Kalen DeBoer 'proud' after comeback CFP win at Oklahoma

Kalen DeBoer had just started his postgame interview with ESPN sideline reporter Laura Rutledge when Alabama junior quarterback Ty Simpson came up behind him and embraced his second-year head coach by burying his forehead into the back of DeBoer’s left shoulder. It was a well-earned moment after the ninth-ranked Crimson Tide (11-3) rallied back from a 17-0 first-quarter deficit to knock off No. 8 Oklahoma 34-24 in the opening game of the first round of the 2025 College Football Playoffs on Friday night.

“Our guys have been in it all year long and … I’m proud of the fight,” DeBoer said, taking a moment in between words to embrace his QB. “I know I’m going to get that every single time we step on the field. We had to create our own breaks a little bit. We knew it was going to be a fist fight. We knew it was going to be a physical game, it’d be hard moving the ball, but you just got to keep playing.”

No. 9 Alabama (11-3) advanced to play No. 1 Indiana (13-0) in the CFP’s Rose Bowl national quarterfinal at 4 pm ET on New Year’s Day in Pasadena, California. The Hoosiers earned the top overall seed after winning its first Big Ten championship since 1967 by knocking off the defending national champion Ohio State 13-10 two weeks ago in Indianapolis.

After its slow start, Alabama rolled off 27 consecutive points between the second and third quarter before the Sooners (10-3) found the end zone again 15 seconds into the fourth quarter. But after both teams traded punts, Crimson Tide receiver Germie Bernard made a David Tyree-like catch over the back of Oklahoma defensive back Jacobe Johnson for 24 yards to set up a 6-yard rushing score by running back Daniel Hill to clinch the 10-point victory on the road. It was the first-ever win by a visitor in the opening round of the expanded 12-team Playoffs.

“We always talk about when your number gets called, be ready,” DeBoer continued. “These guys worked all week long, I really felt like they were dialed in. The critical moments, that’s the difference in our team this year than what we were in the past, and there were some critical moments where our guys stepped up and made plays. The players are the ones that bring everything to life and they did that tonight.”

Ty Simpson, Germie Bernard break down highlight reel catch which helped lift Alabama vs. Oklahoma

In the fourth quarter, shortly after Oklahoma scored a touchdown to get back within three points, Alabama needed a big play. Germie Bernard missed one earlier in the game, but he came through when Ty Simpson looked to him again.

Bernard made an incredible catch, going up and over the Sooners defender to get the Crimson Tide into a Goal-to-Go situation. That set the stage for Daniel Hill to run in the touchdown, which made it a 34-14 Alabama lead. It held as the final, sending the Crimson Tide to the Rose Bowl.

Bernard’s catch not only wowed viewers and made its way across social media, but it also seemed like a turning point for the Tide. After his miss earlier in the game, he said Simpson planned to go back to him. That’s why he knew he had to come through.

“I knew it was 1-on-1 coverage,” Bernard told ESPN’s Holly Rowe after the game. “This guy, he trusted me with the ball. Earlier in the game, I missed one and he said he was going to come back. I couldn’t let him down in that moment.”

— On3’s Nick Schultz contributed to this report.