This is an opinion column.

Alabama football appears to be having an identity crisis late in the season.

Is this a good football team? The Crimson Tide certainly didn’t look like much on the field of Oklahoma Memorial Stadium, which was later besieged by rushing fans.

What is strange and confusing is that a good football team has appeared in crimson and white in 2024. I even dare to say an elite team a few times. No matter how long ago and how difficult it is to remember Georgia’s first half, it happened. Same with that Missouri shutout. And that trampling of LSU.

Serious. None of that was a dream. It all happened, this year even.

But somehow on Saturday, Alabama lost 24-3 to Oklahoma, a team that was unranked in 2024, flappy and often unimpressive. A Sooners team that is good at wresting defeat from the jaws of victory.

Then Oklahoma crushed the same Crimson Tide (8-3, 4-3 SEC) that defeated Georgia, South Carolina, Missouri and LSU.

Well, at least the same players, coaches and staff.

The product, performance and execution did not replicate Alabama’s best moments or games under new coach Kalen DeBoer. Far from it actually. The Crimson Tide sputtered on offense against the Sooners (6-5, 2-5). Quarterback Jalen Milroe couldn’t shoot past the defenders. Oklahoma’s defense suppressed him on the ground. Then the Alabama passing game looked completely out of sorts.

Whatever happened to the offense that seemed unstoppable two weeks ago in Baton Rouge?

Alabama’s defense didn’t do much to help the offense enough other than an early takeaway. The Crimson Tide proved too giving, allowing 205 yards in the first half alone. Oklahoma didn’t have a business like them; The Sooners entered the game ranked No. 86 among FBS teams in rushing offense, averaging 143.5 yards per game. Then Oklahoma ran over Alabama for 257 yards and two rushing scores.

What happened to the defense that allowed just one touchdown over two games against Missouri and LSU? You know, the one who grabbed at least three takeaways in five straight games?

It certainly didn’t show up on Saturday.

The inconsistency of this Alabama team was nothing short of shocking. Just when you think you know what to expect, the Crimson Tide decides to surprise. Beat Georgia, lose to Vanderbilt. Beat South Carolina, lose to Tennessee. Beat Missouri and LSU, lose to…Oklahoma. Did that really happen?

Make it meaningful.

The loss to the Vols wasn’t necessarily a shock, but it stung. The other two losses fuel the confusion. The bafflement of how an Alabama team that can win big games can also lose some stinkers.

Both the losses to Vanderbilt and Oklahoma felt like a slap in the face, making you realize just how average this Crimson Tide team can be when it doesn’t play well. But if you’ve been paying attention to Alabama’s transformation in recent years, the blow may not be so shocking.