4-star Alabama commit taking visit to SEC rival is a big problem for Kalen DeBoer

Kalen DeBoer wasn’t known as an elite recruiter when he arrived at Alabama from Washington. Yet, with Alabama’s resources, he was able to produce the No. 3 class in the country in the 2025 cycle. In 2026, however, he’s lagging far behind. 

Alabama’s major summer recruiting efforts began over the weekend with a large group of official visits to Tuscaloosa, but any momentum gained could be zapped if four-star cornerback Zyan Gibson flips to Ole Miss after he added an official visit to Oxford for next weekend. 

Zyan Gibson on flip watch with upcoming visit to Ole Miss

Alabama has just five commits in the 2026 class, which currently ranks No. 45 in the country, and two of those commits are top 100 players in the country according to 247Sports: five-star Jorden Edmonds and Gibson. To lose Gibson at this stage of the recruiting process and shrink the class to just four players would be a significant blow to the program. 

Gibson committed back in December, and there haven’t been major indications that he’d be interested in leaving the Crimson Tide’s incoming class until scheduling this visit to Ole Miss. The 6-foot, 174-pound Gadsden, Alabama native is also slated to visit Tennessee on June 13 after his trip to Lane Kiffin’s current program. 

DeBoer needs to start landing commits in the 2026 class, but even with such a staggering lack of volume at this point in the summer, cornerback is theoretically the one position where Alabama could withstand this type of loss. Edmonds is also a cornerback, the No. 1 ranked corner in the class by most rankings, and his commitment came a year after Alabama landed the No. 2 ranked corner in 2025, Dijon Lee Jr. 

Cornerback is quickly becoming a position of strength in DeBoer’s program, but depth can evaporate quickly, so holding onto Gibson should remain a priority for the Alabama staff. With another large crop of recruits heading to Tuscaloosa this weekend, there could be commitments coming soon for the Crimson Tide, and if Gibson flips to Ole Miss, then DeBoer will desperately need one, not just to offset the loss, but to placate the fanbase. 

DeBoer’s class will come together, and Edmonds will likely remain the cornerstone, but if he doesn’t deliver soon, fans will start to get restless, and the pressure will further ramp up for him to make the College Football Playoff in Year 2.