Alabama returners, Washington additions connect over falling short last season

Kalen DeBoer has completed his first month on the job at Alabama, and one of the top things he has learned since being hired on Jan. 12 is the mindset of the players that he inherited. 

“Just the appreciation I have for how patient they’ve been and them realizing that they’re the ones that gotta go out and make the plays on Saturdays,” said DeBoer on McElroy and Cubelic in the Morning. 

“That appreciation for how they just kind of stayed the course and believing in Alabama and believing that Greg Byrne and those that are here that run our university and our athletic program are going to continue to hire great people and that I’m going to continue to bring great people in. 

“Our guys have just stayed the course and just focused on what they can control along the way.”

DeBoer was hired less than 72 hours after Nick Saban announced his retirement following an unprecedented 17-year run at Alabama. When Saban retired on Jan. 10, that opened a transfer portal window for the Crimson Tide players to weigh their options for 30 additional days. Now that the window has closed, only 10 players moved on after the coaching change.

A total of 28 players have transferred since the initial Dec. 4 portal window opened, but only 32 percent of those players did so after DeBoer was announced hired as the new head coach.

“There were probably four or five guys that really I got a chance to be around and meet and they still decided to kind of move on and test the waters elsewhere,” DeBoer said on Tuesday.

“Internally, there’s not this feeling that guys didn’t stay the course once we got here. We love who we have here, and man yesterday, just being in the indoor and going through our Fourth Quarter workout, it was electric. It has made this culture what it is and gotten it to this point. They’ve got a little chip on their shoulder, I think. 

“There’s a little bit of noise here and there that they might hear, and we’re going to use that to our advantage just to help us be motivated, go to another level.”

DeBoer later revealed how Alabama’s players, as well as the new coaches and transfers from Washington, share a sour taste in their mouths for how each of their 2023 seasons ended.

“We’re getting stronger and stronger because of just the way we’ve united,” DeBoer said. “I think one of the connecting points was kind of going back to just falling short here this last season, whether it be myself and a couple of our staff members that came from Washington or the team here. We finished the season with an empty pit in our stomach, and that’s been something that’s really kind of united us. 

“So it’s been really cool to see those that have been on the staff before, those that have been here before as players and us coming together with the staff that I brought in to add to it. It’s just been really cool seeing everything come together. So it’s been an awesome experience so far. Can’t wait here in a couple of weeks, we’re gonna be taking the field before spring break for a few practices, and I know the guys are eager to do that.”

While Alabama lost 10 players to the portal when DeBoer was brought in, the new staff has also added eight transfer players to the roster. Michigan safety Keon Sabb and Washington tight end Josh Cuevas were the latest additions, committing to the Tide on Monday night.

It doesn’t sound like Alabama is finished, either. Another portal window will open in the spring, and DeBoer said UA still has a couple of spots to fill before the 2024 season starts.

“You naturally just kind of keep your eyes and ears open for what those are going to be, and we’ve gotta go through our spring ball and continue to evaluate our team,” DeBoer said. “I think there’s some good young players that will step up and do a great job. But we do have a couple extra scholarships. Not a lot but we do have a couple extra scholarships still available that we could utilize when that time comes.”

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