Kalen DeBoer's Job Is Apparently 'On The Line' Against Oklahoma
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Being the man to follow-up Nick Saban is no easy task. And according to one former Alabama star, the clock is already ticking on Kalen DeBoer heading into next week’s Playoff.
As the 51-year-old continues to the feel the pressure from the school’s alumni and fans, he also finds himself entangled in some high-profile coaching carousel rumors following Michigan’s dismissal of head coach Sherrone Moore.
But the Crimson Tide just haven’t played up to standard thus far under DeBoer — despite winning 19 games over his first two years. And that led to some pretty frank comments from ex-Bama running back Damien Harris on CBS Sports HQ.
Damien Harris predicts Kalen DeBoer’s job ‘in jeopardy’ with loss to OU
“In my opinion, I think his job is on the line with this game, and I think there’s a lot of reasons why,” Harris said Friday. “… Listen, this isn’t the tradition, this isn’t the history that Alabama fans are used to. This isn’t the standard of excellence that’s used to being had in Tuscaloosa at the University of Alabama — people are still talking about that.”
“… I know it’s Year 2, I know we’re talking about needing to give coaches time, but when we’re talking about the University of Alabama and the legacy that needs to be set, … and Kalen DeBoer needs to put his own DNA on that. We’re not seeing that right now. We’re seeing a team that’s full of a lot of potential, has a lot of talent, a lot of resources, but they just haven’t lived up to the billing quite yet during the Kalen DeBoer tenure,” Harris continued.
“… All that being said, I think Kalen DeBoer’s job will be in a little bit of jeopardy going into next season if they don’t win this football game.”
Bama legend AJ McCarron agrees, calls for ‘some grace’
Despite agreeing with a lot of what Harris said, two-time national champion AJ McCarron also called on the Tide’s fans to give DeBoer a little room to grow.
“Listen, I agree with Damien, right, there’s a standard of being at Alabama, there’s a certain pressure that comes with the job. There also needs to be some grace in this situation as well, because … there were a ton of big-name coaches — from people that I’ve heard from — that turned this job down, that didn’t want this challenge,” McCarron added.
“I think it says a lot for Coach Kalen DeBoer that he was the man that took the job and didn’t pass it up, and said, ‘Hey, I’ll take the challenge, put it on my shoulders and let me see what I can do with it.’ … I think that says a lot about him as a person and as a coach, and the guys on the team believe in him.”
Oklahoma has won two straight against DeBoer and nearly knocked Bama out of the Playoff race this year. We’ll see if Brent Venables can make it three straight at Bryant-Denny next weekend after posting victories in the program’s last four games of the regular season against three ranked SEC opponents.
This story was originally published by The Spun on Dec 14, 2025, where it first appeared in the College Football section. Add The Spun as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
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