The 2025 Alabama football team has the talent to bounce back from last season's disappointment. The Crimson Tide had weapons all over this offense, but it was not nearly as smooth a transition under Kalen DeBoer's offense as it should have been. Now, in year two, DeBoer is reunited with offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb, and he should make things much easier for the Tide.
ESPN College Football reporter Chris Low wrote a massive profile on Kalen DeBoer as we approach year two of his time at Alabama. One of the biggest focuses was that Ryan Grubb came over after the Seattle Seahawks fired him. They have been together since both began their coaching careers, and DeBoer said the fact that they reunited has allowed him to push the envelope more.
“The more time you're together, the more aligned you are,” DeBoer said. “Everything you message internally and externally is going to be consistent, and the key, I think, to great coaching staffs and great teams is to tap into the strengths of everyone you have in your program. We have different personalities, different strengths, and different perspectives, and that's what makes it awesome.”
DeBoer and Grubb started at Sioux Falls together, but coached at three other stops: Eastern Michigan, Fresno State, and Washington.
Ryan Grubb jumped to the NFL last season as the offensive coordinator for the Seattle Seahawks, but after one year, Mike Macdonald decided to make a change, and he was fired. The Alabama football program needed some juice and excitement, and Kalen DeBoer pounced on it, grabbing him and hiring him in January.
It is worth noting that Grubb initially followed DeBoer out to Tuscaloosa before ultimately taking the Seahawks job. Since returning, he said he walked into an entirely different environment from what he had experienced a year earlier.
“I saw a bunch of hungry kids that wanted to make Alabama football great, and some of the things that were holding them up weren't there anymore,” Grubb said. “Transitions take time. Transitions take a ton of energy and investment.”
The key for Grubb and this Crimson Tide offense relies on what Ty Simpson can do in this offense. Grubb's scheme relies more on a passing attack with some balance in the run game and is not run-focused.
Jalen Milroe's strength was the run game, but with him now with the Seattle Seahawks, the offense will see much more balance. That familiarity with Kalen DeBoer could be the X-factor for the Crimson Tide this season.
