Alabama Crimson Tide news and notes from Monday and Tuesday, August 18th and 19th.
Kalen DeBoer's QB gamble under scrutiny following Julian Sayin being named Ohio State's starter
One of the first big roster decisions made by Kalen DeBoer when he arrived in Tuscaloosa to replace Nick Saban was to bring along his young, developmental QB. Austin Mack transferred to Alabama on January 18th, just six days after DeBoer was officially named as the head coach of the Crimson Tide. One day later, highly touted 5-star freshman Julian Sayin entered the Transfer Portal, ultimately finding his way to Columbus.
On Monday, Sayin, now a redshirt freshman, was named the starting QB of Ohio State. That decision by Ryan Day brings back into focus DeBoer's massive QB gamble, which will be heavily scrutinized if Sayin goes on to a big season for the Buckeyes, particularly if Ty Simpson struggles.
In an alternate universe, Alabama's QB battle for the 2025 season would have been between Simpson and Sayin. In that universe, Keelon Russell probably never comes to Alabama, so in reality, the real litmus test will likely come a couple of years down the road once what Russell can become is known.
Josh Pate picks Alabama to win the SEC
Popular college football analyst Josh Pate attended Alabama's second scrimmage of fall camp on Saturday. He came away impressed enough with what he saw to then predict the Crimson Tide to beat Texas in the SEC Championship Game and enter the College Football Playoff as the No. 2 overall seed.
Pate is a believer in DeBoer heading into year two in Tuscaloosa. He has attended practice for a lot of programs across the country, including the majority of the SEC. From what he's seen, he was comfortable predicting Alabama as the league's best team.
Nick Saban has high expectations for Alabama in 2025
On Monday night, Nick Saban was in Birmingham attending the annual Nick Saban Legacy Awards. He was asked for his thoughts on the job DeBoer is doing and what his expectations are for Alabama in 2025.
Saban has never been one to want to set expectations for anyone, but he does believe the Crimson Tide will be much improved this season. He also believes DeBoer did about as well as he could do navigating a tumultuous first season.
"I think they have the right staff, I think they have the right people, and I think you’ll see a big improvement in Alabama’s team this year," Saban said.
Five Alabama commitments named to MaxPreps high school All-American teams
DeBoer has put together one of the top recruiting classes in the country in the 2026 cycle. Of Alabama's 21 commitments, five are rated as 5-stars in the composite rankings. Those five were recently named to the MaxPreps All-American teams.
1st Team: RB Ezavier Crowell, LB Xavier Griffin, CB Jorden Edmonds
2nd Team: WR Cederian Morgan, S Jireh Edwards
Alabama's plan at RB against Florida State without Jam Miller is TBD
Ryan Grubb spoke after practice on Tuesday and was of course asked about how Alabama moves forward in gameplanning for Florida State without senior RB Jam Miller. Grubb had been extremely complimentary of Miller during camp, and by all accounts the senior RB was gearing up for a big final season in Tuscaloosa.
He'll be back sooner rather than later, but Alabama will march into Tallahassee without its most experienced runner. According to Grubb, how the Tide navigates the game plan at RB without Miller is still up in the air.
“I think we gotta see a lot here in the next week or so to see who can handle the game plan,” Grubb said. “Who’s the most responsible with all the duties.”
Taylo Bol Bowen shows off his skills at Alabama basketball practice
Florida State transfer forward Taylor Bol Bowen figures to be a key piece to the puzzle for Nate Oats and Alabama basketball in 2025-26. He brings a unique skillset and may be the most versatile player on the Tide roster. The majority of fans and analysts believed that versatility was mainly on the defensive end of the floor, with his ability to guard big and small. But in a clip from practice that lead assistant coach Preston Murphy posted to Twitter, he may have more in his offensive bag than anyone thought.
In the clip, Bol Bowen brings the ball up the court, makes a quick pass, gets the ball back, and then attacks the rim with a crossover leading to a dunk. If he truly can replicate that off-the-bounce ability, he opens up even more lineup possibilities for Oats on a team that seems, on paper at least, to be fairly deep and versatile.