Kalen DeBoer may be optimistic for 2026 after signing a top-two class that ranks first in the SEC. Only Oregon and Notre Dame matched Alabama’s 5-star player count with four each. And if you take the record of four seasons, the Tide still sits on top. 

Per Rivals, Alabama signed more 5-star players than any program from 2023 through 2026, with 17 total, topping Georgia (14) and Texas (13). It started with Nick Saban. In 2023 alone, he signed seven 5-stars. He and Kalen DeBoer split a four 5-star class in 2024. After that, DeBoer added three more in 2025 and three again in 2026, headlined by RB Ezavier Crowell, LB Xavier Griffin, and safety Jireh Edwards.

Under Kalen DeBoer’s watch, 10 of those 17 5-stars have signed. That list includes names like Keelon Russell, Dijon Lee, and Michael Carroll from the 2025 class. Still, the Saban brand built the pipeline, and the current Bama head coach has kept it flowing, but that talent has produced just one CFP win so far in this stretch. 

Alabama must find the balance between recruiting dominance and postseason dominance. Then, there’s the ultimate test for Kalen DeBoer. Stacking 5-stars is step one, but keeping them is step two. And that’s where Alabama’s numbers are alarming. 

According to NFL Draft analyst Cody Carpenter’s “Super Blue Chip Transfer Rates” for 2022-2026, the Tide ranks near the top for the wrong reason. Oklahoma leads the other direction at 50%, with Alabama trailing at 47.6%. Unlike Notre Dame, with 0% transfer rate, nearly half of the Tide’s most elite recruits left.

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From the 2025 roster alone, 20 players entered the portal and found new homes. Only three, Wilkin Formby, Isaiah Horton, and James Smith, had started at least half the games that season. While that softens the blow, it doesn’t erase their inability to retain. Non-starters like DB Cam Calhoun still played in 14 games and delivered a dominant season, but even he’s gone. 

Retention tells you who stays when the hype wears off. For a program built on Nick Saban’s stability, this revolving door has defined Kalen DeBoer’s offseasons more than any game result. So what’s the response?

After replacing the GOAT, Kalen DeBoer received his share of skepticism on his recruiting ability. He passed that test and showed he’s able to recruit for Alabama. And he knows the closer the familiarity is, the better the chance it is to retain a prospect. Inside the program, he and then GM Courtney Morgan made it clear that the Tide’s main concern is retention. 

Like Georgia Kirby Smart’s philosophy, Alabama will not depend 100% on the portal. They’ll be selective there while focusing mainly on high school recruiting and development to fill specific needs. That minimal portal addition use is already visible. 

Alabama took only seven players in the portal last year, and only three additions delivered meaningful production, including Isaiah Horton, Kam Dewberry, and Nikhai Hill-Green. If you compare that to programs throwing lucrative NIL money around, there’s no doubt Alabama will lose some of those bidding wars. But Kalen DeBoer is betting that culture plus development beats short-term splashes. And that belief is already in motion.

Kalen DeBoer is aiming culture first at Alabama 

One step Alabama took to manage its recruits is pursuing a new associate director of player personnel. And Sherman Wilson, former LSU director of player retention, is set to make that happen. He played a key role behind the scenes during Jayden Daniels’ Heisman campaign in 2023, when he topped finalists like Bo Nix and Michael Penix Jr. His 5,000 total yards and 50 TDs are impressive, but narrative building and internal alignment mattered too. That’s why Alabama is just recruiting stars, but managing them.

The reason is that recruiting dominance keeps the championship window open. But it’s development and postseason execution that decide whether you walk through it. Right now, Alabama’s foundation remains intact. Seventeen 5-star shows that players still believe in the Tide’s winning culture, while a No. 2 national class says Kalen DeBoer can recruit in this conference. But the main thorn is the retention rate. 

It’s about proving the recruiting machine can run in a different era. If Kalen DeBoer continues landing elite pieces at this rate. If he stabilizes retention, however, the probability of returning to championship stages rises dramatically. Or else, Alabama risks watching someone else lift the trophy year after year.