived in 1994 . Former Head Coach Don Staley had been with the program since 1994 , but stepped down at the end of the 2007 season . He was replaced with former Clemson University head coach Todd Bramble . The team has won the SEC West three times ( 1995 , 97 , 98 ) and participated in the NCAA Women ' s Soccer Championship in 1999 and 2011 . In 2005 , senior Libby Probst earned third team All America honors and the SEC Scholar - Athlete of the Year award after breaking almost every major offensive record in her career at " The Capstone " . The team currently plays its home games at the Alabama Soccer Stadium . Women ' s Volleyball . The Alabama women ' s volleyball is coached by Ed Allen , who was hired on January 10 , 2011 . The team has competed in the NCAA Women ' s Volleyball Championship in 2005 , 2006 , and 2007 . The team won the SEC Western Division Championship in 2000 and 2004 , and was the SEC Volleyball Tournament Runner - up in 2005 . In 2000 , the Alabama Volleyball team achieved the nation ' s best team - GPA among Division I Volleyball teams . Past coaches for Alabama Volleyball have included Stephanie Schleuder , Dorothy Franco - Reed , and Judy Green . Women ' s rowing . Women ' s rowing is the most recent addition to Alabama ' s list of varsity athletics . Mal Moore announced the addition of Alabama ' s 21st varsity sport in October 2005 . The women ' s rowing team became the newest varsity sport at The University of Alabama in Fall 2006 . The team was added due to the NCAA ' s Title IX and allows for 20 full scholarships . Taking only girls who had previously rowed for the Alabama Crew Club ( est . 1987 ) and other walk - ons , Head Coach Larry Davis built the program from the ground up . In the first year of competition ( 2006 – 2007 ) , the Tide defeated the University of Cincinnati , Creighton University , and Murray State University and also won medals at the Head of the Chattahoochee and the Head of the South . The second year ( 2007 – 2008 ) of competition surprised many as the Varsity 8 went on to win silver medals at the prestigious Head of the Charles Regatta in Boston , MA and also the Southern Intercollegiate Rowing Association Championships in Oak Ridge , Tennessee . The Tide again medaled at the Chattanooga Head Race and the Head of the South and recorded several match race victories against Southern Methodist University , Creighton , Murray State , Drake University , and the University of North Carolina . The team also landed three boats in the top 10 of their categories at the Dad Vail Regatta in Philadelphia . Within two years , the team has had 25 athletes earn SEC Academic Honor Roll honors and 16 earn Collegiate Rowing Coaches Association Scholar - Athlete awards . For the 2007 - 2008 school year , Women ' s Rowing won the team service award by posting the most number of community service hours ( over 1500 ) out of all women ' s sports at Alabama . Nationally , the Alabama women ' s rowing team has won both silver ( in 2007 ) and bronze ( in 2009 ) medals in the women ' s championship 8 + category at the Head of the Charles regatta in Boston . Other varsity sports . Additional varsity sports at the University include tennis , swimming and diving , and cross - country . The University supports both men ' s and women ' s programs in all of these sports . The school has had individual success in all of these sports , including Vladislav Polyakov winning national titles in the 200 - meter men ' s breaststroke in 2005 and 2007 . Ellis Ferreira was an All - American in tennis for the Crimson Tide who went on to a professional tennis career . He became the Champion at the 2000 Australian Open in men ' s doubles and 2001 Australian Open in mixed doubles . The University also has two cheerleading squads ( The " Crimson Squad " and " White Squad " ) and a dance team known as the Crimson Cabaret who compete annually at the UCA / UDA College Nationals . The Cheerleading squad won 2011 College Cheerleading National Championship . Club sports . The University of Alabama through University Recreation also fields a number of club sports of varying degrees of competitiveness , though most compete only with other teams from the southeastern part of the country . The club sports include men ' s soccer , rugby , wrestling , lacrosse , men ' s volleyball , ice hockey , team handball , water polo , men ' s rowing ( crew ) , cricket , cycling , disc golf , racquetball , table tennis , triathlon , ultimate frisbee , wheelchair basketball , water skiing , and bass fishing . The Crimson Tide ' s Water Skiing Team , Racquetball Team , and Wheelchair Basketball teams have the distinction of being among the nation ' s best , with national championships achieved by each of these teams . Ice hockey . Men ' s Ice Hockey team known as the " Frozen Tide " competes intercollegiately in Southeastern Collegiate Hockey Conference ( SECHC ) of the American Collegiate Hockey Association ( ACHA ) at the ACHA Division III level . Since 2006 , Bama Hockey and the Frozen Tide has hosted sporting events for the Greater - Birmingham area at the Pelham Civic Center . Lacrosse . The men ' s lacrosse team competes in the SouthEastern Lacrosse Conference of the Men ' s Collegiate Lacrosse Association at the Division I level . The team plays at the University Recreation Fields and is currently coached by Michael Walker . The team was founded by Steven Shipowitz in the early 1980s . The Crimson Tide made their first appearance in the SELC Tournament in 2012 , losing to the Florida State Seminoles 22 - 9 in the quarterfinals . The team briefly played in the Atlantic Coast Lacrosse Association in 2001 , hosting the league tournament that season . Rugby . Founded in 1973 , Alabama Rugby is the oldest ongoing club sport at the University of Alabama . Alabama rugby today competes in the Southeastern Collegiate Rugby Conference against its traditional SEC rivals . Alabama finished second in the west division of the conference in 2012 . Athletic academics . Alabama consistently fields student - athlete s who excel in the classroom as well as on the field . The University of Alabama is eighth in the nation for the number of " Academic - All Americans " since 2000 from all universities in the United States . Among Division I BCS schools in the southeastern United States , the University of Alabama is at the top of the list with the greatest number of Academic All - Americans since the year 2000 . Each of the University of Alabama ' s 21 varsity athletic teams scored significantly above the national standard of 925 in the NCAA ' s Academic Progress Rate ( APR ) of 2012 . 14 Crimson Tide teams achieved scores equal to or above the national Division I average for the particular sport , and 2 teams achieved " perfect " APR scores , which placed them in the highest percentile in the nation .