The Alabama Crimson Tide has moved up in the playoff rankings from No. 10 to No. 9 ahead of the SEC Championship game, which, on the surface, doesn’t seem like much but is actually a massive development.

Given the Tide is entering Atlanta with two losses already, there was speculation as to whether a defeat to Georgia could knock them out of the 12-team field entirely, especially when they were behind Notre Dame at No. 10 just last week.

Clearly, the Iron Bowl victory over Auburn on the road was enough to convince the committee of Alabama’s resume, which included a 7-1 SEC record against one of the toughest schedules in the nation.

The Tide jumped ahead of Notre Dame, another team that could be on the bubble pending the results of conference championship weekend, especially if BYU were to win the Big 12 title game over Texas Tech.

Moving up one spot likely guarantees Alabama a spot on the field, even with a loss to Georgia — barring an unforeseen blowout or devastating injury situation like Florida State’s two years ago.

Of course, the focus for Kalen DeBoer and his team is not on the rankings, it’s on taking care of business against the Bulldogs and winning an SEC title, which would likely net them a first round bye.

It’s gonna be an interesting weekend, and it won’t be long before fans find out this coming Sunday who’s in and who’s out. At this point though, it’s safe to say Tide fans can breathe a sigh of relief.