‘Those Days Are Gone’ — Kalen DeBoer Handed Blunt Reality Check As Alabama Expectations Dip
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Alabama coach Kalen DeBoer remains one of the most polarizing figures in college football after a mixed finish to last season. Going into his third season at the helm of Alabama, DeBoer is under pressure to return the Crimson Tide to elite status within the SEC and in college football, where the Big Ten has asserted its dominance.
Analyst Predicts Brutal Reality for Kalen DeBoer at Alabama
During Monday’s segment of the “That SEC Podcast,” analyst Pat Smith highlighted the brutal reality facing DeBoer at Alabama in the new SEC landscape since Nick Saban retired in January 2024.
“Realistic expectations is nine wins,” Smith said. “Is the expectation there to play for a national championship? Absolutely. That has not changed. But the realistic expectation is, seeing that schedule, adding that additional ninth game in the SEC.
“They also understand that the way that college football and that DNA is now produced on a weekly basis in this conference, I predict you’re not gonna see what Nick Saban or Kirby Smart did in the early 2000s and 2021-2022. Those days are gone. We gotta get into a new mindset, the nine wins are gonna be what 11 wins used to be in this conference.”
To further highlight Alabama’s fall from grace since Saban’s retirement, the Crimson Tide have tied for the fourth-best odds to win the SEC Championship next season. In addition, according to PFSN’s College Football Playoff Meter, the Crimson Tide have been tabbed to win 7.38 games next season.
Josh Pate Piles the Pressure on DeBoer’s Crimson Tide
During Sunday’s segment of the “Josh Pate College Football Show,” analyst Josh Pate piled the pressure on DeBoer heading into next season due to his grace period after succeeding Nick Saban coming to an end.
“Alabama is under a lot of pressure this year,” Pate said. “Last couple of years, there has still been this haze over Kalen DeBoer’s 2024-2025 that’s still kind of felt transitional. They were still merging their way off of the Saban Speedway, and they’re still on the ramp to the DeBoer Speedway. They’re fully over there now.
“The team that takes the field this fall is Kalen DeBoer’s players. The staff that’s on the sidelines is DeBoer’s staff. There’s minimal Nick Saban residue on Alabama now and moving forward, which just means your outcomes now are a total reflection of who Kalen DeBoer is.”
In two seasons in Tuscaloosa, since arriving from Washington, DeBoer has a 20-8 record, including reaching the SEC Championship Game, where Alabama was demolished by the Georgia Bulldogs, and the College Football Playoff, where the Indiana Hoosiers blew them out in the Rose Bowl.
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