Alabama Crimson Tide:

Nick Saban won the SEC nine times with the Crimson Tide. The future Hall of Famer also won six national championships with Alabama. With that in mind, this might be the biggest pair of shoes that anybody has ever had to fill. However, if anybody is up for it, it’s Kalen DeBoer. 

DeBoer has been a winner at every stop. Under DeBoer, Sioux Falls dominated the Great Plains Athletic Conference. He also went 9-3 in his final year at Fresno State. It wasn’t long after that DeBoer led Washington to the College Football Playoff National Championship. Getting to that game, with that program, would have seemed impossible a short time ago. The Huskies went 0-12 in 2008 and were below .500 as recently as 2021. 

 

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Saban was a bit more defensive-minded than DeBoer, who has an offensive background. But Alabama’s offenses have been more explosive in recent seasons, and the team didn’t lose its defensive edge. DeBoer will look to carry that over. 

There’s some uncertainty heading into this season, but this roster is better than what DeBoer had at Washington — even if Alabama did lose a lot of talent to the transfer portal. 

Offense

The Crimson Tide originally thought they were getting offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb, but he was offered the chance to call plays for the Seattle Seahawks. So, DeBoer quickly pivoted to Nick Sheridan, the tight ends coach at Washington who was previously Indiana’s offensive coordinator. 

Alabama’s offense might not look exactly like Washington’s, as Jalen Milroe isn’t as accurate as Michael Penix Jr. But Milroe is one of the best running quarterbacks in the country, and he also throws a great deep ball. So, Sheridan should be able to build a potent offense around Milroe, who finished sixth in the 2023 Heisman Trophy voting after throwing for 2,834 yards with 23 touchdowns while also rushing for 531 yards and 12 scores. 

The Tide also have an elite running back in Justice Haynes, who will be running behind an improved offensive line. Alabama just needs some pass catchers to rise to the occasion, but it’s not like the Tide are lacking in talent in the wide receiver room. Most of these guys are unproven, but they were also blue-chip recruits. 

Defense

Saban consistently churned out elite defenses and last year’s group was 16th in the nation in scoring defense (19.0 PPG allowed). So, losing him is biggest on that side of the ball. But the Crimson Tide brought in Kane Wommack as defensive coordinator. He’s a tremendous coach and apparently wants to work off what Alabama was already doing. 

The Crimson Tide are going to be loaded on the defensive line, with Tim Smith and Tim Keenan back. They also have a lot of talent in the linebacking corps, including star Deontae Lawson. Alabama just faces some questions in the secondary, but it’s big that Malachi Moore is back. He’ll be paired with Michigan transfer Keon Sabb to make up a good duo in the back of the defense. At corner, USC transfer Domani Jackson joins a bunch of inexperienced former five-stars that Wommack is capable of coaching up. 

Outlook

A home game against Georgia is the biggest challenge on the schedule, and road games against Tennessee and LSU will also be extremely tough. But I like Alabama’s chances of winning two of those three contests, and it’ll be hard for them not to reach double-digit wins if they do. Alabama might have a new man on the sidelines, but this should be the same dangerous squad. A spot in the expanded College Football Playoff is in play. 

Pick: Over 9.5 Wins 

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