Alabama players open up on differences between Nick Saban, Kalen DeBoer

Who really is Kalen DeBoer?

Like, who is the coach now in Year 2 of a historically difficult job replacing a legend? It’s been a question we’ve been asking for 18-plus months since DeBoer stepped off that plane in Tuscaloosa.

And what makes him different from his predecessor? How is he similar?

In a way, DeBoer’s an enigma -- a disarmingly friendly guy who brings an unmistakably different personality to this college football blue blood.

But what’s he really like as a coach? And how different is he from the last guy? AL.com spoke to a collection of the relatively few players who span the Saban to DeBoer eras to drill down on who exactly is this smiling South Dakotan leading the Crimson Tide?

They described a man with a high intensity level that’s not seen quite as much outside the football complex. He’s got some Saban in him, a few said, but that manifests in different ways. They see a coach who is, perhaps, more of a partner than a commander.

DeBoer’s office door is always open and his vocabulary is … not quite as colorful.

Offensive lineman Jaeden Roberts was quick with an answer when asked the most significant difference between DeBoer and Saban.

“Oh, definitely personality,” said Roberts, a fifth-year senior. “You know, Coach DeBoer wants to get to know his team, get to know his players. And I’m not saying Coach Saban didn’t, but Coach DeBoer has really done a good job in getting to know everybody’s individuals and then bringing us in as a group and really making this feel like more a family type of team.”

Running back Jam Miller described a coach with a collaborative mindset.

“He also wants to hear what we have to say that can also better the team,” said Miller, a senior. “And just him doing that really builds a strong bond with us as a team.”

Is that unique? Has Miller experienced that kind of coaching before?

“Me personally? Nah, not really,” he said. “Of course, that’s probably new for most guys.”

Linebacker Deontae Lawson went into detail contrasting the two head coaches he had since arriving at Alabama in 2021.

“Nah, they’re, they’re extremely different,” he said. “I mean, you got Coach Saban, who is just so detail-oriented and he just demands excellence from everyone around him. Coaches, players, it doesn’t matter who it is.

“And, Coach DeBoer, is also detail-oriented and demands excellence. But you’re able to, I feel like, be yourself. I feel like with Coach Saban, you know who he is -- his figure. So, it kind of makes you tense up or something like that. For freshmen coming in, that wouldn’t be a good thing because you’re trying to do everything perfect and it end up to him having to chew you out.”

Linebacker Qua Russaw only had one year under Saban and now enters Year 2 with DeBoer.

“Different, I’ll say, Saban [is] more business,” the Carver High product said. “We didn’t really talk too much. I mean, I know you talked to the DBs a lot.”

Still, several of these players described DeBoer as having more of that hard-nosed intensity than what could be visible to outsiders.

“People, they don’t see what’s happening behind closed doors,” said Miller, the senior running back. “You know, people only listen to what the media says. But, actually, people don’t know what he’s doing behind the door in this building.”

Do tell.

“You know, he’s coaching us hard, you know?” Miller said. “He’s not an easy, relaxing coach. You know, you make one mistake, you know, he gonna get on to you about it.”

Offensive tackle Kadyn Proctor agrees with that. While the junior described DeBoer as “funny” and a “goofy guy at heart,” Proctor said his coach has some traits similar to Saban.

“Like if, if you get into the team room and he’s addressing the team, he’s obviously going to be harsh on us,” Proctor said. “If something goes bad, he’s going to be harsh on us like Coach Saban was. But if he’s outside or he’s doing media, he’s gonna make it fun. That’s probably something that’s different than Coach Saban.”

Defensive lineman Tim Keenan said his friendly personality could be confused as “he doesn’t have a sense of urgency.”

“He’s going to do the things that’s necessary,” said Keenan, a fifth-year senior from Birmingham. “He been bringing more energy now. So, you really have to know him. If you don’t know him. He just has that kind of like laid back demeanor.”

Wilken Formby sees the different dimensions of DeBoer’s discipline.

“He can turn it up for sure,” the third-year offensive lineman from Tuscaloosa said. “It goes back to his standard for excellence, like anytime that somebody’s not meeting that or he’s not pleased with what that is, then he’s going to have to turn it up the right way.”

It’s just done the DeBoer way.

“But he’s very respectful with the way he carries himself,” Formby said. “And he’s such a down-to-earth guy.”

And that’s where one of the most significant differences looms large.

Maybe it’s the volume of the coach’s voice.

Or perhaps it’s the vocabulary.

“Coach Saban, he’s just gonna get real colorful with his language and stuff like that,” Keenan said.

And DeBoer?

“He’s still gonna get his point across,” Keenan said, “but he may not have to use as many words or things like that.”

Where Saban painted with profanity like da Vinci did with a brush, DeBoer is known more for avoiding those words.

Russaw said he heard DeBoer cuss “probably one time” during a game.

“Yeah, it’s a little different,” the linebacker said, “but I just think he’s just trying to keep PG as possible, as professional as possible.”

Lawson said he’s also heard DeBoer use one bad word.

“Yeah,” the middle linebacker said, “I heard him.”

Oh yeah?

“Well, he said, ‘Damn.’”

And Lawson laughed, because if that’s as spicy as DeBoer’s foul language gets, that’s quite tame.

It’s just a different approach to the same job, with expectations that never change.

Saban did it his way and now DeBoer is putting his stamp on the Alabama program. What’s clear from the players interviewed is the respect they have for both.

Each of these players had the opportunity to transfer after Saban retired and after DeBoer’s first season.

But they stayed. In Proctor’s case, he left for Iowa and then immediately returned.

And it doesn’t sound like they regret the two decisions they made to play for the folksy -- sometimes fiery but rarely profane -- coach picked to replace the irreplaceable.

“I think with Coach DeBoer, man, you’re able to be yourself because he’s going to allow you to and he’s going to show you that you can. And that’s something as small as giving you a handshake in the locker room or in a hallway or anything like that.

“And so, I feel like, man, Coach DeBoer is just a, just a great coach. He’s just a players’ coach, no doubt. And I know the guys are blessed to have him.”