Kalen DeBoer is like a breath of fresh air to Alabama. Especially when compared to Nick Saban. He’s chill, relaxed, and even wants his players to celebrate their awesome plays. That’s what his quarterback, Jalen Milroe, loves about him.

While Coach DeBoer is all about being friendly with his players, he also knows how to give them that gentle push. Recently, he brought in an inspiring guest speaker to talk to the team, just to keep them on the right track.

DeBoer shared it on his X handle, saying, “Thanks for sharing your story and inspiring message with our team,” and tagged Hunter Pinke. Pinke isn’t new to motivational speaking. He was a tight end in high school, and now a wheelchair basketball star. Well, his whole life changed after a skiing accident left him with a broken back.

He recalls his doctor saying after hours of surgery, “The good news is you still got a life.” But what really motivated him was when the doctor added, “You got a 2 percent chance to get the feeling back in your legs.” Pinke clung to that small chance, telling the doctor, “No doc, you don’t understand, you’re saying there’s a chance. Tell me I got 2 percent.”

He continued, “I don’t know if I’ll ever reach that 2 percent. I don’t know if I’ll ever stand up and walk out of this chair. But at least I know where I’m going.” He then inspired the players, adding, “I don’t know for a fact that you’re gonna win a national championship this year. But the direction has been set. That’s where we’re going.”

However, not all are oozing this level of positivity at them.

Can Kalen DeBoer steer the tide?

Alabama’s a whole different world without Nick Saban. He won like crazy for 17 years, six national championships! Now, it’s sure a huge deal to replace him. Kalen DeBoer is trying his best to keep everyone on track, but it’s not easy. The team used to win at least 10 games almost every year under Saban. But now, people are betting on whether they’ll win more or less than 9.5 games this season. That’s sure a slight setback for the team. 

Now, it’s not just because of the new coach, but also because their schedule is super tough. They’ve got games against really strong teams like Oklahoma, Tennessee, and Georgia ahead. Even experts feel that things are looking tough for the Tides.  Last week, CFB expert Cole Cubelic said on his podcast: “In the next 5 years, I would probably expect that to happen,” noting Crimson Tide’s championship chances. “We haven’t seen Kalen DeBoer coach a game in Alabama, we haven’t seen him recruit and we’ve seen him put a staff together,” he added.

Now the team sure has to figure out how to get top players to come to Alabama and build a strong coaching staff. And only wins can do the trick!