It's easy to say you understand something, but it's a different thing when you see it up close and personal for the first time. Kalen DeBoer had to learn a few truths the hard way during his first season at Alabama.
It was always going to be a difficult transition coming from a career spent mostly on the West Coast at places like Sioux Falls, Fresno State, and Washington, to coaching in the SEC, especially at a place like Alabama, where the expectations are larger than Coach Bryant's shadow.
It's that fact that Alabama fans - myself included - probably took for granted last season when setting expectations. The Crimson Tide had a roster talented enough to make the College Football Playoff, but the rough patches it endured were probably necessary in order to move forward.
Speaking to local media in South Dakota this week, where DeBoer took a short trip in order to speak at an event, DeBoer spoke about having a better understanding of what it means when you're Alabama:
"Every week in the SEC, you're going to get everyone's best shot when you're Alabama," DeBoer said.
Alabama shouldn't be caught off-guard again in 2025
DeBoer had to learn the hard way last season that every week is a grind in the SEC, and in the case of Alabama, because of the success of the program under Nick Saban (and historically), you tend to be everyone's Super Bowl.
The Alabama coaching staff and team clearly took that for granted in preparation for at least two of the team's three losses a year ago. The most startling example was a road loss to Vanderbilt, which was the first time the Tide had lost a game to the Commodores in 40 years. That it took place one week after DeBoer's first signature win in Tuscaloosa - a thrilling 41-34 win over top-ranked Georgia - is not shocking in retrospect.
Vanderbilt broke out to a 13-0 lead after an opening touchdown drive followed by a Jalen Milroe pick-six. Alabama looked shell-shocked and sleepy, and could never fully recover from the hole they dug themselves into.
It took at least one more ill-prepared loss for that lesson to fully sink in. Later in November, after Alabama had seemingly righted the ship with a blowout win in Baton Rouge over LSU, the Crimson Tide put together perhaps the most lifeless performance for the program in over 20 years in a 24-3 loss to Oklahoma.
Alabama looking unprepared - and losing to unranked opponents - was something that Tide fans had completely forgotten about. Nick Saban was almost completely impervious to big upsets during his time in Tuscaloosa. That air of invincibility that shrouded the program was lost a year ago, and that is one of the main things DeBoer will be looking to gain back in 2025.
At least now, there's no more telling him what to expect. He's fully seen it now, and he and the team should be better prepared for it.