Alabama football may not have Nick Saban to save them anymore, but the legendary coach’s replacement has started to find his stride, particularly on the recruiting trail.
When Kalen DeBoer took over for Saban a year and a half ago, many critics thought that Alabama would take a drastic step back. DeBoer’s recent success in recruiting this month has shown that the Crimson Tide aren't going anywhere.
Monday, during an appearance on WJOX's "McElroy and Cublic in the Morning," ESPN's Paul Finebaum gave his thoughts about why Alabama has had recent success in recruiting.
“I think, overall, Kalen DeBoer, with the addition of Ryan Grubb and finally the staff a little bit more to his liking, has brought continuity and that’s evidenced by him retaining his players in the spring, which I think is a very big deal for that purpose, and I think it’s oozing over to recruiting,” Finebaum said.
In the month of June, Alabama has received nine commitments, including two top-50 prospects, in the past week. The nine commitments this June are part of 14 total commitments, landing the Crimson Tide at No. 7 in On3’s latest team recruiting rankings for 2026. This recent run on recruits reminded Finebaum of what the former Alabama head coach used to do on the recruiting trail.
“Quite frankly, this is one of the great recruiting runs we’ve seen in some years. It almost feels like Nick Saban is running the ship again when it comes to recruiting because this is vintage Alabama recruiting,” said Finebaum. “I think when we saw this transition two and a half years ago, I think a lot of people doubted Alabama could come back to this particular moment in time. But it is here and I think it bodes extremely well for Alabama in the future.”
This is the kind of statement DeBoer needed to make to quiet the critics, assuring Alabama fans that he is the right man for the job and that the Crimson Tide is still one of the best football programs in the country.
The Crimson Tide have plenty of prospects to add in the next couple of months as they chase down USC for the No. 1 recruiting class for 2026.
Don't miss out! Subscribe to our newsletter and get our top stories every weekday morning.
