Kalen DeBoer is entering his third season as the head coach of the Alabama Crimson Tide. The record has improved each season he has been there. But improvement has not been enough to quiet the noise around him.

CBS Sports put him at No. 8 on their list of coaches who need a big 2026.

"Alabama players love Kalen DeBoer. The administration wants greater buy-in. Fans remain divided. Next season will be pivotal for the Tide's third-year coach, who has yet to generate the momentum many anticipated after succeeding one of the sport's all-time greats," Brad Crawford of CBS Sports wrote February 20.

Former coach Nick Saban lost eight games combined in his final five seasons at Alabama. DeBoer has already hit that number in just two years.

The Rose Bowl said everything: Indiana beat Alabama by 35 points in January. That kind of loss does not happen in this program and is forgotten quickly.

Crawford pointed to something visible all along.

"DeBoer's finesse-oriented offense thrived at previous stops, but Alabama's identity has long been rooted in physicality," he further pointed out.

If Alabama decides to move on from DeBoer without cause after this season, then they will have to pay him $50 million to buy him out, per Crawford.

DeBoer has addressed the expectations directly.

"It is better to be at a place that really cares and with people that really care and are passionate," he said on Always College Football with Greg McElroy on ESPN. "This is what we signed up for. The high expectations, this is what we love."

He knows exactly what this season has to look like. The whole program does.

DeBoer's New Contract Extension Complicated Things Further

Alabama handed DeBoer a seven-year extension this offseason. Not everybody thought it made sense.

"Adding $2 million to DeBoer's bank account only made life more challenging for a coach whose fanbase could be described as lukewarm at best," AL.com columnist Joseph Casagrande wrote in April.

DeBoer will make $12.5 million in 2026. By comparison, his original contract was set at $10.5 million.

The extension gives DeBoer runway. But a $50 million buyout after 2026 tells you how much this season has to mean.

Do you think Kalen DeBoer can get Alabama back to a national championship in 2026? Let us know in the comments.

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Written by

Farheen Fathima

Edited by

Shubhi Rathore