Nick Saban’s Daughter Makes Stance on Kalen DeBoer’s Alabama Very Clear; Adds Fire to Hot Seat Talks

Well, GOAT Nick Saban had a serious issue with the NIL ‘pay for play’ culture. So much so, he thought of hanging up his boots after coaching Alabama for 17 seasons. His wife, Terry, brought to his attention that “All they care about is how much you’re going to pay them, they don’t care about how you’re going to develop them, which is all what we’ve always done, so why are we doing this?” A year later, another Saban family member is upset with how college football has taken shape. This time, particularly the Crimson Tide gang. That’s none other than Nick’s daughter, Kristen Saban.

We have always seen Kristen being the biggest supporter of the Bama gang, who filled the room with the loudest cheer. But not anymore, because she is not “obligated” like before. And guess who is keeping his eyes and ears open to every move Kristen makes? Her dad, Nick’s successor, Kalen DeBoer. After all, the exit doors are already open for him. Now, what is the social media hoopla all about?

On September 3, Bama Sports shared a “then” and “now” post. The caption said it all, “Not trying to be a boomer, but it’s undeniable how different the culture is now. Playing football at Alabama used to mean something. Now, it just seems like guys use it for clout.” While likes poured on the post, implying how many fans could relate discipline and passion to leaving the team with Nick, one like stood out. That was by Kristen. Not just like, Nick’s daughter even reshared the post. The part she might have related to the post is in the caption. “Not trying to be a boomer, but it’s undeniable how different the culture is now. Playing football at Alabama used to mean something. Now, it just seems like guys use it for clout.”

The rest of the caption read, “It would be different if they did all this TikTok stuff but still held each other accountable and looked like they were giving their all on the field. That just wasn’t the case against Florida State.” Now, what were the clips used to substantiate this statement?

The left side clip is from 2016, when Nick’s former player, Ronnie Harrison, got into a heated argument with teammates on the sideline during Alabama’s blowout win over USC. They got into a yelling and eventually shoving match with freshman position-mate Deionte Thompson. Before things went out of hand, Nick had to break in. On the right side of the video, the “now” clip showed Alabama players recording themselves, dancing on TikTok, presumably even after losing against the Seminoles.   

The video was accompanied by a meme. It showed a young boy telling his mother, “Dad’s talking to the Nick Saban plate again.” It captures the emotion of most of the Alabama fans right now who desperately want to bring their golden times back, which had Nick Saban in it. And right now, who can feel the most heat?  

Kristen Saban’s brutal honesty as frustration rises for Kalen DeBoer

With every passing day, the Alabama fans miss the Nick Saban era a bit more. They can feel that something is missing both on the gridiron and on the sideline. Nick’s daughter did not try to pull off an ‘All is well’ kind of fake scenario. Instead, Kristen has been brutally honest. Crimson Tide fans used to look forward to her Game Day fit checks. But it’s high time that they tone down their excitement.

“For those of you who have stuck with me on here in the middle of a posting hiatus, I’m now asking what y’all want to see more of! GameDay outfits will continue, but I will warn you, I’m not going to put as much effort into it as I did when we were still coaching. I just don’t feel a major obligation to that anymore,” said Nick’s daughter. It would have been easier for the Crimson Tide fans to move on from the Nick Saban hangover had their new coach, DeBoer, shown signs of high potential.   

After their season opener loss against Florida State, Nick Saban’s successor lands in waist-deep water. As Josh Pate gave a glimpse of how things are right now for Kalen DeBoer. On his podcast, the analyst shared, “I woke up this morning. Against my better judgment, I pulled up my Twitter account, and there it was. ‘FIRE KALEN DEBOER’ right there. First thing I saw, all caps.” After all, the ceiling is already sky high for the head coach. 

They got a roster as good as Texas and Georgia. On top of that, according to ESPN’s College Football Power Index, the Crimson Tide has the 10th-toughest schedule. And here we are. They stumbled in their very first game. If you grew up during Nick Saban’s reign, you know nothing hurts more than this.