As Kalen DeBoer stepped into GOAT Nick Saban’s shoes, Alabama fans have been expecting some huge changes. Here arrives, Crimson Tide’s co-offensive coordinator and wide receivers coach to drop some last-minute updates about the roster revamp. And what does the staffer have to say about the Alabama wide receiver room? He had to swallow the hard pill of “inexperience” that he had to inherit, which came with Ryan Williams and Co. His statement takes the CFB fans back to Miami Hurricanes HC Mario Cristobal’s take on his program. However, when there is the 2022 FootballScoop Wide Receivers Coach of the Award winner, there is no way DeBoer’s squad can take a chill pill.   

At the beginning of 2024, DeBoer’s WR room did not look that good. Particularly, after three of Alabama’s leading pass catchers found their way out of Tuscaloosa (Jermaine Burton joining the NFL and Isaiah Bond and Amari Biblack flipping to the SEC newcomer, Texas Longhorns). However, more than their absence, what concerned the WR coach was the experience that ran low in DeBoer’s WR lineup. On facing the press on August 28, JaMarcus Shephard confessed what he feels about the WR room, “Probably inexperienced…that’s the best thing I can tell you. Just haven’t had a ton of experience out there.”

And it’s obvious he feels this way. After all, players like Kendrick Law, Germie Bernard, and Kobe Prentice, even though pose a nice core, are yet to prove themselves. The list of unproven players continues, including Caleb Odom, Emmanuel Henderson Jr., and Cole Adams. But DeBoer’s WR coach has caught hold of the cheat code to propel them to the peak of success. 

The practice has turned into a survival show. Thanks to Shephard, the real match-up will not be that tough for DeBoer’s squad now. “I’ve given them plenty of experience in practice. Now you know being in the game environment it really is isn’t a lot different we put them through so much in practices that really I hope for the games to be a lot easier than what we’re going to do in practice,” said the WR coach. Doesn’t Shephard sound like Cristobal?

Mario Cristobal’s challenges found in Kalen DeBoer’s staffer’s expression 

The Miami HC too was not satisfied with how his program performed in the primary areas of wide receiver and defensive tackle. Even though Cristobal’s army did gain limelight for the depth at slot receiver, they struggled heavily due to a lack of experience at outside WR. And what did the HC had to say about it? “You know the roster management chart is very fluid. Nowadays you know you have plans right, you know it’s a two-way street…Sometimes you know it’s important to have addition by subtraction,” claimed Cristobal.

Here, Shephard too got a roster after some important additions. Even though a few key players have left Tuscaloosa, there are some familiar names, like Kendrick Law and Kobe Prentice. And here comes a bunch of newcomers on whom DeBoer and Shephard are going to lean in the 2024 season. The young and talented lineup includes Ryan Williams, Cole Adams, Rico Scott, among others.

Even though Jamarcus Shephard refused to give the WR room a moment to catch their breath as they ran after getting the experienced tag, HC Kalen DeBoer has a different take on it. He believes that his players have got magic up their sleeves and focus on the moment instead, “Just a learning moment that we all have that we can come together and utilize.” Let’s see if the players can help their HC perfect that proud smile!