Kalen DeBoer Joins College GameDay Ahead of Georgia Matchup

Alabama head coach Kalen DeBoer joined College GameDay alongside Nick Saban and opened up about his first year in crimson and white so far.

Alabama Head Coach Kalen DeBoer sits alongside Nick Saban during an appearance on College Gameday ahead of the Crimson Tide's matchup with the Georgia Bulldogs. Credit: @AlabamaFTBL on X / Credit: @AlabamaFTBL on X

First year Head Coach Kalen DeBoer joined ESPN's College Gameday ahead of the Crimson Tide's top five showdown with the Georgia Bulldogs and spoke on the process of following up a coach like Nick Saban as well as how he has taken over the program in his own way while still maintaining important traditions.

Seated right beside his predecessor Nick Saban, DeBoer opened up on the first days following his arrival as head coach and how impactful Saban was during that process.

"I think that conversation that I had with [Saban], just feeling how he felt about things and knowing that I kind of had a piece of my heart that the transition would be smooth and that I would have the grace from him to go and take over and still be able to embrace everything he's done for this program," DeBoer said.

The new coach also spoke on how he was able to make the team embrace a new regime, saying, "I knew coming in and meeting the guys that it would be dead quiet, them having a lot of questions, and a lot of emotions. It was just to try to meet them where they were at at the time."

Speaking on the Georgia matchup, DeBoer highlighted the importance of his team's defense, saying, "I think it's going to be important for our defensive side to continue to do their thing. They've been solid, but I think that's where you're going to see a lot of the challenges they maybe haven't had in the first three games."

Coach DeBoer 🤝 Coach Saban pic.twitter.com/WHKS6wqt02

— College GameDay (@CollegeGameDay) September 28, 2024

Closing out the segment, Saban asked the new coach on what he has learned about this year's team, and DeBoer responded, "I'm very confident in our consistent preparation, and preparation throughout the week, not just on Saturday. It leads us to a confidence within that's real."

Alabama takes on the Bulldogs at 6:30 p.m. CT on ABC as DeBoer looks to pick up his first signature win as the Tide's head coach.