The Alabama Crimson Tide football team just got an appraisal that will force fans even lower on Kalen DeBoer
Alabama Crimson Tide football coach Kalen DeBoer is leading the charge for a program that's not even included in the conference's top third.
The Alabama Crimson Tide football team just got an appraisal that will force fans even lower on Kalen DeBoer originally appeared on The Sporting News . Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here . The Alabama Crimson Tide ’s inability to reach the Nick Saban era “Bama Standard” under head coach Kalen DeBoer could test the fanbase’s patience even more profoundly this fall.
CBS Sports’ Brad Crawford ranked Alabama at No. 6 in the SEC, shutting them out of the top third of the conference, and projected trouble ahead amid what’d be considered moderate success in Tuscaloosa. Crawford claims, “Opponents now believe they can go toe-to-toe with the Crimson Tide offensively, and that matters,” and believes the team “doesn't cast the same intimidating shadow it did under Saban.
” Crawford had worries about the passing game, with the answer between Keelon Russell and Austin Mack in the QB room still up for debate, and the running game, while also believing one slip-up defensively means this team could get worse than a four-loss unit by the 2026 season’s end. “Quarterback uncertainty could become a weekly storyline if Alabama fails to establish consistency early with either Austin Mack or Keelon Russell. DeBoer's system works best with balance and efficiency, but the SEC punishes finesse teams,” Crawford wrote.
“Nine or 10 wins get celebrated almost everywhere else. In Tuscaloosa, that sparks questions about whether the dynasty can return. That's the burden DeBoer inherited.