Nick Saban opens up about ‘outstanding’ Alabama hire Kalen DeBoer

Alabama already has found its football successor, and he’s Nick Saban-approved.

On Friday, the program officially announced that it has successfully landed University of Washington head coach Kalen DeBoer, who led the Huskies to this year’s College Football Playoff national title game.

DeBoer, 49, who ended up losing out on the CFP championship, capped off one of the best seasons in Washington’s program, winning a Pac-12 title en route to a 14-1 record, highlighted by a Sugar Bowl win over Texas in the semifinal.

Saban retired earlier this week and ultimately approved of Alabama moving quickly to hire DeBoer.

Nick Saban retired from coaching this week. Getty Images“Coach DeBoer is an outstanding choice to lead this program,” Saban said in a statement released by Alabama football on X. “He has a proven track record of success and is one of the brightest football minds.”

Saban later added that DeBoer, “has done a fantastic job at every stop of his coaching career and I am excited to see what he will be able to accomplish in Tuscaloosa.”

The former coach later offered that he would support the new head man for the Crimson Tide throughout his tenure.

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— Alabama Football (@AlabamaFTBL) January 13, 2024DeBoer arrives on his new campus, having led the Huskies to a combined 25-3 record over two seasons, ending as No. 2 and No. 8, respectively.

Before his stint at Washington, DeBoer also coached Fresno State to a 12-6 record over the 2020 and 2021 seasons, capping his tenure off with a New Mexico Bowl win.

Kalen DeBoer will be the new head coach of Alabama. Getty ImagesDeBoer has a career head coaching record 104-12 in college football, including a run at Sioux Falls from 2005-09, where he won three NAIA National Championships and went 67-3 over a five-year period.

Saban was the head coach at Alabama since 2007, leading the program to a 206-29 record and six national championships.