Following the Alabama Crimson Tide’s unexpected loss to the Vanderbilt Commodores, the new head coach, Kalen DeBoer, has come under fire. A week after DeBoer’s leadership and decision-making were praised for a big victory over Georgia, many fans and experts have changed their tone. “This program is a little bit too loose,” said prominent sports analyst Paul Finebaum. But in the face of comparable ire, this time, DeBoer established a tone for the Tennessee clash. What’s that? 

Well, On October 18, the Crimson Tide Sports‘ official Twitter account posted a video of Kalen DeBoer’s press conference. Where the coach responded with some bold statements regarding their game strategy over the Vols. According to DeBoer, the footage showed, “We can’t worry about what other people think. We just got to worry about what we’re doing within the building, who we are as a team. You know, are we fighting for each other? Fighting with each other? You know those are, those are the things that I’m looking for.“

Safe to say, the coach mentioned that his main criteria requires the necessary effort, energy, and attitude from the players. With these qualities, the boys will keep getting better. It suggests that DeBoer’s confidence from 26 years of coaching was unaffected by an unexpected setback and criticism. “We’re going to continue to get better. To make sure that we say the course and can reach our goals that we have as a program, as we have as a 2024 football team,” said Alabama’s head coach.

Despite such a bold response and good preparation, “I’ve been told it’s a big deal and I know it’s a big deal,” said DeBoer on rivalry against Vols. But why a big deal? Let’s see.

How are Tennessee and Alabama looking at the moment?

“We’re really looking forward,” said DeBoer on Tennessee. Yes, this week, No. 7 Alabama football will focus on No. 11 Tennessee. Alabama is now 5-1 following a convincing victory over Georgia, a setback to Vanderbilt, and another triumph over South Carolina. The ironic thing is that the Tennessee, who were beginning to emerge as title contenders at the beginning of the season, have been following a similar path. They lost on the road against Arkansas and just avoided losing at home against the awful Florida Gators last week. Hence, the Volunteers, like Alabama, have not played impressive, if we look at their performance over the past two weeks.

So, this time, it will be interesting to watch Tennessee’s offense take on Alabama’s faltering defense. Safe to say, Josh Heupel is among college football’s top offensive play-callers, and Nico Iamaleava was expected to be a standout quarterback. On top of that, it will be Jalen Milroe’s most difficult atmosphere as a starter as he takes on one of the finest defenses in the country in Tennessee. However, in the end, it will be impossible to predict who will win this game. So, keep patience and see the matchup on Saturday.