Kalen DeBoer can carry the weight of expectations at Alabama

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — The hardest part about writing a new-coach story when the new coach is taking over for the undisputed greatest coach of all time is that none of the usual cliches apply.

Typically, we point out what the new coach does differently from the old coach. And since that new coach usually is replacing someone who got fired, we cast these changes as revolutionary techniques destined to alter the fortunes of the beleaguered program.

But what can you say when pretty much everything the last guy did worked? When his way won six national titles at that school and one at another? When basically everyone in the sport tried to copy him in one way or another?

So it would be pretty silly to point out that Kalen DeBoer plays music at Alabama practices — think Bonecrusher’s Never Scared and other early-century bangers; not the slop of the Soundcloud era — and suggest that new sonic accompaniment will somehow allow Alabama to be a better football team than it has been. Nick Saban’s practices, which were soundtracked by bird-chirping and ass-chewings, led to a special brand of symphony on Saturdays. 

In fact, every law of probability suggests it will be nearly impossible for Alabama to better than it has for the past 15 years in the next 15 years. Not because of any flaw in DeBoer’s organizational, recruiting or strategic capabilities, but because Saban was so damn good. 

So let’s skip that part. Let’s agree that any statement that insinuates that anything needed changing at Alabama is utter foolishness. The change happened because Saban decided it was time.

By the same token, we shouldn’t blindly assume that because DeBoer is not Nick Saban that Alabama automatically will take a step back. DeBoer has been an FBS head coach for three seasons. His record is 34-6. Include the five seasons DeBoer spent as the head coach at his alma mater the University of Sioux Falls, and his all-time record as a head coach is 104-12. There have been coaches who have lost 12 games in their first season in the big chair. DeBoer has won nearly 10 games for every one he’s lost, which sounds kind of like…

…and now we’re getting ahead of ourselves again. Because comparing anyone to Saban isn’t fair. And yet everyone will compare DeBoer to Saban because DeBoer now sits in the office with the door that closes by remote control and the hook that used to hold the Great Man’s hat.

Speaking of which, South Dakota native DeBoer is pretty pale. Might he switch from the ball cap to something that offers a little more coverage like the straw hat Saban wore to shield himself from the Alabama sun? “I don’t know that I can pull that off like coach did,” DeBoer said with a laugh. He also pointed out that his lack of — ahem — coverage up top also eliminates any chance of him donning a visor and attempting to imitate Steve Spurrier (or Kirby Smart).

That’s probably for the best. Any attempt at imitation won’t succeed. The only way this works is if DeBoer is unapologetically himself, if he’s the guy Alabama athletic director Greg Byrne identified as the person who might possibly succeed in the shadow of the GOAT. Fortunately, DeBoer has won enough to know exactly who and what he is as a head coach. 

Part of that is knowing that he’s not the only one responsible for winning and losing. “It goes back to what coach Saban built,” DeBoer said. “It ends up being bigger than one person.”

That understanding started back in Sioux Falls, where a 29-year-old DeBoer succeeded his own coach at a program that had gone 47-5 the previous four seasons. Of course DeBoer had played for Bob Young and then served as Young’s offensive coordinator the previous four seasons. So DeBoer’s ascension was a continuation rather than a shift. Still, the standard Young set was incredibly high. Any slippage was unacceptable, just as any slippage now at Alabama will be unacceptable. DeBoer went 11-2 in his first season and reached the semifinals of the NAIA playoffs. Over the next four seasons, he went 56-1 and won three  NAIA national titles. 

In a lot of ways, DeBoer’s takeover at Alabama is more similar to his takeover at Sioux Falls than his takeover at Fresno State or Washington. Those programs were coming off bad seasons. At Fresno State, Jeff Tedford had an uncharacteristically bad year and had to step down for health reasons. At Washington, Jimmy Lake had been fired amid a 4-8 season. The program still had some Chris Petersen recruits who remembered winning, but DeBoer had to add key pieces through the transfer portal such as quarterback Michael Penix Jr.

DeBoer can look across Alabama’s practice field this spring and see that he has what he needs to succeed. Quarterback Jalen Milroe is back. Tailback Justice Haynes is about to become a star. Linebacker Deontae Lawson feels like a throwback to Dont’a Hightower.

The freshman class Saban signed before he stepped down includes three cornerbacks who look lab-created rather than recruited. Caleb Odom, a 6-foot-5, 220-pounder from Georgia, signed as a tight end. But DeBoer and company intend to play Odom at receiver. Want to make Milroe smile? Mention the massive freshman towering over cornerbacks on the outside. 

Meanwhile, more five-stars are on the way. Ryan Williams, the receiver from Saraland, Ala., coveted by any program that throws passes, was one of DeBoer’s February signees. Meanwhile, the Crimson Tide hosted triple-digit recruits early in spring practice to give them an in-person look at how the program will operate under DeBoer. 

The message? Yes, it’s different. But the expectations haven’t changed. “A lot of the similarities, the core values, they are the same in championship programs,” DeBoer said.

He’s not afraid of those expectations, either. “That’s the cool thing about coming here, though,” he said.

I asked DeBoer a question about the “weight” of the job, and in the first seconds of his answer, he flipped the assumption on its head. It’s only heavy if you let it be. Yes, Alabama expects championships. But Alabama also provides a coach everything he might need to win them.

“When you think of it that way, it probably can be overwhelming and overbearing,” DeBoer said. “I just think it’s about one thing. It’s about coming in and being the best you can be. Whether it’s your attitude, your energy or your effort. That’s all I ask of our guys, and that’s all I’m going to ask of our staff. In return, I hope that’s all they can ask of me. When we bring our best attitude, energy and effort every day and we surround ourselves with really smart people — experts that have low ego — the results will take care of themselves. That’s been the formula for success everywhere I’ve been.”