The biggest question mark for Kalen DeBoer when he was hired to replace Nick Saban as Alabama's football coach was whether or not he could recruit at a level to keep the cupboards stocked in Tuscaloosa at a talent level fans have grown accustomed to.
DeBoer has long been lauded as an X's and O's savant, but just being able to devise a great game plan isn't good enough in the SEC. You need top of the line talent to compete in this league year in and year out. top-of-the-line
Early returns have been more than positive as DeBoer has kept the Crimson Tide in the Top 5 in most recruiting rankings, including as high as No. 2 class in the 247 composite rankings. After a brutal week on the trail, Alabama has fallen all the way down to No. 4 in recruiting. The horror.
It all started when 5-star WR Caleb Cunningham flipped his commitment from the Crimson Tide to Ole Miss after being in attendance for the Rebels' upset win over Georgia in Oxford last weekend.
The hits kept coming as a couple of days later 4-star LB and longtime Alabama commitment Dawson Merritt flipped from the Crimson Tide to Nebraska.
On Sunday, Alabama saw its third decommitment of the 2025 class in a week when RB Anthony "Turbo" Rogers backed off his pledge to the Tide. Rogers seems to be trending toward Ohio State but has not made a public decision at this point in time.
All three guys are good players, but none made decisions that caught DeBoer and his staff off guard. Cunningham is on his third commitment and has been taking visits since committing to Alabama back in July. Merritt is staying closer to home to play for his dream school in Nebraska. Rogers committed to Saban and has never seemed to be in high regard for the current coaching staff in Tuscaloosa.
There's a reason they pushed so hard for AK Dear and have continued recruiting other running backs like Michigan State commitment Jace Clarizio and USC pledge Harry Dalton.
Alabama still has one of the best classes in the country, headlined by four composite 5-stars: QB Keelon Russell, IOL Michael Carroll, CB Dijon Lee, and OT Ty Haywood. There's good news on the horizon, as Alabama is trending to flip 4-star safety and Michigan pledge Ivan Taylor.
Alabama is also pushing to flip Florida WR commit Naeshaun Montgomery, who visited the Capstone over the weekend.
Recruiting is always a roller coaster. Saban was so good at it that a lot of Alabama fans were able to tune it out and just know the Tide was going to sign one of the top classes in the nation year in and year out. That luxury is gone now and the roller coaster ride now includes the Crimson Tide.
Alabama is on track to sign a Top 5 class, something that would be an incredible feat for DeBoer and his staff considering they had to start from scratch in 2025 following Saban's abrupt retirement in January.