Kalen DeBoer can win back Alabama fans the same way he did a year ago when the Crimson Tide took down Georgia. But winning back Bama fans is just part of his job in year two of the post-Nick Saban era. This season, he doesn’t just have to win back Bama fans, DeBoer has to take the Crimson Tide back to their national peak, running college football and dominating in the College Football Playoff.
That starts with a duel against the Bulldogs this weekend. The Crimson Tide already have one loss and getting a second one a month into the season would essentially make DeBoer public enemy No. 1 in Tuscaloosa. This Georgia team is the best chance for him to get a monumental win this year as well. Georgia, while their defense is still pretty good, is beatable as Tennessee showed.
Gunner Stockton is good as well, but he’s not Matthew Stafford or Aaron Murray. Where Alabama struggled with Thomas Castellanos’ dual threat ability, they won’t have that same fear with Stockton, though he can take off if need be. The Georgia-Alabama game this season carries more weight in 2025 than it did in 2024 and it could be a golden opportunity for DeBoer to flip the narrative on him and his roller coaster tenure at Alabama.
Kalen DeBoer, Alabama can’t afford another early season loss in 2025 with CFP on the horizon
A second loss five games into the season would probably end Alabama’s hopes of returning to the College Football Playoff after having a year away in the most expansive playoff field yet. Last year, the Crimson Tide had a chance despite losses to Vanderbilt and Tennessee. It was the loss to Oklahoma that ultimately halted their playoff hopes
Alabama is expected to compete for national championships every year, regardless of who the coach is. The Crimson Tide has been to the College Football Playoff every year since its inception, other than 2019, 2022 and 2024. No team has been to the CFP as much as Alabama, who’s been eight times.
DeBoer has had a lot of pressure on himself thanks to falling short of the outside expectations and that pressure is at an all-time high this season after the Crimson Tide lost the first game of the year and dropped outside the top 20 in the AP top 25 poll. They’re still outside the top 15 and taking down Georgia, the No. 5 team in the country, is the type of resume boost both DeBoer and the Crimson Tide need.
Since he’s taken over the Crimson Tide, DeBoer has just one top 5 win and two top 15 wins, beating Georgia and LSU last year. He needs to add another to give Bama fans the confidence that he’s the right one. If not, this game could be what gets him fired at Alabama before he gets a chance to grow.
Kalen DeBoer is running out of chances to save face with Alabama fans
This Georgia game this week kickstarts a stretch that will ultimately define the first two years of the DeBoer era. The only way DeBoer can survive a loss to Georgia this week is if he doesn’t lose another game this year. After the Georgia game, the Crimson Tide have Vanderbilt, Missouri, Tennessee, Oklahoma and LSU after that, all ranked opponents.
He can avenge the loss to Tennessee and Vanderbilt in consecutive weeks, which would go a long way to getting more respect from Bama fans. And then with Oklahoma and LSU in the thick of the SEC title game hunt, winning those games could determine if the Crimson Tide return to the SEC title game for the first time since 2023.
There’s not a lot of chances to remain in the good graces of Bama fans for DeBoer without a win over Georgia. Beating Vanderbilt and Tennessee is important, but with a loss to Georgia, beating them won’t really matter and if they lose any of those next three games, DeBoer won’t survive the season.
He knew this is what it meant to take over the team after the legendary Nick Saban. Now he has the pressure of making sure this team doesn’t slip away from him.