Kalen DeBoer went on a long journey through multiple levels of college football before taking the Alabama job this offseason. The resume has stops at high school, NAIA, FCS, Group of Five, and now two high-level Power Five programs. Quite the career path for DeBoer as he begins a new chapter in Tuscaloosa.
Winning with Alabama is the ultimate goal but DeBoer has spent a ton of time reflecting on the path he took to get there. Recently, the head coach offered up advice he would give to his younger self, maybe something other coaches can use.
Keeping your head in the same place as your feet and not worrying about other opportunites was DeBoer’s biggest message.
“Be patient and understand that every day is an opportunity to get better,” DeBoer said. “There’s so much film, so many resources that’s available to you to learn from. You can listen, watch, and hopefully build you network in some fashion as well. But be where you’re at and learn and use that day to get better yourself. When you stack day on day, it’s amazing how far you can come and develop who you are… The right things will happen if you go about it where you’re at the right way.”
Continually moving up the chain has been a theme of DeBoer’s career. And a few of those jobs, he was not even aware they were available. DeBoer was so locked in on his current position, the only reason he knew of the possibility was because a phone call was made.
“Some of them, I didn’t even know about,” DeBoer said. “I didn’t know Southern Illinois was looking for an offensive coordinator, that Eastern Illinois was looking for an offensive coordinator, that Fresno State was looking for an offensive coordinator — wasn’t even aware of those until I got the call.”
Now taking the Alabama job, DeBoer is unlikely to be moving elsewhere anytime soon. The Crimson Tide are building momentum early in his tenure, mainly on the recruiting trail. DeBoer is hoping the same will be true when games begin in the fall.
The advice DeBoer would give his younger self was followed, putting him in a great position. Keeping the mentality with the Crimson Tide is likely going to be one of his keys, being zeroed in on keeping the same standard Nick Saban provided the program for nearly two decades.
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