When Alabama needed a momentum swing, instinct took the snap. As Tide punched their playoff tickets with a 34-24 win against Oklahoma, the game flipped on cornerback Zabien Brown’s split-second read. Something that was just pure clutch that even he is not able to describe.

“We run a lot of cover-zero,” Zabien Brown said after Oklahoma’s game. “We just ran a simulated cover-two, so I’m dropping into the flat on the zero look. I saw him kind of audibling over there, reading his eyes it kind of looked like he wanted to go over there presnap. I just fell into the flat, the ball fell right in my hand. My mindset, I’ve just got to get to that zone. Can’t get tackled,

It’s just a clutch gene, I don’t know what it is. It’s just clutch.”

With just 1:18 remaining before halftime and Alabama down 10-17, Zabien Brown turned their fate and tied the game. Brown jumped a pass from Oklahoma’s quarterback John Mateer and slipped past multiple Sooners, breaking open into the space, and he raced for a 50-yard pick-six, tying the game to 17-17. That pick six completely shifted the game’s tone and gave Kalen DeBoer’s team the push they needed.

Brown’s interception did way more than tie the score for Alabama. He credits the team’s sideline mindset and head coach Kalen DeBoer’s message for fueling the comeback.

“I think it just comes down to the heart and soul of our team, preaching 1-0; that’s really DeBoer’s motto—going 1-0,” Brown said. “Before the game, he said, ‘Games are always 0-0, no matter what the score is, and we’ve got enough heart and enough fight, and when the plays don’t go our way, it’s just the smallest details, so when we fix it, it’s not a big thing, just small details.”

But that’s not the only game he turned the tide in Alabama’s favor. Against Tennessee, too, he blew everyone off in the final seconds of the second quarter. He recorded a 99-yard pick-six against Tennessee back on October 19. And now, after Oklahoma’s game, he has five career interceptions, three of which came during his true freshman season last year.

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Brown finished the regular season with 30 tackles, four pass deflections, and a forced fumble with an interception and a touchdown. His growth from Year 1 to Year 2 stands out, especially with both the pick-sixes this season that he threw right before halftime. That’s what “clutch genes” are for him. With Brown’s success, even Kalen DeBoer’s Michigan rumors finally end.

Kalen DeBoer’s Michigan stance comes to rest

Alabama opened the 2025 playoffs with a strong road win against Oklahoma and entered the quarterfinals to face Indiana in the Rose Bowl. As Alabama’s playoff hope is still alive, Michigan’s rumor is taking a different turn altogether. Even though Kalen DeBoer publicly denied the speculations, ESPN’s Pete Thamel made it pretty clear that the Wolverines are still eyeing him.

However, that might be on the books for Kalen DeBoer, as after the win, he is expected to prioritize the team’s preparation. At the same time, Thamel also confirmed that DeBoer and Alabama are actively working on his contract extension, which would put an end to DeBoer’s Michigan move.

Now, a loss would have put Kalen DeBoer under scrutiny, as losing three times in a row for two years against Oklahoma and missing the quarterfinals would have taken him straight to the hot seat. But with this win, DeBoer has solidified his position on the team.

On top of it, if DeBoer decides to make a move, he has to pay $4 million to Alabama, and with a contract extension on the line, there’s very little chance he will make that move. So, with security in DeBoer’s status, his team is ready to make an impact against Indiana in the quarterfinals.