By any reasonable and rational standards, Alabama football had a fantastic second season under Kalen DeBoer.
If (deep breath … go) … you win 11 games, beat your despise-as-a-religion rival in its house and keep it from being bowl eligible, play for the SEC Championship, win at Oklahoma in the College Football Playoff …
Go to the Rose Bowl, lose to the eventual national champion on an all-time heater of a run, and finish among the top eight teams in the country, that’s a good season. That’s a heck of a campaign.
But this is Alabama football – reasonable and rational left the building a long time ago, and for good reason.
Is This When Alabama Becomes a National Title Power Under Kalen DeBoer?
© Kirby Lee-Imagn Images
(© Kirby Lee-Imagn Images)
This isn’t a program that plays for great seasons – you win the national championship, or it’s a lost year.
That’s what it means to be one of the iconic brands for the sport, and that’s where the bar is set. This isn’t about being very good.
Alabama was the dominant force for 17 years under Nick Saban. 11 wins? You barely got out of bed in the morning for an 11-win season under Saban.
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And while all of this “not fair to compare anyone to Saban” stuff is what you’re supposed to say, it’s not impossible for a superpower of superpowers to keep all of the national-title-or-bust success going.
Ohio State seemed to have done just fine going from Urban Meyer to Ryan Day.
However, of course, there’s only one Nick Saban, the SEC is all very good at this football thing, too, and the Big Ten just took things to a whole other level. So now it’s up to DeBoer to do one thing, and one thing very well.
Be Kalen DeBoer.
Should Bama have made a move to get Lane Kiffin? (I think so, but …) DeBoer got a seven-year, $87.5 million extension through 2032 (thank you, Penn State open coaching job rumors) so the program is all in, at least for a few years.
The guy is the Alabama head coach for a reason. His offenses were amazing at Fresno State and Washington, won three NAIA national titles at Sioux Falls, got the Huskies to the national championship, and …
DeBoer won 20 games in his first two seasons in Tuscaloosa.
Nick Saban won 19 games in his first two seasons (and then he went 14-0 and won the national title).
Gene Stallings won 18 (and then he went 13-0 and won the national title).
It took Bear Bryant three seasons to get to 20 (and then he went 11-0 and won the national title).
It’s Alabama. Win the national title.
– 2026 Alabama Schedule Analysis
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Alabama Quick Hits
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Head Coach: Kalen DeBoer (3rd year: 20-8; 12th year overall: 124-20)
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Best Case / Worst Case: Win the national championship/Miss out on the College Football Playoff and go to some random bowl
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Biggest Question: Is Alabama back up to national championship speed?
Alabama Key 2025 Stats
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Rushing Offense: Opponents 1,903, Alabama 1,562
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Sacks: Alabama 33 for 237 yards, Opponents 32 for 247 yards
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Red-zone Touchdowns: Alabama 43-of-60 (72%), Opponents 21-of-40 (53%)
Offense
It has to be better.
Offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb helped crank up the DeBoer offense at both Washington and Fresno State, and it hasn’t clicked yet.
This year’s attack has plenty of Alabama-level pieces, but there’s a quarterback battle, the offensive line has to be night-and-day better, and the whole thing has to be more consistently unstoppable.
The Alabama Crimson Tide offense isn’t allowed to be 84th in the nation.
What’s Working
The quarterback talent is undeniable. It’s not a problem with the players Alabama has had under center – Jalen Milroe and Ty Simpson had the talent – but, again, it hasn’t come together.
Austin Mack is a DeBoer guy – coming over from Washington – and Keelon Russell was an elite recruit last year who can add a running element to the mix. The talent of this group won’t be a problem.
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The receiving corps is fantastic, too. Ryan Coleman-Williams didn’t take off in his sophomore season, but the talent is there to blow up again.
He’s got the experience with 97 catches averaging 16 yards per grab and 12 touchdowns in his first two seasons, but he has to find his freshman year form.
Leading receiver Germie Bernard is gone, but Lotzier Brooks is a shifty inside option who caught 32 passes last season, and Rico Scott can stretch the field.
Noah Rogers is an elite prospect coming in from NC State, but he was hurt this offseason and won’t be ready when the season starts.
Start stretching the field. Yeah, yeah, yeah, it’s been a few years since DeBoer’s Washington passing game was dominating the world, but that’s what raised his profile.
Michael Penix Jr. and the Husky attack averaged nine yards per attempt in 2023. Alabama only got to nine yards per throw four times last season.
In the two years so far under DeBoer, Alabama is 14-1 – and 7-0 last year – when averaging eight yards or more per pass, and is 6-7 when it doesn’t.
What Needs Work
(Forgive the cleared throat sound as I scream) THE … OFFENSIVE … LINE.
The talent wasn’t an issue up front last year. Kaydyn Proctor was the 12th overall pick by the Miami Dolphins, Parker Brailsford was drafted by the Cleveland Browns, and the line overall had the parts. It just didn’t work.
So here come the transfers.
Jackson Lloyd will likely take over for Proctor at left tackle, and Will Sanders is a good talent at left guard.
It’s up to Racin Delgatty (Cal Poly) at center, and Jayvin James (Mississippi State), Nick Brooks (Texas), Ethan Fields (Ole Miss), and Ty Haywood (Michigan) to be a part of whatever the front five configuration will be.
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The running game has to do something. Alabama – Alabama – was 125th in the nation in rushing, averaging just 104.13 yards per game.
Over the last three games – Georgia, Oklahoma, and Indiana – the Crimson Tide netted just 48 yards.
As you’re reading this, technically, you gained more rushing yards in the Rose Bowl against the Hoosiers than the Crimson Tide did, with -3 on 16 carries. But …
The running backs need their chances. When Alabama didn’t run the ball, it didn’t come up with yards – it was like the offensive line never got a chance to get into a groove in some games.
The Tide had a hard time finding anything to break through. They didn’t hit the 30-carry mark seven times, and they didn’t get past 90 yards in any of the seven, going 4-3.
Daniel Hill is a 6-1, 236-pound back who can pound away, but he can also catch, making 28 grabs last season. Kevin Riley and AK Dear each got plenty of work – Dear averaged 7.4 yards per carry.
Player to Watch
Ryan Coleman-Williams, WR Jr.
When he’s on, he’s one of the most dynamic players in the country. Now he has to get his groove back.
He wasn’t awful in his sophomore season, but drops were an issue, and he disappeared a bit too often – he had one touchdown catch over the final ten games of the year.
© Brett Davis-Imagn Images
(© Brett Davis-Imagn Images)
Defense
It was the frustrating part about the Crimson Tide season. The offense wasn’t supposed to be an issue, and it was.
The defense was expected to be fine, and it was usually great – considering the offense didn’t provide enough help.
Defensive coordinator Kane Wommack’s bunch finished 13th in the nation overall, allowing just 297 yards and 19.2 points per game.
This year’s defense should be every bit as solid.
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What’s Working
The secondary should be the truth. It was No. 1 in the SEC last year in pass defense, and it should be every bit as good again with most of the stars back.
Zabien Brown is among the nation’s best corners – he’s a likely first-rounder – and the Tide are loaded at safety.
Keon Sabb, Bray Hubbard, and Zavier Mincey are back – Sabb and Hubbard combined for 126 tackles with five picks and 11 broken up passes.
The linebacking corps reloaded. Justin Jefferson and Deontae Lawson combined for 174 tackles and 11 tackles for loss, but they’re done.
Caleb Woodson was a big get from Virginia Tech – he’s a big presence who can hit, coming up with 57 tackles last season.
The combination of QB Reese, Duke Johnson, and Luke Metz are good young options who can all move.
The run defense was good enough. It only allowed over five yards per carry three times – and won all three games – and allowed just 3.7 yards per carry on the season.
Florida State got things moving in the opener, Indiana ran 49 times in the final game of the season, and Georgia rumbled in the SEC Championship – no one else was able to get the ground game going enough to run close to 40 times.
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What Needs Work
The defensive front is undergoing an overhaul. It’s been a given over the last few decades that Alabama’s defensive interior will come loaded with giant humans who move like ballerinas.
But at the immediate moment, the Tide don’t have the sure-thing dominators who’ll be NFL Draft must-haves. (That could change fast, though.)
This year’s crop of defensive tackles will be good, and getting Kedrick Bingley-Jones from Mississippi State is great, but replacing LT Overton and Tim Keenan won’t be that easy.
The secondary might have been great, but it had a problem against quarterbacks who connected on their midrange passes.
Georgia’s Gunner Stockton hit close to 70% combined in his two games against the Tide.
John Mateer was strong in Oklahoma’s regular season win, and that Fernando Mendoza guy completed 14 of 16 passes.
Alabama went 1-3 against teams that completed more than 65% of their throws. Against FBS teams, Alabama is 2-7 so far in the DeBoer era when quarterbacks hit the 65% mark.
More takeaways would be a plus. The 2024 team did an okay job of forcing mistakes, and last year’s defense struggled to come up with big things in big moments.
Take a wild guess at the three games Bama didn’t come up with a turnover – the loss to Oklahoma, the SEC Championship loss to Georgia, and the blowout loss to Indiana.
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Player to Watch
Yhonzae Pierre, EDGE Jr.
You ever hear the one about the Alabama pass rusher who made 52 tackles, and led the team with eight sacks, 14.5 tackles for loss, and three forced fumbles, and didn’t receive a lick of All-SEC consideration …
(The NFL types know all about the 6-3, 253-pound hybrid playmaker.)
© Gary Cosby-USA TODAY Network via Imagn Images
(© Gary Cosby-USA TODAY Network via Imagn Images)
Keys to the Season
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Get more out of the offensive line in all phases.
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The running game has to be more than just a rumor.
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The passing game has to be more of a differentiating factor.
Player Who Needs To Shine
Jackson Lloyd, OT RFr.
The skill guys are great. The defensive talent will show up and shine as the season goes on. It’s up to the offensive line to now be a positive.
Lloyd is a 6-7, 317-pound superstar prospect out of California who saw a little time in the rotation. Now it’s his job to be the team’s starting left tackle and main man on the line for the next few years.
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Biggest Concern
Be Alabama already.
Down 17-0 in the College Football Playoff first round at Oklahoma, the Tide scored on a few good drives. Late in the first half, Zabien Brown came up with a pick-six, and that was it.
The Sooners lost their mojo, Alabama took over on both sides of the ball, and the Tide won by ten.
That’s the Alabama that’s in there somewhere and needs to come out week after week.
Not the one that looked like it was running in a foot of mud in the season-opening loss to Florida State, and certainly not the one that played like it didn’t want to do the college football thing anymore after a fourth-down try failed in the second quarter against Indiana.
This will be a season decided by momentum one way or another, and Alabama has to be the one to dictate it.
Biggest Game
at LSU, November 7
The Georgia and Texas A&M games are at home around a road game at Tennessee. If the Tide go 3-0 in this stretch, they should be home free, but that’s asking a lot.
No matter what, Alabama going into Death Valley to deal with Lane Kiffin’s Tigers will be a massive moment for both programs.
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Transfer Portal
The recruiting classes have mostly been enough to stock the shelves for the near future, but there were holes to fill on the offensive line and in some defensive spots.
For the most part, though, Alabama was going for depth.
Like every elite program, it’s hard to find too many players in the portal better than what’s already in-house – the talent evaluation to develop the elite recruits does its job.
Best Signing
Devan Thompkins, DT (USC)
He’s one of those Alabama 6-5, 298-pound tweener types who’s really a defensive tackle playing end – or an NFL defensive end in the position he’ll be in a few months from now.
Thompkins is a big pass rusher who made 4.5 sacks and 55 tackles over the last two years for Lincoln Riley.
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Biggest Loss
James Smith, DT (Ohio State)
Yeah, you know that stuff I just slung about top programs usually not finding pieces to upgrade what’s already in the building?
Ohio State is the exception – it grabbed one of its new starting defensive tackles from the Tide.
Other Names to Know
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Terrance Green II, DT (Oregon)
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Racin Delgatty, C (Cal Poly)
CFN Season Prediction
There are two ways to look at the 2026 Alabama Crimson Tide.
Last year’s team had way too many problems, was fatally flawed on the offensive line, and, to be honest, caught a monster of a break from the College Football Playoff committee that unfathomably memory-dumped the loss to Florida State.
And yet the Crimson Tide won 11 games and got to the CFP Quarterfinals.
The other way to look at it might be that everything is fixed now.
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The staff reworked the offensive line, the defense is loaded with young playmakers about to blow up, and it’s all against a relatively manageable schedule that misses Texas, Oklahoma, Ole Miss, Missouri and an improved Florida.
CFN Prediction: 9-3
It’s about that midseason stretch of Georgia, at Tennessee, Texas A&M. That’s the problem with a trip to LSU coming right after that, and an off week.
If that’s not enough, going to Kentucky, Mississippi State, and Vanderbilt are all bear traps. Florida State, South Carolina, and Auburn aren’t layups, either.
And here’s the other factor that gets lost – the SEC really wasn’t all that great last season, and Bama missed Ole Miss, Texas, and Texas A&M.
As good as the Tide are, with a tougher schedule than what everyone mistakenly thought was a “gauntlet” last year, this season should be more like 2024 – when they went 9-3 in the regular season – than the 10-2 regular season of 2025.
Related: Alabama Football 2026 Schedule: Full Breakdown and Analysis
