Kalen DeBoer previews first Alabama scrimmage, quarterback reps

Alabama football is less than a week away from its first scrimmage.

The Crimson Tide will take part in the intrasquad event Saturday, but coach Kalen DeBoer won’t speak to reporters again until then. So he was asked after practice Sunday what he wants to get out of the first scrimmage and how quarterback reps could be different from the spring scrimmages as Alabama still has not yet named a starter.

“The first scrimmage is always very similar probably to where you left off,” DeBoer said. “You are going to get more involved as the week goes on, but just a lot of base stuff. We did some situational work, work, again, further along, critical moments. We’re working clutch already, two-minute today. Something it would have been another practice or two later. Third down, I feel like we’re a bit more dialed in on third down, fourth down situations even already today.”

DeBoer said the first scrimmage will be “a little bit more basic.”

“Feel the need to get some backed up or some goal line in there already, which, a year ago, we probably didn’t push the issue on the goal line stuff in that first scrimmage as much,” DeBoer said. “I think that could be a possibility to run a few more reps. So a lot of the situational work, those critical moments that we know we got to be better at.”

Alabama will also scrimmage a week later on Aug. 16, and DeBoer wants to make sure both opportunities are maximized.

Then the Crimson Tide will have the following weekend off before turning to the first game week of the 2025 season. The first game will be against Florida State on Aug. 30 in Tallahassee, Florida.