DeBoer: Alabama coaches, players 'more comfortable' this season

Improvement is the key word for Alabama ahead of the 2025 season after the Crimson Tide missed the College Football Playoff in their first year under head coach Kalen DeBoer.

DeBoer and his players are optimistic they can live up to the hype this season.

"Your relationships are deeper," DeBoer said Monday about Year 2, according to ESPN's Chris Low. "You establish that harder edge because of the understanding of what we need to do to accomplish it. And now we have the experiences for the most part together, the staff and players.

"We're more comfortable now calling each other out because our relationships are stronger, and we know that we all want the same thing. I feel like now we're closer to having the alignment between staff and players and having the right people here. Everyone has an appreciation for what each other brings to the table."

DeBoer has big shoes to fill after becoming Alabama's coach last year to replace Nick Saban, who retired in January 2024 with nine SEC titles and six national championships across 17 years with the Crimson Tide.

Alabama posted a 9-4 record in Year 1 under DeBoer.

"Coach DeBoer had his battles last year, replacing a legend like Coach Saban in the middle of the transfer portal, and it was hard to implement everything the way he wanted," Alabama linebacker and team captain Deontae Lawson said.

"It was kind of hard for him to come in and be the bad cop or whatever last year. He's still laid back and still wants the players to lead, but his fingerprints are on everything now. And he's made it known that you better be locked in."

Alabama looked good at times last season - notably in its 41-34 victory over Georgia - but the Crimson Tide's inconsistencies ultimately resulted in disappointing losses to Vanderbilt, Tennessee, Oklahoma, and Michigan (in the ReliaQuest Bowl).

"That's not the standard here, and we all know it," Lawson added. "But you go back and look at the way Coach DeBoer handled it. He wasn't pointing the finger at anybody else."

DeBoer's biggest offseason change to his staff was adding offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb, who was also the OC when DeBoer's Washington Huskies reached the national title game during the 2023 season. Grubb spent 2024 with the Seattle Seahawks but was fired at the end of the campaign.