Paul Finebaum believes Kalen DeBoer's biggest problem at Alabama is 'the shadow of Nick Saban'

Paul Finebaum revealed the biggest problem for Kalen DeBoer at Alabama is being in the shadow of Nick Saban. It’d likely be a problem for any coach who followed, arguably, the greatest college football coach in the history of the game.

DeBoer won nine games last season under the weight of tremendous expectations. But missing the College Football Playoff last year put DeBoer in the crosshairs. It was just one year removed from him leading Washington to the national championship.

So even if DeBoer is successful this season, it will be compared to Saban’s trajectory and the latter’s success. It’s almost a lose-lose situation unless DeBoer wins a title.

“They were not happy with the end of last season and Kalen DeBoer, they believe, right this second is going to get them to the playoffs,” Finebaum said on Get Up. “But the problem is the shadow of Nick Saban. I was at an event two weeks ago in Birmingham that DeBoer and Nick Saban were both playing golf at this Pro-Am, and DeBoer looked like a lilliputian compared to Nick Saban. He sucked all the oxygen out of the room in interviews and everything, and as long as Nick Saban is around, Kalen DeBoer will be compared to him and it won’t be a good look.”

DeBoer led Alabama to the ReliaQuest Bowl, a loss to Michigan, last season after missing out on the CFP. He went 25-3 at Washington, winning the Alamo Bowl in his first year, as well as the Sugar Bowl (CFP Semifinal) in his second season.

But there’s no doubt there’s a lot of pressure on Alabama this season. Considering DeBoer’s squad is No. 3 in ESPN’s FPI preseason top 25, the expectations are there to make a big leap in 2025.

“I think a lot of it was just the early piece, just understanding what the timing of it was in January,” DeBoer said of Year 1. “I think that was the hardest part. The season and the ups and downs, I’ve been part of that. I think the first year is always extremely hard because there are going to be things that come your way that you just know are going to be hard to handle. And a lot of times, it’s the wins and losses that I’m talking about …

“But we’re in a good spot right now because I think our guys have really found out who wants to be here. They’ve really dug in deep. We’ve got a great mix of upperclassmen that understand what it takes, mixed with some young guys that either got their feet wet last year or are coming in and have been really accepted in a way that they feel appreciated by the guys who have gone through it. So I’m really looking forward to this team, this next 6-8 months.”