The search is over, and it didn’t take very long. Earlier this week, news broke that Alabama football head coach Nick Saban is retiring. Most people weren’t expecting that, and the Crimson Tide needed a new coach. Alabama doesn’t really have anyone on the staff that would be a good fit, which put the internal hire out of the question. A few big name coaches squashed the rumors this week as well, but now Alabama has their guy as Kalen DeBoer is coming over from Washington football.
Kalen DeBoer just took his Huskies to the national title game where they lost to Michigan, the same team that knocked Alabama football out of the College Football Playoff this season. Now, DeBoer is moving on from Washington and he will be the next head coach of the Crimson Tide. If you’re an Alabama fan, you better hope that this works out, because the team is spending a lot of money to make DeBoer their guy.
“With Kalen DeBoer’s move final, Alabama owes Washington about $12 million in buyout money,” Ross Dellenger said in a tweet. “That, combined with DeBoer’s likely $10M+ salary, makes this an incredibly expensive move from the Crimson Tide – a commitment of near or over $100 million.”
That is a lot of money. DeBoer showed that he can win this season with Washington, and it should be easier for him to win at Alabama, but that is still a lot of money. The Crimson Tide didn’t really have another option, however. Dan Lanning and Mike Norvell both shut the rumors down, and if DeBoer had decided to stay at Washington, who knows what the Crimson Tide would’ve done. This team is going to look much different next year, and it will be very weird to see someone that isn’t Saban leading the Tide on the field.
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