cc Alabama’s first-year football coach, is putting his stamp on the team after Nick Saban’s retirement. There is no manual for following a legend, especially with the Crimson Tide, where Saban’s routine over the last two decades has resulted in six national championships, a slew of SEC titles, and demonstrated outcomes in player development.
Alabama veteran offensive lineman Tyler Booker stated that the guys told their new leader to be himself and not to emulate anyone else.
“We all advised Coach DeBoer, ‘Don’t come in here and try to be Nick Saban. Be yourself.’ “Because (DeBoer has) been successful everywhere he’s been,” Booker said as Alabama opened spring practice, via The Tuscaloosa News, “and it’s up to us to come together and adapt to his culture, and him to adapt to our culture as well, so we can become one.”
DeBoer does not intend to change Alabama’s “fourth quarter” conditioning approach. Under the former government, it was considered a right of passage in Tuscaloosa.
“The fourth quarter is a staple of this program and it’s a rite of passage for all the older guys,” Booker told the crowd. “I met Najee Harris at the Super Bowl. He asked, ‘Are y’all still doing fourth quarter? ‘Of course.’ So having something in common with past Alabama players is key.”
Alabama’s “relentless” recruiting culture will not change, as DeBoer reminded a few days after taking the position. He won consecutive Pac-12 Coach of the Year honours at Washington and has won 25 of his previous 28 college football games, indicating that a strong focus on winning will continue.
Elite recruiting is a different animal in the SEC, which has many of the nation’s finest talent acquisition programs.
“It’s what it will take to be the best of the best in this challenging SEC competition and win a national championship. In January, DeBoer told Bama247, “I’m looking forward to rolling up my sleeves and going to work.”
DeBoer has stated on multiple occasions that Saban has “100% access to everything” and that he values everyday counsel from the seven-time national champion. To be honest, he would be stupid not to, given that Saban has made himself accessible and intends to remain in some role.
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Saban’s final season as a coach was one of his most impressive, as he led the Crimson Tide to 11 consecutive wins, including a victory over unbeaten Georgia in the SEC final, to advance to the playoffs. Now that someone else is in charge, Saban can pick and choose when to offer his thoughts.
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