Breaking: Kalen DeBoer plans to rehire former Saban expert

This offseason, Alabama football will bridge the gap between the old and the new.

Kalen DeBoer has settled into his new office, music practices behind Coleman Coliseum on spring afternoons, and the 4th Quarter Program continues a demanding tradition.

On Tuesday, a new link was established between the Nick Saban era and DeBoer’s beginnings. Last year, John McNulty, a former NFL coach with recent stops at Penn State, Notre Dame, and Boston College, worked in Tuscaloosa. He will now return as DeBoer’s 11th off-field analyst.

DeBoer’s staff was originally named on March 4, and included special teams coordinator Jay Nunez, former Washington defensive coordinator Chuck Morrell, and Mark Sheridan, the brother of offensive coordinator Nick Sheridan. Matt Zenitz of 247Sports reported McNulty’s hiring.

McNulty was a safety at Penn State during the late 1980s. He began his on-field coaching career with Connecticut in 1995. He left for the Jacksonville Jaguars of the National Football League in 1998. McNulty joined the staff last year, following a collaboration with Tommy Rees at Notre Dame. McNulty was among the non-renewed analysts that quit the program when DeBoer took command.

McNulty has returned, joining former holdovers Freddie Roach (defensive line) and Robert Gillespie (running backs).

“We don’t really evaluate it as if we’re behind or ahead; we’re just where we are and strive to be better tomorrow than we are today. “We have a method for implementing the offense,” Nick Sheridan said of introducing a new offensive strategy. “I believe you change that with your group each year based on the players’ skill sets.

“We don’t see it as a hurdle. We just look at it as recognizing areas where we need to improve and attempting to address them on a daily basis, followed by building on our strengths. That is what we have always strived to achieve as a staff.”

Other DeBoer analysts include Kirk Barron, Ryan Trevathan, Matt Shadeed, Mitch Dahlen, Jamey Mosely, Ali Smith, and Ron McKeefery.