Alabama Football Assistant Coach Offseason Tracker: The Crimson Tide Finalizes Staff
Who will new head coach Kalen DeBoer have on his Crimson Tide coaching staff?
The Alabama Crimson Tide football program is undergoing historic changes as former head coach Nick Saban announced his retirement this past Wednesday.
It only took Alabama athletic director Greg Byrne 49 hours to find, secure and name former Washington head coach Kalen DeBoer as the next man to lead the Alabama program into the future.
DeBoer must operate with a heightened sense of urgency to get his coaching staff into place in order to placate and maintain the roster that Saban has recruited over the last five years.
Keep this article handy as BamaCentral updates the latest in the rumor mill as to who DeBoer is expected to add or retain on his staff in his new regime.
On-Field Assistants
- Ryan Grubb - Offensive Coordinator.
- Grubb has coached with DeBoer for 12 seasons across multiple different stops. His offense led the nation in 2023 in yards per game and he was on Saban's short list to replace Bill O'Brien in 2023.
- Update: Hired by Seattle Seahawks
- JaMarcus Washington - Wide Receivers.
- Washington has developed multiple wide receivers into NFL draft picks over the course of his career at Washington State, Purdue and Washington.
- Robert Gillespie - Running Backs. According to ESPN
- Gillespie is reportedly being retained by DeBoer in the same position that he maintained under Saban. Gillespie is a former University of Florida running back who's been in the role since January 2021. 247Sports credits Gillespie with recruiting Keon Keely, Jihaad Campbell and Justice Haynes.
- Scott Huff - Offensive Line
- Huff coached the Joe Moore Award winning offensive line in Washington and has been the Huskies offensive line coach since March of 2017. Huff played college football at Boise State and has been coaching offensive line collegiately for 10 years.
- Update: Hired by Seattle Seahawks
- Chris Kapilovic - Offensive Line
- Kapilovic was hired by Baylor for the offensive line coach position on Dec. 12, 2023, but continued to explore other options. His most recent tenure was with Michigan State over the past four seasons. This addition stems from the subtraction of former offensive line coach Scott Huff, who followed Ryan Grubb to the Seattle Seahawks.
- Nick Sheridan - Tight Ends
- Sheridan is familiar with DeBoer dating back to their time at Indiana where Sheridan served as offensive coordinator. He's been in college football since 2011 and was most recently on the Washington Huskies staff for the past two seasons.
- Update: Promoted to offensive coordinator
- Bryan Ellis - Tight Ends
- Ellis was previously the offensive coordinator at Georgia Southern, where he pulled the strings to a team that was top-30 in passing offense and completion percentage this past season. He takes the place of Nick Sheridan who was promoted to offensive coordinator. Sheridan replaces Ryan Grubb, who was hired by the Seattle Seahawks for the same position.
- Kane Wommack - Defensive Coordinator and Inside Linebackers Coach
- Wommack is previously the head coach at South Alabama. The 36-year old was previously the linebackers coach and defensive coordinator for the Indiana Hoosiers, crossing paths with Kalen DeBoer in 2019. The South Alabama Jaguars finished 15th in total defense in 2023, allowing 313.2 yards per game.
- William Inge - Linebackers Coach
- Inge previously was Washington's co-defensive coordinator and linebackers coach. He reunites with new head coach Kalen DeBoer and multiple of his staff members from the Huskies. Inge also worked with DeBoer while at Fresno State and Indiana.
- Update: Hired by Tennessee
- Christian Robinson - Outside Linebackers Coach
Robinson was the linebackers coach at Baylor before taking the position after Inge's departure. Robinson both played and coached in the SEC. He was Auburn's linebackers coach in 2022 and held the same position at Florida from 2018-2021. Robinson has also worked with Mississippi State, Ole Miss and Georgia after playing in Athens, Ga. from 2009-2012.
- Maurice Linguist - Secondary Coach.
- Linguist has been the head football coach at Buffalo for the last three seasons with a record of 14-23. His 2022 team went 7-6 and won the Camellia Bowl. Linguist is from Dallas and played football at Baylor as a safety. He coached defensive backs in the SEC at Mississippi State in 2016 and Texas A&M in 2018-19 before taking the same role with the Dallas Cowboys in 2020. His past three seasons with the Buffalo Bulls was his first head coaching experience and first time officially given more than a defensive back role.
- Colin Hitschler
- He spent the 2023 season as co-defensive coordinator and safeties coach at Wisconsin. Prior to that, he had the same role at Wisconsin. He worked under new defensive coordinator Kane Wommack at South Alabama from 2016-2017.
- Freddie Roach - Defensive Line.
- Roach is a former Alabama linebacker who's been on staff since February of 2020. He's reportedly staying in the same role under DeBoer as he'll help acclimate the new staff to the team and the team to the new staff. He's been a strong recruiter for Alabama throughout his tenure as 247Sports credits him with recruiting Kadyn Proctor, Jaylen Mbakwe and Jeremiah Alexander.
Off-Field Support Staff
- Courtney Morgan - General Manager.
- Morgan has already been commended by DeBeor for his relationship building and his connections in the recruiting world. He was largely responsible for constructing Michigan's roster two seasons ago and Washington's roster this past season.
- Jarret McElwain- Director of Scouting. According to FootballScoop.com
- McElwain is the son of former Alabama offensive coordinator Jim McElwain who helped Nick Saban win his first two national titles in Tuscaloosa. The younger served on the Michigan Wolverines staff as an assistant recruiting coordinator before joining DeBoer as director of scouting at Washington.
- David Ballou - Strength and Conditioning.
- Ballou tweeted on Monday evening "Roll Tide", seemingly indicating his future as strength and conditioning coach for the football team. Ballou and DeBoer crossed paths at Indiana in 2019.
- Jeff Allen - Athletic Trainer
- Allen tweeted on Monday that he would be a part of the new regime at Alabama. He is one of the few members of the 2007 Alabama Crimson Tide staff that Nick Saban originally hired.
- Jay Nuñez - Special Teams Coordinator
- Nuñez previously served as a special teams analyst for Oklahoma, and comes to Alabama after spending two years in Norman. Before his stint with the Sooners, he served in various roles at Eastern Michigan.
This article will continue to be updated as the Alabama Crimson Tide coaching staff is reported.
