Nothing turned out to be right for Kalen DeBoer during his debut year in Tuscaloosa. They missed the college football playoff ticket, wrapping it up with a 9-4 overall record. So, the Nick Saban effect vanished like a puff! Only a playoff ticket this season would help DeBoer to keep his head above the rising water level. That’s when ESPN analyst Harry Douglas placed DeBoer on the hot seat this year as well.

He shared, “You have to follow a legend like Nick Saban, and you don’t make the College Football Playoff in your first year. You don’t play for an SEC Championship. I tell you one thing, fans are not gonna wait.” So, the clock has already started ticking for DeBoer. Now, DeBoer’s seat is not hot because of a struggling team. Moving into the 2025 season, Alabama has all the ingredients to cook up a CFP qualification; it’s about how well of a cook DeBoer is. 

After all, going by history, almost every head coach succeeded after filling their legendary predecessors’ shoes. Ryan Day did it. He went 13-1 in 2019 after Urban Meyer left. Even though Jimbo Fisher caught heat recently, that man took over Bobby Bowden’s 7-6 program and went 12-2 in 2012. Lincoln Riley also came off with flying colors with Oklahoma after taking over for Bob Stoops.

Given the tradition, Alabama should’ve been in the playoffs last season with DeBoer taking over after GOAT Saban. So, 2025 marks the break-or-make season for the head coach. On the July 12 episode of That SEC Podcast, host SEC Mike revealed the SEC Media Days Ballot. He placed Crimson Tide at No. 1, saying, “Number one, Shane, I’ve been all this bandwagon. Riding it all year. Give me Bama. Again, are they number one today? Probably not. Almost, assuredly not.”

The host continued, “But I think they got as good a roster as Texas and Georgia. Yeah, they do got to go to Georgia. They own Georgia. They avoid Texas. They don’t play A&M. They don’t play Florida. They host LSU. They host Oklahoma. They host Tennessee. Those are all the teams I have, just behind them. So, you start putting the pieces together.” No season in the SEC is easy, and 2025 won’t be any different. But where does DeBoer’s Alabama schedule stand in terms of toughness quotient? According to ESPN’s College Football Power Index, the Crimson Tide has the 10th-toughest schedule. So, as far as the most crucial factor that determines playoff success, their schedule is going to favor DeBoer’s boys’ luck. 

But that does not guarantee anything. Here come more determining factors, as Mike continued, “If they can be better on offense, not have a quarterback that kills them, and I don’t want to put it all on Jalen Milroe, but he did kill him a time or two last year. I think the defense will be a lot better.” The Alabama fans might still not be over the loss against a “lousy team” like Michigan last season. The Wolverines’ defense sacked Jalen Milroe five times and forced three turnovers by the Alabama quarterback. And finally, Sherrone Moore’s boys went home with a 19-13 win in the ReliaQuest Bowl. Mike then came up with a harsh ultimatum for DeBoer. 

He continued, “No excuses for Bama. If they don’t make the playoffs this year, I’m not saying they got to win the SEC like I’m projecting, but if they don’t make the playoffs, we should fire Kalen DeBoer.” After the CFP discussion, here comes the Natty debate. That’s when Dan Lanning enters the scene. 

The bar is set high for Kalen DeBoer

The two head coaches faced off back in 2023. Back then, DeBoer was the head coach of Washington. That’s when Lanning’s Oregon handed them a heartbreaking 34-31 loss. Commenting on the ‘Lanning vs DeBoer, who is the better head coach’ debate, CFB analyst Josh Pate took a dig. “Lanning’s got Oregon rolling, but DeBoer doesn’t have to rebuild Alabama.” While the Alabama head coach is yet to prove himself to be the best successor of Saban, he has to erase the memory of steering the team to 9-4, one of their lowest in over a decade. So, the desperation for DeBoer to lift the trophy is high.

On the other hand, Lanning, too, has been starving when it comes to the Natty. Being one of the best schools, they are yet to open their book when it comes to the National Championship. They have won the Big 10, going on an undefeated 13-0 streak. But again, nothing beats the feeling of winning the trophy. To fan the heat, analyst Ryan Brown took this up on The Next Round podcast. “Who wins a national championship first, all right, you went, Kalen DeBoer?” A counter question arrived from Lance Taylor, “Yeah, who would you go right there?”

“Kalen DeBoer, I mean, there’s a reason Oregon’s never done it, right?” Brown sounded all confident.

Kalen DeBoer reeled in some more praise, as Taylor shared, “First of all, I think DeBoer is a better coach. I really do.” One of his biggest strengths has been his drive on the recruiting trail. Without Nick Saban at the helm, DeBoer and Co. managed to pull together a No. 2 class in 2024. For the 2025 season, the Crimson Tide’s recruiting class sits at No. 3. The support is loud, the roster is loaded, and DeBoer’s runway is cleared. Anything short of the Playoffs would feel like a letdown.