Alabama football has won four of the last nine NCAA National Championships.
The Crimson Tide has lost just 12 games in the past nine years, and has picked up five SEC Championships in that span.
Coach Nick Saban has built a well-oiled machine that’s expected to win every time it steps on the field.
Unless you come from Tuscaloosa and “Roll Tide” were your first words, it gets old.
Nobody garners as much hate across college sports, and only one team rivals the disdain the average American sports fan feels for the Crimson Tide — The New England Patriots.
New England has become every casual NFL fan’s first enemy, and with another Super Bowl appearance in the bag, the dislike only continues to grow.
The Patriots have made the last seven AFC Championships and have made four Super Bowl appearances in that time.
Since Belichick took over, the Patriots have won more NFL Championships by far than any other franchise.
Quarterback Tom Brady’s face — and often Uggs — is constantly plastered on everything from Billboards to magazines.
And whether people are discussing his throwing motion on SportsCenter, or his hair on The View, he is never far from the public eye.
And the man at the helm — Bill Belichick — has put all the pieces in place without showing even slightest hint of emotion. Unless that emotion is disgust, of course.
New England can unite a country better than any politician can dream of, turning 49 states into hardcore Eagles fans for the better part of January ahead of Super Bowl LII.
From the heart of Broncos country to downtown New York, calls of “Fly Eagles, Fly!” can be heard from the living rooms of football fans everywhere.
Nick Foles has an entire new fan base, many of which had no idea who he was or what team he even played for before Carson Wentz went down earlier in the season.
Success garners hate, but the Patriots are on a new level.
It’s not just the winning, as Saban has been more successful at Alabama — even though it is at the college level.
The NFL is significantly harder to win at as a coach, just ask Saban.
In his two years as head coach of the Miami Dolphins after leaving Louisiana State, he finished just 15-17 before darting back to the college ranks to take the job at Alabama.
The Patriots have been the gatekeepers of the NFL, turning in two scandals in the Brady era — first with Spygate in 2007, then Deflategate in the 2015 playoffs.
And of course, Bronco’s fans are still bitter from the failed Josh McDaniels experiment.
Denver is still trying to erase the 11-17 record McDaniels guided the Broncos two in his just under two years as head coach.
And despite Brady turning 40 earlier this season and reports of inner turmoil, New England does not appear to be going anywhere anytime soon.
Thanks to comically marked up supplements and enough water per day to kill the average human, Brady seems poised to play well into his 40s — no matter who he’s throwing to.
And with backup Jimmy Garrapolo being shipped to the 49ers midseason, that seems to be exactly the plan.
He has weapons at his disposal — most notably Rob Gronkowski — but hasn’t had a bona fide No. 1 receiver since Randy Moss, who was recently inducted into the Hall of Fame.
Yet, undrafted players like Julian Edelman and Chris Hogan are putting up big receiving numbers since they have been catching passes from No. 12.
And high draft picks like Nate Solder and Malcom Brown have settled into their roles perfectly, leaving them with minimal holes to fill in any given year.
It’s not often the Patriots have a weakness exposed, and that doesn’t seem to be changing.
At least Saban has to restock every four years.
