Pressure creates diamonds. It can also crack an egg. How Kalen DeBoer is forged under pressure at Alabama is his tale to tell alone. Year three for him leading the Crimson Tide comes with reasonable expectations. Can Alabama get back into the College Football Playoff and navigate the 12-team bracket even further? Maybe not win a national title, but progress needs to be made under DeBoer.
While he does face some heading into his third season at Alabama, it is far more of the manageable variety when compared to some of his coaching contemporaries. Dan Lanning and Lincoln Riley need to take that next step at their respective Big Ten schools. Meanwhile, Shane Beamer feels like he is on the hot seat at South Carolina. As for Steve Sarkisian, this must be the year Texas lives up to the hype.
It is why OnSI's Tucker Harlin ranked these five college football programs under pressure accordingly.
- USC Trojans
- Texas Longhorns
- Oregon Ducks
- South Carolina Gamecocks
- Alabama Crimson Tide
Alabama coming in fifth out of five makes sense. DeBoer may need to win a national championship, but not to the degree that Lanning and Sarkisian probably need to this year. For Riley, he needs to get USC into the playoffs. As for Beamer, last year's disaster needs to be the anomaly, and not the trend for the South Carolina program. In short, Beamer and Sarkisian will face more pressure than DeBoer.
As long as Alabama makes any progress this year, DeBoer should enter year four quite comfortably.
Kalen DeBoer enters his most important season to date leading Alabama
Offseason narratives have started to take root across the sport. Alabama is no different. While there are positive stories being penned about Alabama's favorable schedule, its intriguing quarterback room, the high-end nature of its secondary, and the allure of Ryan Coleman-Williams at wide receiver, there are also negatives to harp on. The ground game, offensive line, and now recruiting lead the way.
2026 will be another year removed from Nick Saban being in Tuscaloosa. Only a handful of guys are still around that committed to play for him at Alabama. DeBoer's players and coaching staff remain. The way he was doing things at Washington worked in the old Pac-12. Some of that has translated favorably into the SEC. However, Alabama fans are starting to get impatient amid their title drought.
Alabama has not won a national title since 2020, but 2005 is starting to feel like ancient history in Austin. The same things apply to 2004 in Los Angeles. At least the Crimson Tide, Longhorns, and Trojans have won big before. Oregon and South Carolina never have. Again, pressure is all a relative construct. Each team faces a different amount. DeBoer is in a better spot than his contemporaries.
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The good news for DeBoer is that even if he is facing some pressure at Alabama this season, Beamer and Sarkisian are facing more at their respective SEC schools. Texas is built to win now, but is Sarkisian? South Carolina has so much talent, but the Gamecocks cannot be so poorly coached again. DeBoer has his flaws, but they pale in comparison to what could sink his SEC colleagues.
Let's be real. If DeBoer cannot handle a fair amount of pressure, then he is not built to lead Alabama.
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