Why Alabama coach Kalen DeBoer just might have what it takes to follow legend Nick Saban

DeBoer has been a winner everywhere he has been, but that's just one of the reasons that he may thrive in Tuscaloosa

By Dennis Dodd Jul 12, 2024 at 3:36 pm ET• 17 min read

Alabama has not worn down its new coach. Not yet anyway. We know this because on some level Kalen DeBoer is intent on making an impression before he makes it to the top of the SEC. 

"I remember after A-Day (Alabama's spring game), he's in the tunnel as the team comes in," Alabama AD Greg Byrne said. "People are all lined up. He went down the line, took people's phones and did selfies. I can't do that. I've taken like three selfies in my life."

It doesn't stop there. 

Kurtiss Riggs practically has flashbacks of an encounter on a giddy Alabama campus in April as the Crimson Tide made their basketball Final Four run. 

"Kids were going bar to bar and we were at a stop light," said Riggs, a lifelong friend of DeBoer's who was in the car that day. "They saw it was Kalen. There must have been 150 people around the vehicle really quickly. The light turned green and we were able to go. Kalen was as excited as they were. He was waving."