He may have been a hand-to-glove fit for the University of Alabama football program in Greg Byrne’s eyes, but Kalen DeBoer has his reasons why Crimson Tide football fits him.
Byrne, Alabama’s athletics director, did not have to say much to get the 49-year-old on board as Nick Saban’s successor.
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He brought in DeBoer in less than 72 hours, and the former Washington head coach said Alabama was the lone school he would have left the Huskies to come and coach. DeBoer genuinely loves and cares about his coaches, players, and the Tide fan base.
The expectation that comes with coaching Alabama is winning and doing it at the highest level. Fans, players, and coaches want championships, and DeBoer is about that.
Before choosing the Southeastern Conference, DeBoer had a thing for Alabama while he was at Fresno State and in the 1990s. He revealed the Crimson Tide as his ‘dream job’ to Greg McElroy on his Always College Football podcast. DeBoer knew there was always something special about Alabama football, and he’s happy to be in Tuscaloosa.
Kalen DeBoer has been fond of @AlabamaFTBL for quite some time 🐘
The Alabama coach shares his first ever impression of Bama football and more in the latest episode 👇
🔗: https://t.co/st1OrnX79U#RollTide | #Alabama pic.twitter.com/2oYV6Py2Vk— Always College Football (@AlwaysCFB) June 20, 2024
“What I do remember in high school, Coach Stallings, with the championship team there in the early 90s and just, I remember there was something about that, him being on the sideline and being a South Dakota boy, just not having traveled around and definitely been to this part of the country, that just seemed like so far away and so outrageous to think about Alabama football, my next really next one that pops in my head, but 2017, coming here as a coordinator when I was at Fresno State,” DeBoer said.
“The environment, the energy, the game itself, it was special. You know, you could see it. I had a visual in my head of what it felt like, as this process was all happening, and the opportunity maybe presenting itself. I was very excited about that.”
The opportunity came as DeBoer got Washington to a Pac-12 Championship and a berth in the College Football Playoff National Championship Game in 2023. Coach Saban announced his retirement on Jan. 10 and DeBoer became the Tide’s new head coach two days later. He went through a very good spring practice with Alabama, but now he’s ready to show out in the coming fall.
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Stephen M. Smith is the senior writer for Touchdown Alabama Magazine. You can “like” him on Facebook or “follow” him on Twitter, via @CoachingMSmith.
