How Alabama and Kalen DeBoer is dealing with roster turnover

Kalen DeBoer quickly added a qualifier.

DeBoer announced himself as the newest Crimson Tide football coach and laid out his philosophies in front of a room packed of Alabama boosters, administrators, and legends. He stated that his offenses revolve around the skill sets of his players, and it is the coaching staff’s responsibility to maximize their potential. Still, he was speaking in Tuscaloosa, standing on a dais inside the north end zone suite at Bryant-Denny Stadium. What he said next in his speech was also important.

“Yes, we’re going to recruit the best,” DeBoer stated on Saturday.

As DeBoer talked, Saban sat in the front row, while more players entered the portal and few transferred to rivals. Texas and Florida State both added key players in the last week. And with more on the way, DeBoer’s first few days in town were crucial. DeBoer recognizes the importance of success, as he later explained to reporters. Nick Saban’s first priority is to keep the core of the roster he constructed before his surprise retirement last Wednesday.

Since the season ended on Jan. 1 at the Rose Bowl, twenty players have entered the transfer portal, with five of those coming after DeBoer’s hiring. While no formal hires have been made, speculations suggest that it will incorporate influences from both DeBoer’s stint at Washington as well as some holdover from 2023.

Greg Byrne, the University of Arizona’s athletic director, had a strategy in place that had been in the works for seven years. After Saban addressed the squad, Byrne, understanding the portal’s modern trappings, requested 72 hours to locate a replacement. He then met with UA leadership and the remaining football coaches for one more time before boarding an aircraft. Byrne and officials of the UA athletic department, as well as some football personnel, met in a conference room near his office at the Mal M. Moore Athletic Facility to form a pseudo-crisis-management team of “about eight” people.

They separated the roster into halves and assigned swaths of players to each individual to phone and remain in touch with. The objective was to have “boots on the ground.” Byrne emphasized the need of being proactive rather than waiting for the players to express their issues.

“Knowing that the rule now was that as soon as a coach retired or was dismissed, you had a 30-day (transfer) window immediately, there was a lot of pressure going on.” That was crucial to the process,” Byrne explained. “We had to be on G waiting for O and making sure you were being efficient and thoughtful, but also recognizing you have to go at a rapid pace”

On Friday night, DeBoer arrived at a busy Tuscaloosa International Airport. One fan questioned about recruiting as he fist-bumped fans through a fence. A fan asked DeBoer about outstanding freshman safety Caleb Downs while heading into Bryant-Denny the next day.

Kim Nelson, a former high school football coach who hired DeBoer in 1998, said he’d be surprised if more players left after meeting DeBoer. Nelson, who is known as a genuine talker who isn’t afraid to make a joke about himself, seen firsthand how DeBoer works with children. DeBoer knew the offense better than most coaches during his first days on staff at Washington (S.D.) High, and he was getting them to have fun and embrace the squad. Alabama appears to be pursuing a similar strategy. DeBoer stated that he had met with numerous players, both individually and in groups.

According to reports, DeBoer has kept Freddie Roach (defensive line) and Robert Gillespie (running backs). With them, his future defensive coordinator job (still to be announced), and Washington ties, it’ll be an early litmus test for DeBoer’s roster-building abilities.

“Our boys are curious. “Every hour that passes is agony for them,” DeBoer said. “… First and foremost, recruiting inside this team and gaining their support is required.

“Give me a chance.” Allow me to demonstrate a couple of the items. I’m going to pay attention to you. I’m going to meet you right now and attempt to demonstrate them through proof of things that have happened, whether it’s at Washington or, we haven’t gotten much further than that, but what this will look like.”