TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — It’s fair to question where Alabama football sits among national title contenders. It’s been three whole seasons since the Crimson Tide have won a championship which was before NIL and popularity of the transfer portal.
Former coach Nick Saban remained one of the best coaches in college football since Alabama’s last title but anyone could tell the program was slipping away. Obviously, it wasn’t at an accelerated pace like most declines but it was half a step backwards than its sky high expectations.
Still, the Crimson Tide nearly made the championship game last year if it weren’t for heroics from Michigan’s stars in overtime. It was argued that Alabama didn’t belong and that ESPN wanted one last playoff game with Saban coaching — given the network may have known about his pending retirement.
Anyhow, Paul Finebaum shared his thoughts about Alabama’s championship hopes on Wednesday’s show and for Tide fans, it wasn’t promising. No, it was nearly disrespectful to new coach Kalen DeBoer who has won at every level he’s coached.
“We’ve seen Georgia win [the College Football Playoff] twice and Michigan win once since Alabama last won a national championship,” Finebaum said. “I would declare the dynasty done. It was done before Saban left. It’s really done now that DeBoer is there.”
DeBoer was a very sought after coaching commodity after his first season with Washington in 2022 going 11-2. The Huskies had fallen on hard times with former coach Jimmy Lake not panning out following Chris Petersen’s surprising retirement.
With an undefeated regular season with several last second victories, Washington was battle tested in a competitive PAC 12 Conference. Despite a humbling 34-13 loss to Michigan in the championship game it showed exactly what the Huskies’ program is capable of with the right leadership in place.
The 49-year-old has never found a college program he couldn’t help throughout his career. Three NAIA championships and one FBS playoff championship game appearance in such a short amount of time is a testament to the hunger which DeBoer coaches with. He is a driven individual with drive to win at an elite clip, he’s already 37-9 overall in four seasons between Fresno State and Washington and 104-12 overall at the college level.
Yes, football is a different animal in the south than it is on the West Coast but something seems different about DeBoer. Recruiting isn’t much of a concern for now considering the Tide are No. 2 in American by most recruiting services.
He may not win a single national championship or even a SEC title at any point with Alabama. But, not even attempting to give DeBoer a chance so early in his tenure is quite a mic drop, especially for Finebaum.
SEC FEED:
• Two Other SEC Programs in Hunt for Talented Defensive Back
• No Surprise: Alabama Intimidated Notre Dame Before kickoff of 2013 National Championship
• Four SEC Teams Predicted to Miss Postseason Play in 2024
• Where Each SEC Team Ranks in Recruiting Ahead of Monumental Season in League Play
