Kalen DeBoer explains what Alabama is looking for in spring transfer portal

The spring Transfer Portal window is a major challenge for coaches to deal with annually now. It’s an opportunity for movement, but with fewer players available than in the winter, it can be harder to replace those players lost. That’s particularly true for a coach like Kalen DeBoer with the Alabama Crimson Tide who is looking for a specific type of player.

As DeBoer explained this spring, while having a need at the position matters, it’s not the only factor that goes into the spring window. In fact, it’s also incredibly important to find someone who fits the program too.

“I think you’re just always looking to find the right person that fits who you are as a program,” Kalen DeBoer said. “Someone who can make your team better, our roster better. So, we have just a couple scholarships, really, available to us. So, we’ll be careful, and they’ve gotta meet all those areas that we feel good about – the culture of our team, the chemistry from within, the work that’s being put in.”

Part of this carefulness from DeBoer comes from a scarcity in spots available. After adding nine transfers in the winter portal window and 21 high school recruits in the Class of 2025, there are only a few spots available. On top of that, with the impending House settlement, there are questions about potential roster limits that coaches need to be prepared for moving forward.

“So, I like the combination of attrition and addition that we’ve had, whether it’s high school guys coming in. 18 of our 21 guys were here that we signed in December,” DeBoer said. “And so they aren’t gonna feel like freshmen this summer.”

The Alabama Crimson Tide have the 62nd-ranked transfer class in the 2025 cycle, according to the On3 2025 College Football Team Transfer Portal Rankings. That’s in a class with 24 players who have left Alabama overall and 11 who have entered the program.

“And then also, a few of the transfers that have come in and really done a nice job blending in, as well,” DeBoer said. “And defining their roles more and more every single day, asking more out of them from a leadership standpoint. So, we’ll be super careful on what we do with the portal. There are some areas where we do know if we have the right person pop up, we would take advantage of that.”

This spring, Kalen DeBoer has added two players. Both tight ends, Jack Sammarco from West Virginia, and Brody Dalton from Troy, there is hope they can add depth and compete for playing time for the Crimson Tide.