Everything Kalen DeBoer said in final press conference of spring

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – Alabama head coach Kalen DeBoer spoke to local reporters on Monday, two days after the Crimson Tide concluded its 2025 spring season with an A-Day practice.

Below is everything DeBoer said in his final press conference of the spring.

DeBoer’s opening statement…

“Good morning. And just a few opening comments. Just want to thank everyone who came out on Saturday. Appreciate our guys and their efforts and getting a chance to see them on the field but also getting a chance to interact afterwards. It was great to spend some time with the fans myself, too. Appreciate y’all coming out. It was a beautiful day. A lot of activities around campus, and so, hopefully, you took in a few of those, as well.

“But it was back to work today, and that’s our team’s mindset right now. We had a short team meeting but back in the weight room. We’re 100 days away, roughly, from training camp. We talk about taking advantage of every opportunity, and these guys (went) back to work today. The next two weeks, lots of workouts, some individual 1-on-1 meetings that we would do anytime at the end of the season, at the end of the spring. So we’re doing a lot of that. Guys taking care of their schoolwork. And then finals after that, and they’ll have a short break.

“But I think the momentum that we carry here into May is critical. The next three months or so, 100 days, is really gonna set up the six months to follow. The question that we’ve been challenging our guys with going back to January when we saw the want-to and we saw the desire is can you sustain that level of intensity. Refer to it as competitive stamina often, and that might be in the midst of a practice, it might be through a course of a week or a certain scrimmage, it might just even be for one play. But for us, that competitive stamina, and relating it to what I’m talking about, is can we carry it thought each phase of the offseason and then that leading to us just having this way about us, how we do things, an edge to us that carries us through the entire fall.

“So I’m excited about the strides we’ve made. I think there’s some depth that’s being created on our team. I’ve referred to it kind of maybe as a blessing in disguise that we had so many guys that were out still kind of going back to last season. I think it really allowed us, forced us, in some ways, to get a lot of guys more reps than they maybe would have had, and that’s gonna help us be a deeper and better team down the road. I’ll open it up for questions.”

DeBoer on which positions will target with the transfer portal opening…

“I think you’re just always looking to find the right person that fits who you are as a program. Someone who can make your team better, our roster better. So we have just a couple scholarships, really, available to us. So we’ll be careful, and they’ve gotta meet all those areas that we feel good about – the culture of our team, the chemistry from within, the work that’s being put in. 

“So I like the combination of attrition and addition that we’ve had, whether it’s high school guys coming in. Eighteen of our 21 guys were here that we signed in December, and so they aren’t gonna feel like freshmen this summer. And then also, a few of the transfers that have come in and really done a nice job blending in, as well, and defining their roles more and more every single day, asking more out of them from a leadership standpoint. 

“So we’ll be super careful on what we do with the portal. There are some areas where we do know if we have the right person pop up, we would take advantage of that.”

DeBoer on what Ty Simpson did this spring to lead to Ryan Grubb’s statement…

“I think there’s a lot of great things they’ve all done. Ty continues to, I think, trend upward. I think all of them have really added to their game. They’re all at different spots because Keelon’s learning the system. The other two know it better, for sure. And Ty has been around and just has done a nice job. I think the trending upward is a big piece of it. Ty is an accurate thrower. There’s always gonna be balls that every guy wants back, but I think the ability to learn from your mistakes, learn from other people’s mistakes, be able to comprehend, not be overwhelmed, I think that he’s just had more time. But they’re all doing a lot of really good things together as a group.

“Now, I will say, we’re not where we need to be at the quarterback position yet. And so I feel like that exists within our team, to have that level be accomplished, but this is part of the process. I shared with our team, we’re not where we need to be as a team. I hope we don’t ever think that. It’s never been that case everywhere I’ve been, any year I’ve been a part of to where you finish spring ball in April and you’re like, ‘OK, we’re good to go.’ People ask, ‘Are you ready for the season?’ No, I’m not. We’ve got a lot of work to do between now and August, and I think that’s the case, I think, with the quarterback position.”

DeBoer on Wilkin Formby, Alabama’s other offensive tackles…

“Wilkin, he’s really come a long, long ways. We just met this morning, a group of us with him. I think the thing that you lose sight of sometimes, is, if you flipped on the film a year ago, what would it look like? We’re in it, every single day with him, and he’s just focused on the now, but you peel back a little bit, and I think sometimes you forget just how far a guy has come, and that’s the case with him. It’s a physical piece, it’s a discipline piece. For every guy, but I think as an offensive lineman, especially at tackle, there’s so many little details now that he’s picking up on that he wouldn’t have picked up on even late in the season last year.

“So it’s more reps, it’s just another cycle through, just like for all these guys, or learning, relearning the system, hearing the details again, over and over, adding to your game. But he’s gotten stronger. He’s more confident. He’s still, every day, gotta get better. He’s a tackle for us that we need to rely on to get it done, not just at an OK level, at an elite level to accomplish our goals.

“I think the other guy to point out would be Olaus (Alinen). Olaus just did a nice job having to move around a little bit. I think it’s definitely flexibility to move to different spots. You thought of him more as an interior guy. He really continues to reshape his body and and do some things that I think have really lent him to us feeling very comfortable with him in multiple spots: left side, right side, inside, outside. So I’m really proud of him. 

“I think Arkel (Anugwom) is a guy that’s come in and coming along. He’s a developmental player, but doing a great job. His heart’s in it. Guys love him. He works extremely hard. He’s a blessing to have here for sure. The young guys, I think, getting thrown in the fire, Jackson Lloyd, Michael Carroll, they are going to be phenomenal football players at tackle and they have different strengths. They come from opposite ends of the country obviously, their exposure to different things, but they actually were really impressive in how far they’ve come. I’m excited about their future for sure.”

DeBoer on how confident he is that Alabama can keep all three QBs…

“Yeah, I really hope we can. And related to the portal in general, you never know, right? That possibility always exists. But I feel good about our team and our roster as far as the general chemistry, guys feeling like they’re continuing to be developed, that they continue to have a chance to compete and have an opportunity here. I feel like that’s the case here at the quarterback position too. And Austin (Mack)’s growth, again, going back to where he was at, not even just a year ago, but just the middle of the season, seeing him continue to go this way. 

“Three isn’t very many, but it’s probably the number we’re going to have to be at at quarterback. That’s what we’re expecting here going into the fall. Had four last year, I think that’s kind of a unique situation. I’ve had three many times in the last few years, and you’re always on edge. The rest of the team has heard, ‘Stay away from the quarterback,’ more than they ever heard in their entire life this spring, for sure. A lot of questionable sacks that I did call, the defensive line felt like they got where they got wronged on and cheated on by me, because I own the quarterback whistle. And they gotta stay away but they gotta get close enough to get a sack and blow the play dead, but we stayed away from the quarterback to make sure those guys are all healthy and upright.”

DeBoer on if he wants Michael Carroll and Olaus Alinen to play guard or tackle…

“Good question. I think that’s a good question as far as just, I think, development of guys. We could sit here forever and think about what some scenarios have been, even over the last two to three years, where a guard has moved to tackle and a tackle has moved to guard and you thought you recruited a guy for this spot and he became an NFL player and first-round draft pick at a different one.

“So Michael, probably in particular, because we were obviously involved in his recruitment more so than Olaus, but Michael probably was recruited more as a guard, and he might become that someday, I don’t know, but right now he’s got that position flex. That’s really key for us, and he’s got a mindset about him. Jackson (Lloyd)’s probably going to be a tackle, just a pure tackle. And then Olaus was a guard, obviously, so that’s what you come in thinking when you see the depth chart that was here in place before us. We’ll just keep cross-training, dual-training guys. We do that across the board at a number of positions. We’ve got receivers that can play inside, outside. We’ve got safeties that can play corner, corners that can play nickel, all that kind of stuff. And that’s, I think it’ll be important for our depth and readiness when different adversity hits us.”

DeBoer on Daniel Hill…

“I was really excited to see Daniel. Last fall, and even still into the spring he was a little bit hampered with some tweaks and injuries and stuff. He’ll end up being a really good one for us. We know that. I felt like there was just enough that you could see last fall where you’ve got just those instinctual things and running and cutting and things you expect out of a tailback, but just some subtle things that a 240,245-pound guy doesn’t do as easy as he does. And then even catching the ball out of the backfield, just natural that way. 

“He had some runs when we were in live sessions where whether he was bouncing off of them, I think it was more of them bouncing off of him. That was really exciting to see. And he’s really developing a mindset, trust and belief in himself, and that’s carried out through the rest of the team. So he had a really good spring for sure.”

DeBoer on the next step for Keelon Russell this summer…

“I think consistency. He had some really big days. You saw a lot of flashes of what he is capable of, and then you saw some times where just the consistency not [being there], and sometimes that just means not making the big mistakes.

“And so it’s growth. It’s learning. He’s in it. His head’s in it. He’s the same guy every single day. That’s what you love about him. Just consistency. He’s going to be a guy that you can attack a defense, and I think all our quarterbacks have that ability with their arm to get after the opponent. Just consistent is the biggest thing for him. 

“Consistency as a person, that is strong. Consistency in the playmaking ability and the lack of mistakes, and he’s learning a lot of verbiage that’s brand new for him, so even just spitting that out consistently is something he’s grown a lot in. I sit and try to listen to the huddle, and exactly not just what he’s saying. That’s really all the quarterbacks, and they’ve really grown a long ways in their ability to demand the huddle that they’re in.”

DeBoer on his and the coaching staff’s approach in the coming weeks…

“I think for us coaches, the foundation is still the same, right? Coach these guys. You just continue to add to their value, add to what they can do. Make them feel like they’ve got a strong role on our team that they’re developing and growth continues to happen. We see that, and we want to be a part of that. 

“When they feel that and get the feedback, and we can be strong with our guys. They know that we care about them, and they know that we need them to help us accomplish our goals as a team. They have their personal goals too, and we want to help them accomplish it. 

“You never know this time of year. We felt last year we didn’t really lose anyone at this time that we felt we were going to have going into the fall. Definitely don’t want to say keeping our fingers crossed, but that’s the case here with the portal. 

“I’m proud of our guys. The guys that you want around you, whether it’s coaches or players, they have a good head on their shoulders. They can have perspective on what they really, truly have here at Alabama. And it’s special, whether it’s the resources that they have and the people that they have around them, in the training room, in the weight room. The coaching staff, I think, is elite as well. And so these guys are getting an experience that they should not take for granted. We can talk about the stories of guys who have come in and said how great it is here, or guys that have left and, you know, maybe even wishing they could come back. Be careful what you ask for. The grass is definitely not greener on the other side. 

“So I love our guys. I think we got a great group. You know, they continue to push other, hold each other accountable to a level of strain. When I say accountable, it’s not accountable just to making sure you’re here for this on time or doing this right. It’s a level of strain. It’s a level of edge, and I think they’re really doing a much better job of that this year. They’re more comfortable with who we are, what we want to be.”

DeBoer on the competition at wide receiver beyond the top guys…

“You’ve got some experienced guys coming back. You’ve got Isaiah in. I thought Rico Scott had a really nice spring. We expected that. Internally, we expected and we could see that happening throughout the fall and in December. You could go on and on. I really like our freshmen that came in as well. Derek and Lotzeir. Really think we nailed it with incoming freshmen that way. They’re freshmen. That’s what we’ve got to remember. So there’s some growth that they’ve got to experience, much like we’re talking about at quarterback and these tackles and so forth. Then you can go into the Mbakwe’s and the guys that made that transition. And Jalen Hale coming back. Go on down the line. They all are just out there competing.

“I like the mindset that is developing. I say developing because I think it’s something I think we’re capable of, but we’re far from there yet is to be the best receiving corps in the country. That’s not just one or two guys or three. That’s the whole unit. Whoever goes out there, we’re developing more confidence they can get the job done. I like the versatility a lot of these guys have, inside to outside. We can move guys around. Much like we’ve been accustomed to over many years. You don’t know where so and so is going to line up. That might not just be the receivers. That might be the tight ends, running backs, they can line up in empty. They can get out in flex. They can be in tight to the box. If you’re a tight end, you can put your hand in the ground. We’ve got a lot of position flexibility, a lot of versatility. The guys are understanding the system. Not just the what and how of what they’re supposed to do and their execution, but also the why.”

DeBoer on Miami transfer Isaiah Horton…

“I had high expectations for him coming in as far as who he would be, and he has definitely not let us down or me down for sure. He’s come in. The thing I love about Isaiah is the way he handled it. He’s a guy you want to ingrain, get yourself in there. He went about his work. Guys I see here that come in and just do the work, they develop a respect among the team quicker than not, because that’s what our guys care about. Who’s going to come in, who really wants to be part of this culture? Who’s willing to work? He has done that, and now all of a sudden you see him, because he is a productive guy, he does have that ability. It’s well-rounded. It’s not just a red zone thing.

“That presence about him is something I really think is something we recognize, his teammates recognize and have really grown a high level of respect. He’s got that body type. He caught some balls for Jalen at pro day. He was showing out in a lot of different ways for some of us who had seen him in a couple practices. Guys who can catch inbreaking routes coming in full speed and not break stride, that’s something that I’m thinking is just one indicator of how smooth and talented you are. He’s really fit in well. He’s got a great personality. Great teammate.”

DeBoer on Ryan Williams being in the slot at times…

“There’s a lot of things you can do with Ryan. We never want to take away what he can do when he’s out there isolated. But the ability for him to get inside and get matchups, and he can get matchups against guys, pretty much against anyone .. But I also think we don’t want to just put him in a spot that, have seen slot guys get bracketed and so forth. We need to make sure … Our system allows guys to get to all areas of the field. Because of Germ and because of these other guys, we talked about Isaiah, you can go on and on and on about our roster right now, that can go inside or outside, that will allow Ryan to be able to do that. You want the greatness of others to help you become great. That’s something that’s really big and it’s going to help Ryan have an even bigger season because of the others around him.”

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