Week 1 was not the start Alabama was looking for in the 2025 season. Alabama football experienced an ugly loss to Florida State to open the season. Now in his second campaign with the Crimson Tide, head coach Kalen DeBoer finds himself firmly on the hot seat.
Nick Saban retired following the 2023 season, and DeBoer was named the new head coach. He had been a successful head coach in his past. He was the head coach of NAIA Sioux Falls from 2005-09, making the semi-finals each year, losing in the title game once, and winning three NAIA Championships. After time as an assistant, he returned to the head coaching job with Fresno State in 2020. He spent two years there before taking over Washington. With the Huskies, he led them to a 25-3 record in two years and a loss in the National Title game in 2023. This led to him getting the job at Bama.
Still, he was just 9-3 in the regular season in his first year with the Tide and then lost to Michigan in the ReliaQuest Bowl. This already led to some dissatisfaction in the fan base, but they still had hopes for an Alabama playoff run in 2025. Those hopes took a major hit in Week 1. They entered the game against Florida State as 14-point favorites. While they drove down the field to start the game and scored a touchdown, that would be the highlight of the afternoon. Alabama struggled to contain FSU quarterback Tommy Castellanos and lost the game 31-17.
The shadow of Nick Saban
Saban struggled in his first year in Alabama as well. They lost six times, including to Louisiana-Monroe. There is a major difference between the Saban situation and DeBoer. Saban took over a middling program that had just fired their third coach in seven seasons. DeBoer took over a program that played in the College Football Playoff.
Secondly, Saban turned it around quickly. In 2008, the second season under Saban, the team was 12-0 in the regular season. They lost to eventual national champion Florida in the SEC title game and then fell in the Sugar Bowl that year. DeBoer has already lost more games in the regular season in his second year than Saban did.
Next, Saban and the Crimson Tide won three of the next four national titles from 2009 through 2012. Saban won six national titles and lost in the title game three more times. He also had two other playoff berths. DeBoer will attempt to live up to that standard, but he is not on the right path.
The major issue might be who DeBoer is losing to. Saban was 131-2 when a favorite by 14 or more points. DeBoer is now 4-4. The shadow of Nick Saban looms large over the program, and if DeBoer cannot get out from under that shadow, he will be gone quickly.
Is there a culture issue?
Saban was known for his great culture at Alabama, with intensity, focus, and discipline. Some of that seems to be missing.
“There has to be more effort at a few different spots… There were times in the game in which a guy was not running with 100% effort to a ball carrier. There was a time or two or three or five where the wide receiver is not running the route at full speed. There were times when guys were kind of gliding out of their break. Ty [Simpson] thinks it's going to be there, and a guy doesn't get his head around because he's not going through it at 100%,” noted former Alabama quarterback Greg McElroy.
Even players who played for DeBoer and are now with a different program have commented on the intensity of Alabama. Damon Payne played under Saban in 2022 and 2023. He would continue under DeBoer in 2024, before transferring to Michigan for this season. Payne discussed how practices are different at Michigan compared to his last year at Bama. Culture can be changed. Practice can get more intense, and the message can become more urgent. The impact of that change takes time, and DeBoer does not have the luxury of time on his side.
Kalen DeBoer may not survive October
Alabama faces UL Monroe in Week 2, and comes into the game as 34.5-point favorites. The opening line was 37.5 points, but has been bet down. Alabama has not started a season 0-2, without the help of the NCAA vacating wins, since 1990. The last time they were unranked was in 2007. A loss here would make both a reality, and DeBoer most likely would not leave the stadium with his job.
Regardless, Alabama boosters are already expressing frustration with their head coach. The next four games may decide the fate of the head coach. After ULM, they host Wisconsin. They then have an open week to prepare for a road date with Georgia before hosting Vanderbilt on October 4th. Vanderbilt is a squad led by Diego Pavia, who upset Alabama last year, and has a similar skill set to Castellanos. FSU used a similar game plan as Vandy and pulled the upset this year.
They close the month with a road trip to Missouri, a visit from Tennessee, and a trip to South Carolina. If Alabama is 2-3 to start the year, DeBoer should start looking to sell his house. At the end of October, the team has an open date before hosting LSU. There is a chance that they are 4-4 or 3-5. If that is the case, the boosters will put the pressure on, and DeBoer will spend Halloween trick-or-treating, not coaching football.
