JessN: DeBoer is building something: What it is, is the question

[cdub55]

My money is on the possibility that, in the wake of a disappointing season including inexplicable losses to Vandy and Oklahoma, the team as a whole realized that he wasn't the guy to follow. At least, not if you want on-field success and the opportunities that go along with it.

Follow the lead of Milroe whose draft status was an afterthought or follow the lead of Bryce Young (#1 overall), Mac Jones (#15 overall), or Tua Tagovailoa (#5 overall) who all put winning and the team first. What's good for Bama is also good for the pocketbook. Not a hard decision if you have any sense about you!

 

[cdub55]

One thing is many of the current players were either recruited by DeBoer, or he brought them in as transfers. I think players like CKD a lot. They like playing for him. They also like the assistants. Then there is Courtney Morgan, who maintains great relationships with players. So I'm not sure if it's culture or people. If it's culture, I hope it's a winning culture.

Culture is people. People is culture. Too many people think culture is what you say. It is simply what you do and how you do it...EVERYDAY.

Semantics maybe but the coach in me couldn't help myself.

 

[4Q Basket Case]

Follow the lead of Milroe whose draft status was an afterthought or follow the lead of Bryce Young (#1 overall), Mac Jones (#15 overall), or Tua Tagovailoa (#5 overall) who all put winning and the team first. What's good for Bama is also good for the pocketbook. Not a hard decision if you have any sense about you!

Your last sentence is the key. A lot of these guys don't have any sense of either where they fall in the world of NFL athletes or how to handle money.

All of them have a frontal cortex that's still maturing, so the linkage of actions and consequences is inconsistent at best. A corollary is the concept of enhancing your future (in this case 1-3 years out) with today's actions.

Additionally, not many of them have trustworthy counsel available. Even fewer have any concept of how to handle $1K, let alone $1M.

IOW, for reasons often not their fault, they don't have any sense about them, and don't have anybody who can (or will) help them work through that.

Culture is people. People is culture. Too many people think culture is what you say. It is simply what you do and how you do it...EVERYDAY.

Semantics maybe but the coach in me couldn't help myself.

Can't remember where I first heard it, but it's a great quote on management in general extending far beyond sports, "Your culture is the heroes you create."

In business, look to see who gets the in-house awards. Salesperson Of The Year, Branch Manager Of The Year, This That or the Other Thing Of The Year. Did the winners achieve ethically or did they find a way to game the system?

Then look to see what the awards are. If they're all the same (or at least comparable), that's a strong indication of a balanced organizational culture. If the Best X gets two weeks in Switzerland and the Best Y gets a plaque -- something I saw with my own eyes -- that's a strong indicator that the organization prefers Xs to Ys.

Then see if you can find out relative comp for a given level on the org chart. I'd bet a bunch of money that Xs get higher comp than Ys at the same level.

Obviously, the X skill set is way more highly valued than Y skill set.

If you're an X, that's great. If you're a Y, you either accept your place in the culture or go in search of another organization where the culture values Ys.

The last few years, Alabama football culture clearly favored a given on-field and off-field skill set. We'll see what the new one values. I'm optimistic but will need to see it to be convinced

 

[cdub55]

Your last sentence is the key. A lot of these guys don't have any sense of either where they fall in the world of NFL athletes or how to handle money.

All of them have a frontal cortex that's still maturing, so the linkage of actions and consequences is inconsistent at best. A corollary is the concept of enhancing your future (in this case 1-3 years out) with today's actions.

Additionally, not many of them have trustworthy counsel available. Even fewer have any concept of how to handle $1K, let alone $1M.

IOW, for reasons often not their fault, they don't have any sense about them, and don't have anybody who can (or will) help them work through that.



Can't remember where I first heard it, but it's a great quote on management in general extending far beyond sports, "Your culture is the heroes you create."

In business, look to see who gets the in-house awards. Salesperson Of The Year, Branch Manager Of The Year, This That or the Other Thing Of The Year. Did the winners achieve ethically or did they find a way to game the system?

Then look to see what the awards are. If they're all the same (or at least comparable), that's a strong indication of a balanced organizational culture. If the Best X gets two weeks in Switzerland and the Best Y gets a plaque -- something I saw with my own eyes -- that's a strong indicator that the organization prefers Xs to Ys.

Then see if you can find out relative comp for a given level on the org chart. I'd bet a bunch of money that Xs get higher comp than Ys at the same level.

Obviously, the X skill set is way more highly valued than Y skill set.

If you're an X, that's great. If you're a Y, you either accept your place in the culture or go in search of another organization where the culture values Ys.

The last few years, Alabama football culture clearly favored a given on-field and off-field skill set. We'll see what the new one values. I'm optimistic but will need to see it to be convinced

The late great Mike Leach had a sign he hung in his office at every coaching stop he had. It simply read, "You're either coaching it or allowing it." People will forget/ignore what you say but they will remember what you enforce. In today's world of CFB it is getting harder and harder to enforce the things that these young men need to be successful not only in the game of football, but more importantly in the game of life.

 

[JustNeedMe81]

That may or may not be the case going forward but it’s wait and see.

None of that was the case in 2024.

Multiple players should have faced suspensions and didn’t.

Accountability

An entire position group approached the HC with concerns and they were told to beat it and work out amongst themselves

Communication

One Captain threw a hissy fit vs Vandy and Another One gave 0 effort on a turnover vs OU

Leadership

I’m not saying things won’t get better but there is no evidence so far about those three areas being improved… yet.

I think you misunderstood what I'm saying. If you listen to what he was saying, he corrected the issues in the off-season and that's why you saw some of the players transferring out and most of them were WRs and other positions. Things are going well in off season and Josh Pate just spoke about this today. I'll post a link.

 

[JustNeedMe81]

I think you misunderstood what I'm saying. If you listen to what he was saying, he corrected the issues in the off-season and that's why you saw some of the players transferring out and most of them were WRs and other positions. Things are going well in off season and Josh Pate just spoke about this today. I'll post a link.

Here's the link:

He provided deep detailed information on coaches and players.

 

[cdub55]

There is no doubt Deboer has proven he can build a winning and successful program and culture. Whether or not he can replicate it at the highest level and at Alabama is now the challenge he is facing. Add to that we are now dealing with a new landscape that no one has experience navigating and it gets even more interesting for him. One thing that great coaches know is infallible truths will never change but every place is different. The exact blue print at Washington won't win at Alabama and the exact blue print at Alabama won't win at Washington. Many things will be one and the same but learning and navigating the new terrain is what separates the good coaches from the great ones.

 

[CoolBreeze]

Just got to say that we are a very lucky group to have such a quality coach following CNS. Nick took over a tattered program and built it into a crown jewel of college football. He was a true program builder. Coach DeBoer is different, way different, but his record speaks for itself. He is a solid, solid football coach, the players love him and I think he is exactly what we need. I get the feeling we are in for a very special season this year at the Capstone.

 

[NoNC4Tubs]

I am truly excited for who we got to replace CNS and how the transition went. There is absolutely no way that it could have gone any smoother...

Sure, there were some hiccups, but man...it could have gone worse in so many ways. No matter who we had gotten, there would have been hiccups.

I am truly excited for the future of our football team!

 

[BamaNation]

Just got to say that we are a very lucky group to have such a quality coach following CNS. Nick took over a tattered program and built it into a crown jewel of college football. He was a true program builder. Coach DeBoer is different, way different, but his record speaks for itself. He is a solid, solid football coach, the players love him and I think he is exactly what we need. I get the feeling we are in for a very special season this year at the Capstone.

One sure thing is that this all gets viewed in the open come August / September!

Unlike many professions, coaching at Alabama, one can't hide. Winning / on-field performance / off-field culture will be clear for all to see. Coach Bryant had this classic response when questioned about why he was getting the salary he got at TAMU and it applies in spades to CKD this season:

"How many people watch you give a final exam? [About fifty was the reply.]
Well, I have 50,000 watch me give mine - every Saturday!"
To English Professor Tommy Mayo (at Texas A&M) when questioned about his emphasis on winning and his salary.

 

[4Q Basket Case]

One sure thing is that this all gets viewed in the open come August / September!

Unlike many professions, coaching at Alabama, one can't hide. Winning / on-field performance / off-field culture will be clear for all to see. Coach Bryant had this classic response when questioned about why he was getting the salary he got at TAMU and it applies in spades to CKD this season:

"How many people watch you give a final exam? [About fifty was the reply.]
Well, I have 50,000 watch me give mine - every Saturday!"
To English Professor Tommy Mayo (at Texas A&M) when questioned about his emphasis on winning and his salary.

I don't know why it is, but so many academics view sports programs as competition -- as if it's a zero-sum game and if sports are successful, it's bad for them.

That's why I think Dr. Witt with Nick Saban was the best partnership in the history of the University. Witt recognized the value of the sports programs to his ultimate goal -- increasing both the numbers and the academic qualifications of the student body-- and embraced what the Business School would call a "distinctive competence."

 

[mlh]

I don't know why it is, but so many academics view sports programs as competition -- as if it's a zero-sum game and if sports are successful, it's bad for them.

That's why I think Dr. Witt with Nick Saban was the best partnership in the history of the University. Witt recognized the value of the sports programs to his ultimate goal -- increasing both the numbers and the academic qualifications of the student body-- and embraced what the Business School would call a "distinctive competence."

They don't like the disparity in salary. Why should some dumb football coach make millions while I scrape by?

Those professors who consider the revenue generated by athletics (namely football) understand.