Kalen DeBoer has killer instinct Nick Saban didn’t have at Alabama

Just three games into the season, Kalen DeBoer is already making a strong case for why he's a worthy heir to Nick Saban at Alabama.

When he first put on his Crimson Tide head coaching cap in January, he had big shoes to fill, and people were honestly stunned to watch him forge his own way in his upbeat disposition and amiable suave -- a polarising opposite from what Saban liked to maintain as his demeanor as a head coach.

The glaring effect that this has on-field has been evident in the games, the most apparent came in the final, cutthroat minutes of the first half in their clash vs. Wisconsin.

With just 36 seconds left on the clock until halftime, Alabama dared to strike two powerful passes, adding a solid 7 points to its 14-3 lead.

It was tough to comprehend what was going on at first when QB Milroe connected to freshman Ryan Williams for 47 yards on the sidelines with the clock ticking away, and the next moment, Germie Bernard received a 26-yard TD pass through a corner route. A moment that truly got the 76,323 fans in the stadium on the edge of their seats.

Chase Goodbread of the Tuscaloosa News articulated it perfectly.

"It was a back-breaking score from Wisconsin's perspective, one that largely put the outcome out of reach for the Badgers," Goodbread wrote. "And probably a chance Saban wouldn't have taken."

What would Nick Saban have done for Alabama?

Saban, being an old-school guy, would have probably stayed content with the 14-3 lead and would have let the clock run out.

Taking such down-to-the-wire plays is what sets DeBoer's fresh, and risk-taking way apart from Saban's playing it safe way.

Saban had his reasons and DeBoer had his, and both are working perfectly in Alabama's favor.

A win's a win.