Greg Byrne shares the characteristic that has stood out in Kalen DeBoer

There are plenty of obvious pre-requisites for Greg Byrne when hiring a head coach at Alabama, from on-field coaching acumen to recruiting ability and how a coach runs their program day-to-day. But it’s hard in the interview process to completely judge a quality he has now seen in new football coach Kalen DeBoer: intelligence and deep thinking.

After more than a month on the job, Byrne’s gotten to see the full breadth of what DeBoer brings to the table from his position atop the Alabama football program. Joining “The Game” with Ryan Fowler on WTBC/100.9 FM, Byrne outlined what he’s learned since DeBoer came aboard.

“Coach DeBoer, I can tell already, is really smart,” Byrne said. “He’s very thoughtful. You know, sometimes in today’s world we all want instant answers and responses but in reality, he’s very thoughtful, already I can tell, in how he’s approaching the staff, how he’s approaching just managing the roster and connecting with the kids and I can tell you that that has gone very well. We’re pleased about that.”

DeBoer also shares those qualities with his predecessor, Nick Saban, according to Byrne. The AD thinks the new football coach has a good shot at building a similarly strong culture as his predecessor.

“And he surrounds himself with others who are really good coaches,” Byrne said. “But he also surrounds — I’m really impressed with what his culture has been in the past and then at Washington, Fresno and all the way back to his NAIA days, but also I can see that happening here. Coach Saban had an incredible culture in his program. And I think we have an opportunity to have a very good culture with coach DeBoer and his staff and what’s ahead for Alabama football.”

And ultimately, Byrne is excited to eventually see the product that DeBoer and Co. put out on the field in Tuscaloosa, even if it’s just Alabama-on-Alabama action during spring practice and on A Day.

“But to go from coach Saban, what he means to our university and college football and everything else in between today, this is a really challenging transition, but I’ve been extremely impressed with his approach from it from the second he’s gotten here and embracing our culture at Alabama, embracing coach Saban,” Byrne said. “And I think he’s done a really nice job with it and I’m excited to watch him get out on the practice field with the team here for spring ball, too.