Alabama makes significant investment in Kalen DeBoer, including $12 million buyout

Alabama and Kalen DeBoer made a massive move in the college football landscape on Friday, with the Washington head coach accepting a deal to follow Nick Saban in Tuscaloosa. And though DeBoer is leaving Washington, the Huskies will make out OK.

In order to get out of his contract with Washington, DeBoer owes the school $12 million — a figure the Crimson Tide will likely be footing the bill for. That’s also on top of what is likely a long-term deal for DeBoer that potentially pays out more than $10 million annually.

Back of the napkin math, which Yahoo Sports’ Ross Dellenger shared on social media, puts the grand total bill for Alabama in the $100 million range.

It’s unclear if Dellenger’s estimate includes the buyouts and salaries for the various assistant coaches that DeBoer might bring in from Washington or elsewhere.

It’s also possible that Alabama actually ends up saving in terms of the coaching salary. Saban was making $11.8 million annually when he retired earlier this week. It’s unlikely that DeBoer will command the same figure, even if he comes close. But over the term of five or 10 years, even $1 million a year saved would become noticeable.

Washington made a push to retain DeBoer

Washington apparently put together an extension package for DeBoer that would’ve made him among the highest-paid coaches in the sport and more than doubled his current annual salary of $4.2 million.

But despite those efforts from the Huskies administration, ESPN’s Pete Thamel indicated there was not much standing between DeBoer and the Alabama job other than a few details and signing the contract.

“Washington, I’ve been told by sources, made a concerted effort to try to keep DeBoer. They put together a package for seven years that would’ve made him one of the 10 highest-paid coaches in college football. DeBoer has gone 25-3 there. He obviously led Washington to an undefeated season until that loss in the national title game on Monday to Michigan. But as of now, Kalen DeBoer to Alabama is just basically requiring signatures for it to be finalized,” Thamel said on SportsCenter as the news broke. 

There’s also a question of how DeBoer fits at Alabama.

A South Dakota native, DeBoer has never coached south of the Mason-Dixon Line or east of the Mississippi River as a head coach. He has no distinct southern ties whatsoever. And while that blindspot, of sorts, will likely need addressing, Thamel noted winners like DeBoer — who is 104-12 as a head coach — can make it work in a lot of different places.

“Well, winners fit everywhere,” Thamel said. “That’s what we have to start with. Kalen DeBoer won at NAIA. He won at FCS. He won as a coordinator at Eastern Michigan, he won as a coordinator at Indiana. He won big as a head coach at Fresno. He has three NAIA national titles. He can flat-out coach football. So winning sells in Alabama, right? That’s the expectation that Nick Saban reset during his remarkable tenure there. There is sort of a cultural gap that he will have to bridge. He’s never been in that footprint of the country. Kalen DeBoer has not recruited at that high, high, high-end level. Does Alabama have the resources, infrastructure, collective in place to support him?”

That, Thamel posited, is the biggest challenge. Because no matter how successful he might’ve been or could be, DeBoer isn’t Saban or likely to live up to his lofty standard.

“Because look, he’s not Nick Saban. There was what, 44 first round picks that went to Alabama? Nick Saban and Alabama sold itself because of its success. It’s a different sell now with Kalen DeBoer. So the support will really have to be there for him in order to uphold the impossible standard of the greatest coach of all time,” Thamel said.