“We weren’t at our best today,” head coach Kalen DeBoer expressed disappointment following their game against Vanderbilt. This performance comes during the ongoing debate regarding his leadership abilities, as many have questioned whether he can successfully carry forward the legacy of Nick Saban. Although Alabama won four consecutive games, their most significant victory of the season came in Week 5 when they defeated their biggest rivals, the Georgia Bulldogs. However, this success was short-lived, as Alabama faced a shocking upset against Vanderbilt, marking a historic loss for the Crimson Tide. Their recent loss has prompted Joel Klatt, an American college football analyst, to raise questions over Alabama’s defense.

In his latest YouTube video, he raised serious concerns over Crimson Tide’s defensive performance and also warned fans to brace themselves for more high-scoring shootouts if they continued their defense situation: “They’ve given up 67 points and 784 yards in the last six quarters of football. Alarm bells. Alabama’s defense is not getting better. And here’s the thing: the same things that were happening on the film against South Florida and then on the field against Wisconsin are happening still.”

It’s important to remember that despite their 41-34 victory over Kirby Smart’s Bulldogs, the Bama defense was outplayed by Carson Beck in the second half. “They (defensive issue) happened in the second half against Georgia. They happened the entire game against Vanderbilt. So this is not a one-off Tide fans. Like, I’m telling you right now this team is going to be in several more shootouts.” After Georgia’s loss, Klatt declared the Bulldogs the “better” team. He believes the same for Vanderbilt.

Well, was there any silver lining, even in a tough loss? Thankfully, for Bama faithful, there is, and that comes in the form of their two stars on the offense. Despite having the possession for only 18 minutes of the game, the Bama offense still managed 35 points, and Klatt acknowledged that.

“Good thing you have Jalen Miller; good thing you have Ryan Williams, who’s spectacular, by the way. I love watching that guy play. He is so graceful on the football field. I absolutely love it. Watching film of Ryan Williams is just a joy. That offense is spectacular. And guess what? There’s, there’s only been one game that they haven’t scored 41 or more points, and they lost,” he said.

The whole affair leaves a lot of issues for Kalen DeBoer to figure out. First season with Alabama, replacing Nick Saban, and a loss to an unranked team? It’s his first taste of adversity. How did he respond? Let’s take you through that.

Kalen DeBoer on Alabama’s issues in the Vanderbilt loss

Before their game against Vanderbilt, Alabama appeared strong on both sides. However, their defense faltered dramatically during the game, leading to a shocking loss. On the other hand, Vanderbilt’s offense delivered an impressive performance, dominating the Crimson Tide from the very first quarter.

Vanderbilt converted 12 out of 18 third-down opportunities and easily allowed their offense to dominate in the first two quarters. And who would have thought that Vanderbilt’s QB would overpower one of the best quarterbacks in the nation?

Diego Pavia significantly outperformed Heisman Trophy contender Jalen Milroe. Pavia showcased his skills by throwing for 252 yards and two touchdowns, completing 16 of 20 passes without any interceptions.

The Tuscaloosa News reported DeBoer’s statements where he speaks about Alabama’s poor defense: “They converted some third-and-longs, and those are the frustrating ones. Just great execution on their part. Obviously we expect to do good on third down too, because we have done great things on third down. More fourth down. Guys certainly are frustrated about that, and we’ll look into it and understand that they attacked us in a few different ways.”

Alabama will face South Carolina this coming Saturday, aiming to bounce back from their recent loss to Vanderbilt.