Alabama's Kalen DeBoer ranked as second best coach in all of CFB

At the end of the last college football season, Nick Saban was 72 years old. His retirement was inevitable, but it was just one of those things nobody wanted to speak or think about. Then on a gloomy Wednesday in the middle of January, it was just over with no warning or heads up.

For all of the Alabama Crimson Tide faithful, it was a surreal moment. How do you properly say goodbye to someone who has done so much for the University, while also immediately beginning to focus on who their replacement is going to be?

Saban’s retirement was never going to be an easy thing, but AD Greg Byrne had a plan in place, and in hindsight, I do not think the transition could have gone any better. Saban got to ride off into the sunset after another SEC title and CFP berth while Alabama landed one of the best young coaches in the sport.

Washington Huskies Kalen DeBoer wasn’t going to be around much longer before other blue blood programs started testing the waters, so it was good Alabama struck when they did. DeBoer guided the Huskies to a 25-3 record over the past two season with a PAC-12 title and was named the 2023 AP Coach of the Year. Now, with the resources available to him in Title Town, I think there are more national titles on the Crimson Tide’s horizon.

Going into the 2024 college football season, PFF College ranks DeBoer as the second best coach in college football behind only Georgia Bulldogs Kirby Smart. The Bulldogs have only lost two games in the past three years, both at the hands of the Crimson Tide. DeBoer will get his first crack at Smart when the Dawgs come to Tuscaloosa on Sept. 28. I also think it’s important to remind people that Saban retired 5-1 against Smart.

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