After 13 games we're 9-4. Let's revisit our thoughts and outlook on Coach Kalen DeBoer

cdub55

1st Team
Aug 13, 2024
831
1,718
157
Alabama
I think the truth lies somewhere between the "fire CKD" crowd and the "congrats on a great record breaking year" crowd. Did CKD have some extreme landmines coming into this job? Absolutely. Did CKD walk into a job where he already had enough talent on campus to win? Absolutely. We all saw some good things and some bad things. The challenge moving forward is to implement his culture and start getting his guys to buying in to the team mentality that he is trying to build. Hopefully one of the pillars of that is increasing discipline and mindset, which is something we have seen is an issue this year. I don't think CKD deserves to be showered in praise due to some massive failures this year but I also think we owe him some time to implement his culture and get players in town more suited for his style of play. I think it will be interesting to see how the offense evolves next season as CKD was hired under the guise of being an offensive genius. This season has been well short of that and things need to be ramped up quite dramatically in that area as well. His MO is being a players coach and loving on the kids. Nothing wrong with that, if that is his style but he would be best suited to hire some assistant coaches that aren't afraid to stick a foot where the sun doesn't shine. Cake and ice cream tastes great but it doesn't win you many football games. A coaching staff is like Tetris, you need all the pieces in place for it to work. Too many lovey dovey coaches on staff can create a soft and undisciplined team. With all that being said, I think the correct answer again is to wait and see...
 
  • Like
Reactions: graydogg85

Bamabuzzard

FB Moderator
Staff member
Aug 15, 2004
32,789
26,964
337
49
Where ever there's BBQ, Bourbon & Football
I think the truth lies somewhere between the "fire CKD" crowd and the "congrats on a great record breaking year" crowd. Did CKD have some extreme landmines coming into this job? Absolutely. Did CKD walk into a job where he already had enough talent on campus to win? Absolutely. We all saw some good things and some bad things. The challenge moving forward is to implement his culture and start getting his guys to buying in to the team mentality that he is trying to build. Hopefully one of the pillars of that is increasing discipline and mindset, which is something we have seen is an issue this year. I don't think CKD deserves to be showered in praise due to some massive failures this year but I also think we owe him some time to implement his culture and get players in town more suited for his style of play. I think it will be interesting to see how the offense evolves next season as CKD was hired under the guise of being an offensive genius. This season has been well short of that and things need to be ramped up quite dramatically in that area as well. His MO is being a players coach and loving on the kids. Nothing wrong with that, if that is his style but he would be best suited to hire some assistant coaches that aren't afraid to stick a foot where the sun doesn't shine. Cake and ice cream tastes great but it doesn't win you many football games. A coaching staff is like Tetris, you need all the pieces in place for it to work. Too many lovey dovey coaches on staff can create a soft and undisciplined team. With all that being said, I think the correct answer again is to wait and see...
As a coach, this year reinforces what I tell my parents and my players, that talent alone doesn't win baseball games (nor football games). The most talented teams aren't guaranteed wins. They still have to do the same things the less talented teams have to do in order to win and when they don't, those talented teams lose. I think Bama experienced that this season, we had enough talent to go 11-1/10-2 but the staff didn't reinforce to them the "little things" and they got caught with their pants down twice (Vandy/OU) and it cost them. Hopefully a lot of lessons were learned this year by not only the players but the coaching staff. The SEC "ain't no" joke, it is a meat grinder that will eat you alive if you don't come prepared every week.
 

cdub55

1st Team
Aug 13, 2024
831
1,718
157
Alabama
As a coach, this year reinforces what I tell my parents and my players, that talent alone doesn't win baseball games (nor football games). The most talented teams aren't guaranteed wins. They still have to do the same things the less talented teams have to do in order to win and when they don't, those talented teams lose. I think Bama experienced that this season, we had enough talent to go 11-1/10-2 but the staff didn't reinforce to them the "little things" and they got caught with their pants down twice (Vandy/OU) and it cost them. Hopefully a lot of lessons were learned this year by not only the players but the coaching staff. The SEC "ain't no" joke, it is a meat grinder that will eat you alive if you don't come prepared every week.
Trust me, I totally get that and agree. I still see things that are not being reinforced such as ball security that makes me cringe. A culture of discipline, togetherness, accountability, and that has a positive growth mindset will dominate a team full of me-me guys who can run 4.4, if the talent is comparable.
 

Bamabuzzard

FB Moderator
Staff member
Aug 15, 2004
32,789
26,964
337
49
Where ever there's BBQ, Bourbon & Football
Trust me, I totally get that and agree. I still see things that are not being reinforced such as ball security that makes me cringe. A culture of discipline, togetherness, accountability, and that has a positive growth mindset will dominate a team full of me-me guys who can run 4.4, if the talent is comparable.
The back drop of these undisciplined issues is they had also crept into Saban's teams' post-2020. His post 2020 teams were some of the most undisciplined teams under his watch. Last year's team was very undisciplined and if hadn't been for some lucky things go our way, Saban's last team would have been 9-3 and possibly 8-4.

But overall I do agree with you, it's CKD's puppy now and it's his job to re-establish discipline back into the program.
 

bvandegraff

Hall of Fame
Mar 13, 2014
5,135
5,779
187
Albuquerque, NM
Most predictions had Bama losing to UGA and LSU, and possibly TN. We ended up 2-1 in those games (the 1 being totally winnable) but still had 3 losses. The inconsistency was maddening this year but should have been expected given the volatility of the offseason (including locker room issues) and of this new era of CFB.

CKD knew the challenge of coaching in the SEC before he came, but foreknowledge is no substitute for experience. I expect him and the team to improve going forward - he has an excellent GM to handle many of the player personnel issues and will have more of the (hopefully more teachable) players he recruited to plug into the roster. I think I read that Russell is an early enrollee which will be good for the QB room.
 

BamaNation

Publisher and Benevolent Dictator
Staff member
Apr 9, 1999
22,131
20,182
432
Silicon Slopes
TideFans.com
Losing to Vandy is NEVER ok. Never. Under any circumstances. So that is unacceptable. The TN game was a 50/50 pick for me before we played. Hate losing it but doesn't tear me up. The OU loss is very puzzling. Lots had to go wrong in that game for us to get drummed like we did. Lots of failure that has to be dealt with. I don't know that I saw any dealing with it from our performance in the AU game. AU is just that bad.

This all doesn't mean I want CKD to be fired over it, but I do want to see major improvements in communication, commitment, discipline, and dedication to THE standard that everybody yaps about but don't seem to be fully committed to implementing over the last few years.

Maybe I've been spoiled. OK.
 
Last edited:

tusks_n_raider

Hall of Fame
May 13, 2009
14,399
18,058
187
Mobile, AL
As a coach, this year reinforces what I tell my parents and my players, that talent alone doesn't win baseball games (nor football games). The most talented teams aren't guaranteed wins. They still have to do the same things the less talented teams have to do in order to win and when they don't, those talented teams lose. I think Bama experienced that this season, we had enough talent to go 11-1/10-2 but the staff didn't reinforce to them the "little things" and they got caught with their pants down twice (Vandy/OU) and it cost them. Hopefully a lot of lessons were learned this year by not only the players but the coaching staff. The SEC "ain't no" joke, it is a meat grinder that will eat you alive if you don't come prepared every week.
The fact that the Coaching staff has had to learn this has left me pretty stunned.

I never thought the Pac-12 was an especially difficult conference but I also didn't think it was so bad that you could just not prepare at all and just show up and win....and that THAT is how HC's operated there.

How in the world did they think that would fly in the SEC?
 

tusks_n_raider

Hall of Fame
May 13, 2009
14,399
18,058
187
Mobile, AL
Losing to Vandy is NEVER ok. Never. Under any circumstances. So that is unacceptable. the TN was a 50/50 pick for me before we played. Hate losing it but doesn't tear me up. The OU loss is very puzzling. Lots had to go wrong in that game for us to get drummed like we did. Lots of failure that has to be dealt with. I don't know that I saw any dealing with it in the AU game. AU is just that bad.

This all doesn't mean I want CKD to be fired over it, but I do want to see major improvements in communication, commitment, discipline, and dedication to THE standard that everybody yaps about but don't seem to be fully committed.
Glad to see someone else say this.

Thought I was maybe going crazy to expect this from an Alabama team with so many just glossing it over and excusing it because other teams don't have standards.
 
  • Like
Reactions: BamaNation

Bamabuzzard

FB Moderator
Staff member
Aug 15, 2004
32,789
26,964
337
49
Where ever there's BBQ, Bourbon & Football
Glad to see someone else say this.

Thought I was maybe going crazy to expect this from an Alabama team with so many just glossing it over and excusing it because other teams don't have standards.
Not that it matters, but Nick Saban admitted that it was common (when he was an assistant coach) for them to game plan for a future game the week of playing a bad team. He said when he coached DB's at Ohio St they used the week of Bowling Green to game plan for Michigan St. He said it was common hat to do that. But, my guess is when he became a HC and it bit him in the butt several times, he stopped doing that. But, frankly, that type of stuff still happens. I'm hoping our staff has learned a lot of lessons this season and I really hope Nick gets to speak to the staff once the year is over and give his opinion on what he saw. I think it would be valuable information.
 

TideEngineer08

TideFans Legend
Jun 9, 2009
37,533
34,058
187
Beautiful Cullman, AL
The back drop of these undisciplined issues is they had also crept into Saban's teams' post-2020. His post 2020 teams were some of the most undisciplined teams under his watch. Last year's team was very undisciplined and if hadn't been for some lucky things go our way, Saban's last team would have been 9-3 and possibly 8-4.

But overall I do agree with you, it's CKD's puppy now and it's his job to re-establish discipline back into the program.
People don't seem to understand how bad we had gotten with discipline and fundamentals from 2021 on. We were basically costing on the Nick Saban process those last 3 seasons and that is the only reason we were still 11 win teams going to the playoffs or at least barely missing as we did in '22.

Now with Coach Saban actually gone, the process is too, and it bit us badly this year. That is going to have to be totally rebuilt, in whatever fashion CKD does so. All of this stuff, from the ball security to the bad attitudes, were happening from 2021 - 2023, but CNS could keep it throttled because of his history.
 

CrimSonami

All-American
Jul 17, 2011
3,447
2,578
187
Ardmore, AL; too close to 10erC
The back drop of these undisciplined issues is they had also crept into Saban's teams' post-2020. His post 2020 teams were some of the most undisciplined teams under his watch. Last year's team was very undisciplined and if hadn't been for some lucky things go our way, Saban's last team would have been 9-3 and possibly 8-4.

But overall I do agree with you, it's CKD's puppy now and it's his job to re-establish discipline back into the program.
Don't expect we'll ever again see the same discipline levels as during CNS's earlier tenure. If I'm not mistaken early on in the season CKD pulled JM aside after a TD and asked if he was okay when he didn't celebrate the score. Told him he WANTED him to celebrate that. Now we get choreographed dances, gyrations and hand signals that totally detract from the "act like you've been there" mentality that "used to be" ALABAMA FOOTBALL.
 

Bamabuzzard

FB Moderator
Staff member
Aug 15, 2004
32,789
26,964
337
49
Where ever there's BBQ, Bourbon & Football
Don't expect we'll ever again see the same discipline levels as during CNS's earlier tenure. If I'm not mistaken early on in the season CKD pulled JM aside after a TD and asked if he was okay when he didn't celebrate the score. Told him he WANTED him to celebrate that. Now we get choreographed dances, gyrations and hand signals that totally detract from the "act like you've been there" mentality that "used to be" ALABAMA FOOTBALL.
The culture has changed across the board and that was another reason why Saban got out. He realized he couldn't do anything about it anymore. So I don't put that issue entirely on CKD's shoulders because that is something across the entire landscape of sports, not just Alabama football. I see it on the youth level as well. These kids are growing up being taught it is okay to do things that bring attention to themselves and not the team.
 

CrimSonami

All-American
Jul 17, 2011
3,447
2,578
187
Ardmore, AL; too close to 10erC
The culture has changed across the board and that was another reason why Saban got out. He realized he couldn't do anything about it anymore. So I don't put that issue entirely on CKD's shoulders because that is something across the entire landscape of sports, not just Alabama football. I see it on the youth level as well. These kids are growing up being taught it is okay to do things that bring attention to themselves and not the team.
Agree. And I'm not faulting CKD 'cuz he's his own man, his own coach and has had great success in his style. The point I didn't clearly make, it appears, is that the permission granted to "celebrate" has been taken to the extremes it has reached. Do the jumping chest bump. Let your bigguns lift you up in the end zone. Spin the ball. Spike the ball. We don't need, or want IMO, the choreographed crap we're seeing or the wasted time to create it OR execute it.
 

BamaNation

Publisher and Benevolent Dictator
Staff member
Apr 9, 1999
22,131
20,182
432
Silicon Slopes
TideFans.com
Agree. And I'm not faulting CKD 'cuz he's his own man, his own coach and has had great success in his style. The point I didn't clearly make, it appears, is that the permission granted to "celebrate" has been taken to the extremes it has reached. Do the jumping chest bump. Let your bigguns lift you up in the end zone. Spin the ball. Spike the ball. We don't need, or want IMO, the choreographed crap we're seeing or the wasted time to create it OR execute it.
To me the "act like you've been there" and hand the ball back to the official is a MUCH bigger "in-your-face-dis" now than previously because everybody else acts a fool. So I would like to see our guys develop that "act like you've been there" mentality and that scoring, sacking, tackling, intercepting, etc. is no big deal.

But most of these guys if they have a coach that insists on that will be like all the yokels in MLB who insisted that the culture had changed and bat flippin' is ok. Count me not in that group. I'm thinking that there is a not insignificant of players who would rather "have fun" than win.
 

NoNC4Tubs

Hall of Fame
Nov 13, 2010
9,581
5,567
187
Don't expect we'll ever again see the same discipline levels as during CNS's earlier tenure. If I'm not mistaken early on in the season CKD pulled JM aside after a TD and asked if he was okay when he didn't celebrate the score. Told him he WANTED him to celebrate that. Now we get choreographed dances, gyrations and hand signals that totally detract from the "act like you've been there" mentality that "used to be" ALABAMA FOOTBALL.
IIRC, that was in a practice... :unsure:
 

BamaInBham

All-American
Feb 14, 2007
4,659
2,513
187
IMO, it has been a good year with hopefully more to follow this year. Alabama has a far better resume than Miami or SMU if it should come to that, who should have no chance and a discernibly better resume than OM and USC.

The two bad losses were after very good performances, UGA & LSU, with both opponents at home with 2 weeks to prepare. It’s hard to get past a certain attitude towards Vandy but they beat VT, Alabama, @AU, lost @Mo by 3 in 2 OT, lost 27-24 to Tex, lost by one score @LSU. OU has a top run D, they can be had by a passing team, and Bama was within 7 in 2nd half until Jalen (injured on throwing side since the USC game), threw the 2 ints. The point is that, though Alabama is much better than both, especially OU, the performances are not as shocking as they seem on the surface. Criticism is warranted, especially vs OU, but IMO, they did not “no show” as some allege. They were not as ready as they should have been and were caught by surprise and circumstances

CKD has a QB and OL that does not fit his system.

The D has performed above expectations, having lost 1&2 round corners and top backup, both safeties, 1&3 round edge rushers and this year has lost top edge rusher and play caller. Don’t have many one gap, penetrating DL. By some important metrics it has performed better than any Bama D since Pruitt in 2017.

Probably won’t really have his team until year 3, though we should have a much better feel next year, assuming he is able to find a legit QB, which is not as certain as many think. I don’t have any inside knowledge, but IMO, the reason another QB has not been tried is that
CKD thinks no one else is as good as JM, even a hurt JM.
 

alwayshavebeen

All-SEC
Sep 22, 2013
1,225
137
87
North Carolina
I'm kind of a bottom line kind of person and wins over Auburn, LSU and Georgia ain't shabby for the first year...basically 3 out of the big 4. I know the losses were unacceptable but i''m going glass half full here. I absolutely believe CKD inherited a good roster, but not what I think he wants/needs to do his thing.
IMO our biggest problem, and this is a 3-year old problem is our offensive line first, and discipline second. I believe those are fixable and firmly believe crucial going forward. RTR
 

Bamabuzzard

FB Moderator
Staff member
Aug 15, 2004
32,789
26,964
337
49
Where ever there's BBQ, Bourbon & Football
With one full season under his belt and another full offseason, it should do wonders for next season. Also, our 2025 recruiting class is coming in as very stout and our 2024 recruiting class has one year under their belts. I think we're going to see a big improvement on offense and honestly, I can't wait to see how the defense progresses with its second year in place. The biggest hurdle for CKD was the first season and it is basically over. We're playing with house money wrt the playoffs.
 

cdub55

1st Team
Aug 13, 2024
831
1,718
157
Alabama
IIRC, that was in a practice... :unsure:
The reality is this, programs are being built from a player-first, player-friendly, money driven and incentivized standpoint. Coaches are afraid to do the things that many have done in the past because of the leverage the lack of NCAA leadership with rules and regulations on transferring. It really is a damned if you do and damned if you don't situation. Lack of discipline leads to you losing. Discipline too much and you deplete your roster and lose because you face much more talented competition. Quite the conundrum coaching is these days.
 

graydogg85

1st Team
Feb 7, 2006
972
264
82
Huntsville, AL
I (among many others) had this team going 9-3 in the preseason, with losses to Oklahoma, UT and either Georgia or LSU. I don't think anyone saw Vandy coming, and I seriously overestimated OU before the season started.

I think a season with a new head coach, largely new staff, major roster turnover, new schemes on both sides of the ball, and a really challenging schedule is a smashing success if you get to 9 wins and beat Georgia, LSU and Auburn. Any further wins in the postseason are gravy in my book.

My time as a student at UA coincided exactly with Mike Shula's tenure, and I wasn't alive for the Bryant era so my view might be slightly colored. A season like 2024 would have been the stuff of dreams when I was in undergrad, or heck, even most of the late 90s and early 00s. I recognize how obscenely spoiled we have become in the Saban era, and I've been telling myself for years that level of success would not be sustainable when CNS retired. It was starting to look less and less sustainable during his last 2-3 seasons to be honest.

I do agree with others that years 2-3 will give us a better idea if CKD is the long-term guy that we hope he is, but I think this was a great start. Transition years are difficult, and with some frequency you'll see a first-year guy take a talented roster and end up 5-7 or 6-6. I think 2024 is a heck of a coaching job on the whole by DeBoer and his staff considering the circumstances. Of course there's room for improvement, but I for one am very pleased thus far.
 

Fubo TV Free Trial - Cut the cord!

Purchases may result in a commission being paid to TideFans.