Inside The Huskies

Here's the Latest on Alabama Coaching Search, With DeBoer's Name Popping Up a Lot

The Husky leader is on several people's Crimson Tide wish lists.

Dan Raley

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Three days after the Huskies lost the national championship game to Michigan, University of Washington football followers are worried sick about losing their coach to Alabama.

Season-long excitement over Kalen DeBoer and his high-achieving players suddenly has turned to trepidation throughout Seattle as the football rumor mill begins to grind.

Alabama needs someone to replace Nick Saban who will keep the program at an elite level in the coach's wake, and people in the Southeast seem to think the Crimson Tide can hire just about anyone it wants to keep everyone happy.

Can they?

Oregon coach Dan Lanning was supposed to be the Saban successor, reportedly traveling to Tuscaloosa overnight and interviewing for the job — until he didn't and wasn't — and then Lanning released a statement strongly suggesting he wasn't leaving Eugene.

Next up, Florida State coach Mike Norvell, Alabama offensive coordinator Tommy Rees and DeBoer are said to be serious candidates who each will interview for the job, at least according to one John Brice of Football Scoop. 

Norvell is considered a possibility to take over at Alabama because he has a 23-4 record with the Seminoles and already has a strong presence in the South, while DeBoer has been the subject of a lot of discussion because he's built a 25-3 ledger with the Huskies and just took them to the title game.

In recent hours, ESPN is reporting that Norvell and DeBoer are beginning to emerge as the top candidates for the Crimson Tide job, supposedly neck and neck in their coaching appeal.

Earlier on Thursday, however, Florida State was hit with NIL violations that might sully Norvell's reputation some, though his assistant coaches appear to have acted alone in these misdeeds. The Seminoles also landed Alabama offensive lineman Terrence Ferguson from the transfer portal. These developments could cool Tuscaloosa interest in him. Or not.

Either way, Norvell posted a very pro-Florida State message after Ferguson made his intentions known on where he was headed.

"Great day to be a Florida State Seminole!! #BIGMAN coming to the #NoleFamily and #Tribe24 Future is bright in Tallahassee#KeepCLIMBing," Norvell wrote on social media.

Joel Klatt, the college football broadcaster and podcaster, and someone who always seems to have a good handle on the game, presented the following coaches as those he sees as the most likely to get the job, in this order: 1) Steve Sarkisian of Texas; 2) Lanning; and 3) DeBoer.

Klatt, however, is only stating his own preferences and not citing an unnamed or made-up source as others are inclined to do right now. 

As far as DeBoer goes, aviation journalist Ben Bearup posted that he spotted a Thursday night flight traveling from Seattle to Tuscaloosa, but he couldn't confirm who was on it.

However, the Husky football coach is expected to do a Seattle radio talk-show segment on KJR FM 93.3 on Friday morning in the 8 a.m. hour, which is 11 a.m. in Alabama. He probably could do it remote from just about anywhere if it came to that.

The $10 million question is this: could DeBoer possibly leave the Huskies after just two seasons for Alabama and the SEC? 

Well, he departed Fresno State after just two years to take over a program that's a step up from what he had, so why wouldn't he consider taking over a powerhouse program such as Alabama already fully established?

DeBoer hasn't signed a contract with the UW and might put it off as this Alabama situation plays out. Crimson Tide backers, if seriously interested in the Husky coach, wouldn't hesitate to exceed whatever the Husky alums come up with for the coach in Montlake. 

Greg McElroy, SEC broadcaster and former Alabama quarterback, placed percentages for the different college coaches singled out as possible Saban successors.

McElroy gave DeBoer a 25-percent chance of getting the job, the highest of any placed on the other possible names being bandied about.

As the coaching carousel of job opportunities goes around and around, what would the Huskies do should DeBoer take this Alabama job?

Here's a thought: the UW probably would immediately elevate offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb to become the head coach, with the idea of keeping the current culture in place, the offensive approach unchanged and as many Husky players from leaving as possible. Grubb, of course, had his own Alabama interview 13 months ago.

Yet DeBoer hasn't departed Montlake just yet, or even let out any signals that he's mulling his options or acknowledged he might be willing to talk to someone about the job. He's hasn't squelched any of this either.

Let the coaching speculation and rumor mill continue at a no-huddle pace.

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Dan Raley
DAN RALEY

Dan Raley has worked for the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, Atlanta Journal-Constitution and Fairbanks Daily News-Miner, as well as for MSN.com and Boeing, the latter as a global aerospace writer. His sportswriting career spans four decades and he's covered University of Washington football and basketball during much of that time. In a working capacity, he's been to the Super Bowl, the NBA Finals, the MLB playoffs, the Masters, the U.S. Open, the PGA Championship and countless Final Fours and bowl games.

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