The fall from grace in Tuscaloosa needs to be studied. Alabama’s strutting into the 2025 season ranked No. 8, talking big about redemption after going 9-4 in 2024 under Kalen DeBoer‘s debut season. The next, they’re leaving Tallahassee in shambles, bullied 31–17 by Florida State and looking more like a lost program than the dynasty Nick Saban built. Despite their 77-0 shut-down dub against LA Monroe, fans are fed-up, the pollsters slammed them down to No. 21, and now a former Alabama center is flat-out suggesting that the Tide locker room isn’t rocking with Kalen DeBoer at all. That’s a problem bigger than any scoreboard.

The breaking point came quickly. After an offseason of “redemption era” chatter, in week 1 of college football, Bama’s defense was getting diced by dual-threat QB Tommy Castellanos, and star wideout Ryan Williams couldn’t even finish the game after a concussion scare. By the end, Alabama wasn’t just beaten—they were exposed. And here’s where the past comes screaming back.

Former Alabama lineman T-Bob Hebert, who lived through LSU’s post-Saban chaos, didn’t mince words when he hopped on the Unnecessary Roughness podcast: “I’ve seen this firsthand, because I literally went to LSU after Nick Saban left, and all the older guys were crossovers from Saban and Les Miles. They would just talk s–t constantly about how different it was under Les Miles than Nick Saban. Like, yeah, every former Saban playing out there, they weren’t saying it publicly ‘cause they want to support the school, but they’re disgusted with what they’re witnessing on Saturdays. And they are all grousing into one another that ‘This would’ve never happened when we were here!’ What do you think, coach would’ve done… We’ve been kicked under the bus, dude. They’re all in their group text, just s——g on him constantly.”

That’s the dagger. Within 14 games, DeBoer has already stacked up four L’s to unranked opponents—the same number Saban had in 230. Alabama hasn’t looked this sloppy since the Mike Shula era, and if you know your Tide history, that’s cuss-word territory. Even their bounce-back Week 2 demolition of Louisiana-Monroe, a 77–0 laugher, didn’t calm the waters. Because the issue isn’t just W’s and L’s—it’s culture.

DeBoer’s “toxic positivity” and sunshine-on-everything approach is playing weird in a locker room raised on Saban’s sharp edges and ruthless efficiency. Look deeper, and it’s the same story LSU lived through when Nick Saban bolted for the Dolphins in 2004. That locker room cracked, veterans called it a circus, and by the time Les Miles showed up, he had to sell himself to players who just wanted the old boss back. History doesn’t repeat, but it sure does rhyme—and Tuscaloosa’s chorus is sounding a lot like Baton Rouge circa ’05. DeBoer’s honeymoon ended after their dub against Georgia last season.

Even with the Week 2 beatdown of LA-Monroe, Alabama fans are stuck between panic and denial. A 23-game season-opening win streak snapped in Tallahassee? That’s a scar. A 9–4 debut season? That’s unheard of in modern Tide football.

ESPN’s FPI predicts how Alabama and Wisconsin will match up in their Week 3 showdown

So, can Alabama dig themselves out of this mess in time for Wisconsin rolling into town? ESPN’s Football Power Index seems to think so, giving the Tide an 88.9% chance to handle business against the Badgers on Saturday. That’s a heavy number considering the Tide just got smacked on national TV, but Vegas and analytics haven’t totally lost the plot on Bama yet. History helps—Alabama is 2–1 all-time against Wisconsin, including last year’s 42–10 thrashing in Madison.

The Badgers, though, ain’t coming in as pushovers. Freshman QB Danny O’Neil looked locked in against Middle Tennessee, throwing for 283 yards, 3 touchdowns, and hitting on over 85% of his passes. That’s surgical, even if it came against a weaker defense. Wisconsin’s built to play old-school Big Ten ball—grind on the ground.

Week 2 offered a glimpse of Alabama’s ceiling. Ty Simpson was perfect against ULM—17-for-17 passing, 226 yards, 3 touchdowns, plus another on the ground. Germie Bernard flashed with two scores, and AK Dear turned five carries into 76 yards and a touchdown. The Tide looked every bit like a top-10 program again… but does that performance actually mean anything when the opponent was overmatched before warmups were even done? That’s the question ESPN’s FPI can’t answer, and it’s the one Tide fans are losing sleep over.