CBS Sports named the Alabama Athletics Department the Best in College Sports for the 2020-2021 season. The Crimson

Tide is the first school in the Southeastern Conference to earn the title, and the first recipient to win the College Football Playoff national championship in the same year.

“Wonderful news to close out the 2020-21 season,” Athletic Director Greg Byrne tweeted. “Incredibly proud of our entire department.”

Last season, the football program won the SEC Championship and claimed its 18th National Championship — its third of the College Football Playoff era.

The basketball program was a powerhouse in the conference. After winning the regular season and the conference tournament, the team made a Sweet 16 appearance in the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament. Alabama baseball made its first regional appearance since 2014.

Alabama softball won a conference-leading sixth SEC title and capped off the season with its second consecutive semifinal appearance at the Women’s College World Series. The women’s basketball team made it to the NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament for the first time since 1999. Gymnastics won its 10th SEC title and finished its season fifth in the nation. 

The conference championships, NCAA tournament appearances and a national championship made it a special year for Byrne and the University. The Best in College Sports award is determined by a point scale, and the Crimson Tide finished with 583.75 points. Alabama’s score was more than one hundred points higher than the University of Oklahoma in second place.

CBS Sports uses a weighted formula to determine a winner. Every school is rated in football, men’s basketball and women’s basketball, along with two wild-card sports. The point system values football and men’s basketball more than women’s basketball and the wild cards in its weighted formula. UA Athletics chose softball and baseball as its wild-card teams. 

The Ohio State University is the only two-time champion. If the Crimson Tide repeats its dominance in the 2021-2022 season, Alabama could become the second school to win the award twice.