Former Alabama player drops a shocking statement regarding head coach Kalen DeBoer’s immediate future with the Crimson Tide
Damien Harris thinks Kalen DeBoer’s job could be on the line if Alabama loses to Oklahoma in the CFB Playoff.
The Alabama Crimson Tide is just days away from facing off against the Oklahoma Sooners in the first round of the College Football Playoff.
Win, and Alabama moves on; while a loss sends it back to the drawing board with a lot of decisions to be made. Losing the game might not result in just the end of the season, but a much bigger ripple effect, according to one former player.
Former Crimson Tide running back Damien Harris thinks head coach Kalen DeBoer could be coaching for his job in the first round of the College Football Playoff.
Could Kalen DeBoer be coaching for his job against Oklahoma?
Nick Saban was the best to ever do it at Alabama, and possibly in the history of the sport, and he set a level of excellence on his way out that has to be met by this team. Harris thinks a first-round exit could result in DeBoer being fired because of the standard set at Alabama.
“In my opinion, I think his job is on the line,” Harris said. “I think that there are a lot of reasons why. One, we’ve seen how hard it is to beat a team twice in college football. If we look at this Alabama team, and we say you showed no improvement from the first time you played Oklahoma to the second time, you weren’t able to make adjustments to flip the script of that game, and you can’t win that football game. Luckily, getting into the playoffs is going to be a problem. A first-round exit after missing the playoffs last year. Listen, this isn’t the tradition. This isn’t the history that Alabama fans are used to.”
DeBoer took over the hardest job in college football and has had his bumps in the road. Still, saying he could be fired for losing the first game of the College Football Playoff is insane, while the media continues to link him to top head coach openings around the country, including Michigan.
The rumors won’t go away unless Kalen DeBoer wins on the field
Of course, it has been one coaching rumor after another for DeBoer, so there has to be some truth to it all, and the only way to get rid of that is by winning in the way fans are used to seeing. I asked fellow A to Z Sports writer Rob Gregson his thoughts on whether DeBoer will be around for the long haul, or if a playoff loss will put another foot out the door.
“Is it a stretch to say that DeBoer is coaching for his job against the Oklahoma Sooners? Probably. However, the rumors of his departure for Penn State and now Michigan didn’t come out of thin air. Here’s a fact not many are talking about. DeBoer has lost seven games in two years at Alabama. Three regular-season losses and the bowl game against Michigan in 2024, two regular-season losses and the SEC Championship against Georgia this year.
“The context within those losses might be even worse. Whether the Crimson Tide was just flat out uncompetitive like last week, underperformed against teams like Vanderbilt in 2024, or looked unencouraged to kick off the year against FSU, it simply has not been the brand of football that Tide fans are accustomed to seeing. However, if Alabama can beat Oklahoma in the rematch and DeBoer’s team goes on a run, the perception of his first two years will change mightily.” – Rob Gregson, A to Z Sports Alabama
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