Legendary CFB Coach Hints Locker Room Tensions For Kalen DeBoer After Alabama TE Issued Public Apology

Alabama’s loss to Florida State has put the spotlight on a slipping culture in Tuscaloosa. A while back, Alabama’s former tight end CJ Dippre expressed concerns about the changing locker room culture, where coming late to practice was tolerated and DeBoer was taking a more “player-friendly” approach. “Being late for practice and meetings is unacceptable. Saban would not tolerate that. DeBoer’s culture is slipping. This isn’t Alabama football,” said Dippre. DeBoer did implement tougher measures, including team-wide 15 up-downs for a single late player. But overall, the culture is nothing what Saban would have preferred. Could this be a reason for the team’s lack of leaders in the locker room?

Former OSU head coach Urban Meyer appeared on the 4th September podcast episode with Colin Cowherd and talked about the major problem that Kalen DeBoer must tackle in his locker room.”When the words, not running to the ball, not giving great effort come out of your mouth, and you say the word Alabama after that? That doesn’t compute. That hasn’t happened in a long time. And I’m worried about Alabama right now. I saw things that are signs that there’s something in the locker room,” declared Urban Meyer, and preached a solution for DeBoer.

The FSU loss showed several problems, ranging from not having situational discipline to unsportsmanlike conduct calls. Coupled with that, Ryan Grubb’s offense converted just 6 of the 17 third-down attempts, which also included a crucial one with 5:36 left on the fourth quarter clock. The defense, on the other hand, showed a lack of aggression, allowing explosive plays, including a 64-yard bullet to FSU’s Jaylin Lucas. “We wanted to be the aggressors. And we were,” said Mike Norvell after the game. So now the only solution, according to Urban Meyer, is changing the dynamics of the locker room.

“I believe that he better have some grown a– men in that locker room,” said Urban Meyer. As opposed to Nick Saban, who went 124-4 against unranked teams in his Alabama tenure, DeBoer is already 6-4 against unranked teams. The record, along with the FSU’s loss, has started widespread discussions about firing DeBoer, although his $70 million buyout would make it challenging. Moreover, it’s not as if the team is bad, because Alabama boasts multiple first-round picks and a QB who has spent three years learning in the Bama system. In short, the loss was inexcusable, and DeBoer must do something to address the locker room and leadership concerns.

Alabama’s tight end issuing an apology, a sign of changing times?

Alabama Crimson Tide, which many believe carries the whole ‘SEC dominance’ discourse, and thus, Bama’s regression would mean the SEC also suffers. But this isn’t about a conference. It’s about a team for whom SEC titles meant nothing, and natty were coming left, right, and center? Seeing such a program suffer would be hard for any fanbase. And that too, after a lesser-known QB (Thomas Castellanos) challenged before the game and delivered on his every single word. All of this has led to Bama tight end Josh Cuevas issuing an apology to the Bama fanbase.

“We just apologize, I guess, maybe. We lost. I apologize. That’s not the standard we’re used to here at Alabama. We expected to win. We have championship effort and meeting habits, and just kind of, like, practice habits and stuff like that. We’ll get them next time. We’ll bounce back. We’re coming back. We’re coming back harder. We gotta bounce back. We gotta respond. It’s just something that we have to do,” Cuevas said. “We know we set ourselves back. So, it’s just something that we need to get back on track with and kind of set ourselves up for a good rest of the season.”

Kalen DeBoer had come to Bama, having a proven track record as he led Washington to the 2023 national title. Maybe the burden of Nick Saban’s legacy is too much for Kalen DeBoer, or was FSU’s loss the last setback DeBoer would face this season? If anything, the loss, from a team that finished 2-10 last year, would have been hard to swallow. But it has given Alabama time to regroup and come back strong. Their next games against UL Monroe and Wisconsin are the perfect opportunity to do just that before going on to face teams like Georgia, Missouri, and Tennessee later in the season.