Bama Game Thread: Official PostGame Thread - Bama vs. IU...

[AlexanderFan]

No one is pretending Saban didn’t have bad losses. Yes, games slipped away, teams underperformed and games were lost. But you are ignoring 1 important thing, and it’s not just you. Saban was only ever blown out once in 17 years.

Bad losses are one thing, getting run out of the stadium is another. 3 times in 2 seasons DeBoer has been run out of the stadium. You have to at least show up and be competitive. 3 times DeBoer’s teams have not been competitive.

No one is pretending Saban did not lose. Getting blown out is a rarity for great coaches, but it’s becoming a pattern for DeBoer.


I also agree that we can’t fire him right now. We are stuck with him for a few more years at least. I’m just expressing my disappointment. I was never sold on hiring him in the first place and nothing has changed my mind. I think we hired the wrong guy and we are stuck. I have no confidence that he will turn things around.

This is not even the same era Saban coached in, stop trying to compare. Coaches now can lose their entire roster with no recourse and absolutely no valid reason than the players wanted to leave.

Alabama has lost top notch players to the portal, trying to get them from the portal, and in recruiting battles.

DeBoer needs to adjust his philosophy, but to continue to hold him to Saban standards in a different era is wrong.

 

[Cruloc]

https://twitter.com/x/status/2006877462404411642

 

[gtgilbert]

gt, just by reading your posts on here, you seem to be a coach or someone that played at a high level. That being said, do you think if we widen our splits on the oline that could benefit our running game? We’re cleat to cleat.

perhaps, in theory, but it would be a risk also. A less mobile guy might have trouble reaching a combo block with a wider split and it makes DL stunts a bit harder to pass off across bigger gaps. It can also make pass pro a bit harder. We are probably a bit more narrow than we could be.

Biggest thing I would do is keep the WR formations further away from the box. That would make it harder for the D to disguise what they are doing b/c the coverage players would either have to more visibly cheat into the box or they'd have to come further for run support.

 

[tusks_n_raider]

This is not even the same era Saban coached in, stop trying to compare. Coaches now can lose their entire roster with no recourse and absolutely no valid reason than the players wanted to leave.

Alabama has lost top notch players to the portal, trying to get them from the portal, and in recruiting battles.

DeBoer needs to adjust his philosophy, but to continue to hold him to Saban standards in a different era is wrong.

How fair would it be to compare him to other Top HCs the last 2 years?

Cignetti has 1 loss of 20 or more points (tOSU NC)

Lanning has 1 loss of 20 or more points (tOSU NC)

Day had 0 losses like that in this time frame

Kirby has 0 losses like that in this time frame. Does have 1 loss of 18 points

Those 4 certainly haven’t lost THREE times by 20+ points

None of them got dominated by 35 points for sure.

None of them have MULTIPLE bad losses in that time frame either to opponents with 5 or more losses.

They all have to deal with NIL and the Portal too.

They all have to find players to fit their systems.

What’s the fair comparison?

 

[CrimsonNagus]

This is not even the same era Saban coached in, stop trying to compare. Coaches now can lose their entire roster with no recourse and absolutely no valid reason than the players wanted to leave.

Alabama has lost top notch players to the portal, trying to get them from the portal, and in recruiting battles.

DeBoer needs to adjust his philosophy, but to continue to hold him to Saban standards in a different era is wrong.

I wasn’t even talking about losing players to the portal. My goodness, Cignetti rebuilt almost his entire team in 1 offseason. Why can’t DeBoer? Why are people not answering that.

I also compared him to Kirby. I guess I’m holding him to the Kirby standard as well. I can dig up other current great coaches as well.

The only thing I am comparing is blowout losses. It’s a rarity for the greats, it’s becoming common for DeBoer.

We held every coach, even Saban, to the Bryant standard for 40 years, but suddenly 2 seasons removed and the Saban standard is trash. We just got ran out of the Rose Bowl by the Saban standard, but I guess it’s no good at Bama these days.

Tell me, which standard can we hold him to? The one that accepts blowout losses every season? Nope, I refuse to accept that.

I think that's what you would always love to see as the head coach, things we used to preach when I was at Alabama, about changing the way they think, breaking their will, and that's the best way to do it, running the football. -Coach Cignetti after yesterday’s game.

Yep, what a horrible standard to hold a coach to these days.

 

[tusks_n_raider]

I wasn’t even talking about losing players to the portal. My goodness, Cignetti rebuilt almost his entire team in 1 offseason. Why can’t DeBoer? Why are people not answering that..

Because they can’t.

I’ve made that point too and it keeps being ignored.

The whole Mass Exodus excuse carries no weight anymore.

Every team is dealing with guys taking off and having to replace them to some degree.

Cignetti had a mass exodus in year one too. He initiated it but still it was a big turnover.

 

[bamamc1]

perhaps, in theory, but it would be a risk also. A less mobile guy might have trouble reaching a combo block with a wider split and it makes DL stunts a bit harder to pass off across bigger gaps. It can also make pass pro a bit harder. We are probably a bit more narrow than we could be.

Biggest thing I would do is keep the WR formations further away from the box. That would make it harder for the D to disguise what they are doing b/c the coverage players would either have to more visibly cheat into the box or they'd have to come further for run support.

We do have sets where we’re all bunched up and things are crowded. I appreciate your input on what you’re seeing.

 

[BamaInCummingGA]

True - but with strength and conditioning you can also have guys in the 315-325 range who have the right power to weight ratio and right body fat levels. I don't think an OL made of Brailsfords can be successful. They just don't have the mass and strength. That said, an OL of Proctors also won't be successful. They can't move well enough.

Agree 100%.

 

[BamaInCummingGA]

How fair would it be to compare him to other Top HCs the last 2 years?

Cignetti has 1 loss of 20 or more points (tOSU NC)

Lanning has 1 loss of 20 or more points (tOSU NC)

Day had 0 losses like that in this time frame

Kirby has 0 losses like that in this time frame. Does have 1 loss of 18 points

Those 4 certainly haven’t lost THREE times by 20+ points

None of them got dominated by 35 points for sure.

None of them have MULTIPLE bad losses in that time frame either to opponents with 5 or more losses.

They all have to deal with NIL and the Portal too.

They all have to find players to fit their systems.

What’s the fair comparison?

I wasn’t even talking about losing players to the portal. My goodness, Cignetti rebuilt almost his entire team in 1 offseason. Why can’t DeBoer? Why are people not answering that.

I also compared him to Kirby. I guess I’m holding him to the Kirby standard as well. I can dig up other current great coaches as well.

The only thing I am comparing is blowout losses. It’s a rarity for the greats, it’s becoming common for DeBoer.

We held every coach, even Saban, to the Bryant standard for 40 years, but suddenly 2 seasons removed and the Saban standard is trash. We just got ran out of the Rose Bowl by the Saban standard, but I guess it’s no good at Bama these days.

Tell me, which standard can we hold him to? The one that accepts blowout losses every season? Nope, I refuse to accept that.


Yep, what a horrible standard to hold a coach to these days.

Because they can’t.

I’ve made that point too and it keeps being ignored.

The whole Mass Exodus excuse carries no weight anymore.

Every team is dealing with guys taking off and having to replace them to some degree.

Cignetti had a mass exodus in year one too. He initiated it but still it was a big turnover.

I'm your huckleberry:
Oregon has Nike money
OSU has a lot more NIL money than we do
IU has a lot more NIL money than Bama

Supply and demand.
Simple economics.
You got the money you got the players.

We're simply getting out bid.

 

[AlexanderFan]

I wasn’t even talking about losing players to the portal. My goodness, Cignetti rebuilt almost his entire team in 1 offseason. Why can’t DeBoer? Why are people not answering that.

I also compared him to Kirby. I guess I’m holding him to the Kirby standard as well. I can dig up other current great coaches as well.

The only thing I am comparing is blowout losses. It’s a rarity for the greats, it’s becoming common for DeBoer.

We held every coach, even Saban, to the Bryant standard for 40 years, but suddenly 2 seasons removed and the Saban standard is trash. We just got ran out of the Rose Bowl by the Saban standard, but I guess it’s no good at Bama these days.

Tell me, which standard can we hold him to? The one that accepts blowout losses every season? Nope, I refuse to accept that.


Yep, what a horrible standard to hold a coach to these days.

Cignetti brought a lot of his team from JMU with him, DeBoer lost half the team to the portal.

The guys who followed DeBoer have been the best players on the team.

Lanning, Kirby, and Day are well established at their universities. Day and Lanning aren’t going to lose a player they want to keep to the portal. This team was gutted of depth when Saban left, and it’s just starting to potentially rebuild.

Is DeBoer going to have to make changes? Yes.

Comparing him to established coaches who aren’t replacing legends and a coach who has 23 year olds across his roster is just wrong.

 

[tusks_n_raider]

I'm your huckleberry:
Oregon has Nike money
OSU has a lot more NIL money than we do
IU has a lot more NIL money than Bama

Supply and demand.
Simple economics.
You got the money you got the players.

We're simply getting out bid.

Where are you getting the information that Indiana is spending more than Alabama?

I can’t find hard information anywhere that verifies that.

Everywhere I looked has us estimated to be a Top 10 Spender and we aren’t getting outbid across the board.

It’s not just about money.

It’s more about miss evaluation of players on our part and not coaching up who we have.

Even teams that can cherry pick who they want still have to get guys that fit in the system and coach them up.

 

[denver]

Where are you getting the information that Indiana is spending more than Alabama?

I can’t find hard information anywhere that verifies that.

Everywhere I looked has us estimated to be a Top 10 Spender and we aren’t getting outbid across the board.

It’s not just about money.

It’s more about miss evaluation of players on our part and not coaching up who we have.

Even teams that can cherry pick who they want still have to get guys that fit in the system and coach them up.

I read this on CBS sports .....it seems we were somewhat against transfers last year...if this is true, and that could have been a major miss

Be more aggressive in the transfer portal​

Regardless of what happens at the QB position, Alabama needs to be more aggressive this transfer portal cycle. Alabama has prioritized high school players over transfer recruiting, which makes plenty of sense and is the more sustainable long-term strategy. The Tide signed the nation's No. 2 recruiting class in December, headlined by three five-star recruits.

But Alabama nearly took a complacent approach to the portal last cycle. They added a few pieces, sure, but I heard from multiple personnel folks around college football who questioned Alabama not being more aggressive in adding impact players. As one Power Four personnel person told me, Alabama would end up being aggressive in the portal during Year 3 out of desperation when it should be proactively doing it in Year 2.

 

[tusks_n_raider]

I read this on CBS sports .....it seems we were somewhat against transfers last year...if this is true, and that could have been a major miss

Be more aggressive in the transfer portal​

Regardless of what happens at the QB position, Alabama needs to be more aggressive this transfer portal cycle. Alabama has prioritized high school players over transfer recruiting, which makes plenty of sense and is the more sustainable long-term strategy. The Tide signed the nation's No. 2 recruiting class in December, headlined by three five-star recruits.

But Alabama nearly took a complacent approach to the portal last cycle. They added a few pieces, sure, but I heard from multiple personnel folks around college football who questioned Alabama not being more aggressive in adding impact players. As one Power Four personnel person told me, Alabama would end up being aggressive in the portal during Year 3 out of desperation when it should be proactively doing it in Year 2.

I guess that leads into it being almost two different but seemingly related issues.

1) How Deep are your NIL pockets estimated to be which equates to spending power,

2) How is it being used and in what % split between the Portal vs Who you already have vs an Incoming HS recruiting class.

Neither here nor there we are estimated to be in the Top 10 of Spending Power/Available Funding.

No matter the fine details of how that pie chart breaks down you gotta be more right than wrong in the players selected and how much you pay them.

Just as important they have to fit the system and be developed.

But I just do not believe we are poor little ole Bama who can’t afford to build a team financially and everyone else is beating us to the punch on the grocery aisle and all that’s left for us to choose from is ‘Great Value’ players.

The excuse making has reached an all time high around here despite numerous red flags all over the place.

 

[denver]

I guess that leads into it being almost two different but seemingly related issues.

1) How Deep are your NIL pockets estimated to be which equates to spending power,

2) How is it being used and in what % split between the Portal vs Who you already have vs an Incoming HS recruiting class.

Neither here nor there we are estimated to be in the Top 10 of Spending Power/Available Funding.

No matter the fine details of how that pie chart breaks down you gotta be more right than wrong in the players selected and how much you pay them.

Just as important they have to fit the system and be developed.

But I just do not believe we are poor little ole Bama who can’t afford to build a team financially and everyone else is beating us to the punch on the grocery aisle and all that’s left for us to choose from is ‘Great Value’ players.

The excuse making has reached an all time high around here despite numerous red flags all over the place.

Here you go for your reading pleasure....IU is #13.....Bama is #7

College football NIL collective leaders for 2025: NCAA estimates nation's top-25 spenders

Fundraising and donor contributions are not issues at these programs.

247sports.com

 

[Rocky Mtn Bob]

Biggest thing I would do is keep the WR formations further away from the box. That would make it harder for the D to disguise what they are doing b/c the coverage players would either have to more visibly cheat into the box or they'd have to come further for run support.

I've never coached football, but I wondered about this many times through the season.

 

[JDCrimson]

Its about that time of year to get another beg email from Byrne...

 

[Slowpoke Catracho]

I haven’t felt this bad since Mississippi State beat us 6-3 in 1980. Wait…. Then there was Kick Six and then getting beat 44-16 by Clemson in 2019. Well, I guess I’ll recover!

 

[editder]

I think star rating is irrelevant once a player has 2-3+ years of experience...IU roster is really OLD...average is somewhere in the 23 yr range...almost all their starters are 4-5 year players some are in their 6th year....by this time they know the game, are stronger, smarter and disciplined...having 50 of those on your roster makes a huge difference!

That’s how Michigan won their title in 2023. Much of the team was average talent coming out of high school but very experienced.

I agree with the star rating being irrelevant when it comes to the portal. Most of the “three-stars” were either underrated coming out of high school or are late bloomers who had not yet blossomed at that time. There are a lot of “three stars“ playing in the NFL.

 

[CrimsonNagus]

Cignetti brought a lot of his team from JMU with him, DeBoer lost half the team to the portal.

The guys who followed DeBoer have been the best players on the team.

Lanning, Kirby, and Day are well established at their universities. Day and Lanning aren’t going to lose a player they want to keep to the portal. This team was gutted of depth when Saban left, and it’s just starting to potentially rebuild.

Is DeBoer going to have to make changes? Yes.

Comparing him to established coaches who aren’t replacing legends and a coach who has 23 year olds across his roster is just wrong.

You guys are hilarious. Everyone defending CKD keeps moving the goalpost around. Don’t compare him to established coaches, don’t compare him to guys that use the portal and NIL better, don’t compare him to the Saban standard that just whipped our butts, don’t compare him to this and that.

Who can we compare him too? Only coaches that make him look good?

I’m done. I’ve said my peace. Season is over. It’s basketball season now, MLB is right around the corner.

I’m an Alabama fan, not a CKD fan. He’s had 2 years to win me over but my expectations are even lower now.

 

[KrAzY3]

I was looking up some stats and I realized that Ty has the second most rushing attempts on the team. I know quite a few of those were sacks, but man that's bad. This contrasts with last year where the leader in both rush attempts and yards was also the QB. Also bad...