DALLAS – The No. 1 team in the nation, the Alabama Crimson Tide, rolled into town on Sunday in anticipation of its December 31 matchup with the No. 4 Cincinnati Bearcats in the 2021 College Football Playoff Semifinal at the 86th Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic.

The Crimson Tide arrived at its team hotel shortly after 11 a.m. CT, returning to a familiar location in Dallas. Alabama resided in the same team hotel last December prior to winning its CFP Semifinal appearance against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish at the 2021 College Football Playoff Semifinal at the Rose Bowl Game Presented by Capital One, held at AT&T Stadium.

"Oh, it's special to play here," said Alabama head coach Nick Saban said during his media Zoom press conference on Sunday. "It's a special stadium. It's a special city. It's a special place. There's a lot of special people here that do a great job of making this very accommodating for the players in a very positive way. I think, you know, playing in this atmosphere and environment here in the past has been, you know, a great experience for our players. So, we're excited to be here."

Alabama, the Southeastern Conference champion, finished the 2021 regular season with a record of 12-1, including 7-1 in league play. The Crimson Tide defeated the Georgia Bulldogs 41-24 in its last outing on December 4 at the SEC Football Championship Game in Atlanta.

This year's matchup marks the fifth meeting between Alabama and Cincinnati and the first since 1990 when the Crimson Tide defeated the Bearcats, 45-7, in Birmingham, Ala. The Tide is undefeated all-time against Cincinnati.

On Sunday afternoon, the Crimson Tide conducted its first practice in North Texas when it worked for approximately 90 minutes at Ford Center at The Star, the Dallas Cowboys' practice facility, located in Frisco, Texas. Alabama will conduct upcoming practices this week at AT&T Stadium. However, the Ford Center at The Star was the locale for Sunday's practice as AT&T Stadium was not available due to the Dallas Cowboys hosting the Washington Football Team in a Week 16 matchup in the National Football League schedule.

"I think we had good practices before Christmas, but I think that it's time for everybody to realize that, you know, we're here in Dallas," Saban said. "You know, now is the time. It's game week. We need to get ready to roll and get recentered for what we want to try to accomplish and what we want to try to do. I think the legacy of any team is how you finish, and that's how you'll be remembered. So, it's a great opportunity that our players have, and now it's time to focus on taking advantage of it."

The 2021 College Football Playoff Semifinal at the 86th Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic is Friday, Dec. 31 at 2:30 p.m. CST on ESPN and ESPN Radio. Kickoff is slated for 2:40 p.m.
This year's Classic is a part of the ESPN bowl lineup for the eighth straight year. Sean McDonough and Todd Blackledge are set to the call the action from the booth with Molly McGrath and Laura Rutledge reporting from the sidelines.
ESPN Radio returns as the Classic's national radio partner for the eighth consecutive year with Sean Kelley and Barrett Jones in the booth and Ian Fitzsimmons on the sidelines to describe all the action from AT&T Stadium.