 Alabama entered the season as defending national champions , and began the 2010 season as the preseason number one team in both the AP and Coaches ' Polls . <unk> to win a second consecutive SEC championship and be in contention for the national championship , the Crimson Tide opened the season with five consecutive victories over San Jose State , Penn State , Duke , Arkansas and Florida . However , Alabama completed the regular season with only nine victories and losses to South Carolina , LSU and Auburn and finished fourth in the Western Division . After the regular season , the Crimson Tide accepted an invitation to compete in the Capital One Bowl in Orlando . Against Big Ten co @-@ champions Michigan State , Alabama won by a final score of 49 – 7 and captured both a third straight ten win season and top ten finish . 
