Was Kalen DeBoer truly the right hire to handle Alabama football in the post Nick Saban era?
The jury is out on the answer, but the players for the Crimson Tide love him.
College Football analyst says Alabama HC Kalen DeBoer puts ‘zero fear’ into opponents
Fans have been frustrated with the inconsistent performances from the Tide all season.
Alabama’s losses to Vanderbilt, Tennessee, and Oklahoma came because of self-inflicted mistakes on offense and defense. All three opponents capitalized on the Tide’s miscues and Alabama finds itself out of Southeastern Conference Championship contention and hanging on by the thinnest of margins for the 12-team College Football Playoff. Some supporters of Tide football wonder if Greg Byrne made the right call on DeBoer, but an Alabama team captain said Wednesday on “Hey Coach” that the program could not have picked a better guy.
Malachi Moore, a fifth-year senior, believes in DeBoer.
“The way he came in and aligned the way he did stuff with the way we do stuff here… he did a great job at allowing us to be vocal,” Moore said. “It’s been great playing for Coach DeBoer.”
Moore, a strong safety, spent his first four season under Saban. He was on a College Football Playoff National Championship team in 2020 as a true freshman. The Trussville (Ala.) native has three SEC Championship rings for 2020, 2021, and 2023.
He has 66 total tackles, 2.5 tackles for loss, a sack, five pass breakups, two quarterback hurries, two forced fumbles, and two interceptions this season. The 6-foot, 201-pounder is one of the best communicators on defense as he anchors Alabama’s secondary. Moore has a chance to finish his career five straight victories over Auburn in Saturday’s Iron Bowl.
Coach DeBoer looks to return to the win column to finish the Tide’s regular season the right way.
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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.
