Kalen DeBoer honest about his first year at Alabama: 'We know we need to be better'

Kalen DeBoer’s first season at Alabama didn’t go exactly as planned as the team finished 9-4 with a ReliaQuest Bowl loss to Michigan.

But, he knows what comes next in 2025. The Crimson Tide have to be better fast to measure up to the Alabama standard.

DeBoer recently talked about the opportunity for the entire Alabama program looking inward.

“Yeah, we know that we need to be better,” DeBoer said. “That’s the expectation I had, you know from day one is that we perform at a championship level, and we certainly fell short of that. Whether you’re 0-12 or 12-0 in a regular season, you know you’re always going to really critique and be detailed on how you got to improve. And I appreciate what our staff is doing, what our players are doing, to really look inward, work together and continue to move forward.” 

There were some bad losses for Alabama, including to Vanderbilt and Oklahoma that really stand out. It all but ended their College Football Playoff hopes.

Of course, a sputtering offense in a postseason loss to Michigan didn’t inspire too much confidence. But Rome wasn’t built, or rebuilt, in a day.

“A lot of good things are already happening,” DeBoer said. “It already feels just a lot different internally as we turn the page into 2025, from the first team meeting, which was less than two weeks after our last bowl game. So, just excited about what’s happening. The work that’s being put in. Haven’t had a chance to be around the guys a lot, just because we’ve been on the road recruiting and only get a few days here, especially as a head coach, the only time of the year down in January to get out. 

“But really excited about the momentum we have with so many players choosing to continue their career here, and, you know, build the stock that they have to get to the level that we’re talking about, going to the NFL.”

Replacing Jalen Milroe is a priority. But DeBoer seems pretty confident in the quarterback room despite lack of experience.

“Probably the biggest thing is there’s just not a lot of snaps that have been taken on a college football field,” DeBoer said. “But I also feel like the skillset’s there, there’s very strong strengths that we have and excited about them being similar in a lot of ways. Of course, everyone’s different. They’ve got the things that they bring to the table. 

“But they all three just work together, and that’s really led to workouts already that they’re running that sound like they’ve been very efficient and got a lot of work done. But I’m excited about what they all bring to the table. Can’t wait to get back on campus here in February and work with them.”