The current head coach of Crimson Tide Football officially said, “We are the back,” with boldness.

The current head coach of Crimson Tide Football officially said, “We are the back,” with boldness.

The current head coach of Crimson Tide Football boldly stated, “We are the back.”

Kalen DeBoer, who led Washington to a Pac-12 championship and a position in the College Football Playoff National Championship game this season, has been chosen Alabama’s next head coach, the school announced Friday night.

DeBoer, 49, takes over one of college football’s most desired and difficult jobs, succeeding Nick Saban, whose teams won nine SEC titles and six national championships in 17 seasons at the school. Saban, who finished 206-29 at Alabama, retired on Wednesday.

“I have always had an incredible respect for Alabama football and its commitment to excellence,” DeBoer said in a school statement. “This program’s tradition-rich heritage is unparalleled in collegiate athletics, and I am excited to continue it in the future.

It’s a privilege to follow Coach Saban. He has set the benchmark for college football, and his accomplishments are unequaled. I would not have left Washington to attend any school. The opportunity to manage the football team at the University of Alabama is one of a lifetime. My family and I are incredibly blessed and excited to become a part of the Tuscaloosa community.”

DeBoer notified his Washington players and staff on Friday afternoon that he was departing for Alabama, and he landed in Tuscaloosa by plane Friday night, where the coach was anticipated to meet his new players.

A news conference to introduce DeBoer is scheduled for 2 p.m. ET on Saturday.

According to ESPN’s Pete Thamel, Washington athletic director Troy Dannen made an aggressive pitch to keep DeBoer, offering him a new contract that would have made him one of the top ten highest-paid coaches in the FBS and more than quadrupled his yearly pay of $4.2 million.

But DeBoer turned it down for Alabama and the SEC, so he’ll owe Washington a $12 million buyout after signing a two-year contract extension through the 2028 season in November.

DeBoer had emerged as the Crimson Tide’s top target even before three other potential candidates—Oregon’s Dan Lanning, Florida State’s Mike Norvell, and Texas’ Steve Sarkisian—withdrew from the search and reaffirmed commitments to their present schools in the last two days.

“Coach DeBoer has proven himself to be a winner and has done an incredible job as a head coach at each of his stops,” Alabama athletic director Greg Byrne said in a statement. “One of the things I told our team the other day is that we are going to have someone who is not only a brilliant coach with the Xs and Os, but also someone who cares about his players and someone I would want my boys to play for, just as I would have wanted them to play for Coach Saban. We have that in Coach DeBoer. He is eager to get started, and we look forward to him leading the Alabama Crimson Tide football program for years to come.”

After Kalen DeBoer’s departure to Alabama, candidates for Washington’s next coach are being considered (76d).Adam Rittenberg
Washington hired DeBoer to revitalize the program after the Huskies finished 4-8 in Jimmy Lake’s second season as coach in 2021. Washington’s high-flying attack was orchestrated by Indiana transfer quarterback Michael Penix Jr., and the Huskies more than quadrupled their win total in 2022, going 11-2.

Washington finished 12-0 throughout the regular season and defeated rival Oregon 34-31 in the Pac-12 title game to go to the College Football Playoff for the second time in school history. The Huskies defeated Texas 37-31 in a CFP semifinal at the Allstate Sugar Bowl on New Year’s Day.

“Kalen DeBoer has been an outstanding leader of our football program, and what he accomplished in two seasons on Montlake will forever be a part of our storied history,” Dannen stated in a news release. “We are sad to see him leave, and we did everything we could to keep Kalen at UW. But, in the end, he made a decision that was best for his family while also furthering his career aspirations.”

DeBoer’s employment at Alabama represents the pinnacle of his meteoric climb in coaching over the last four seasons. DeBoer was a record-setting receiver at the University of Sioux Falls, an NAIA program in his home state of South Dakota, before taking over as head coach in 2005. Over the next five years, his team went 67-3 and won three NAIA national championships (2006, 2008, 2009). Under DeBoer, the Cougars were 17-2 in the NAIA playoffs.

After serving as an offensive coordinator at Southern Illinois, Eastern Michigan, Fresno State, and Indiana, DeBoer succeeded Jeff Tedford as Fresno State’s coach in 2020. The Bulldogs were 3-3 in the COVID-19-delayed season that year, but improved to 9-3 in his second season, including shocks from nationally ranked UCLA and San Diego State.