Kalen DeBoer's Maxims Fueling Alabama Football as Spring Practice Begins
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – Spring football is back.
Speaking only for the second time since taking the helm, Alabama football head coach Kalen DeBoer wasted no time in laying down the foundation of his coaching philosophy.
As the team hits the field, DeBoer's commitment to a set of powerful maxims is setting the tone for success.
"We have the maxims that we refer to, and number one is, winners win because that’s what winners do," DeBoer said. "Winning, I know that’s a results-oriented piece to it, but what we focus on is really what the winners do. The winners in our program have an attention to detail. They compete. We go on and on. We have a list of those things. The habits they create each and every day will lead to the winning aspect. We’re never going to shy away from that being important here at Alabama."
The emphasis on attention to detail, competition, and the cultivation of winning habits echoes through drills, plays, and team meetings. For DeBoer and his staff, it's not just about winning games; it's about developing a champion's mindset.
"The second one is, first be your best, then you’ll be first," DeBoer continued. "In there, it’s ‘be your best.’ Bring your best energy, attitude, and effort every day, and that’s the number one and really only thing that we ask of our guys, and the rest takes care of itself. When we do that, good things are going to have, especially when you have the talent that we have, the coaching, the skill, the players that are within this program, good things are going to happen."
Addressing both players and the coaching staff, DeBoer also highlighted the significance of film study in shaping the team's strategies and honing individual performances.
"I told the players that they’re excited to watch their own film now," DeBoer said. "When you bring in concepts, whether it’s offense, defense, or special teams, the coaching staff brings in your ideas, which usually involves cut-ups from the programs you came from. I told the players when we broke down that we get to watch some of their film, which I know they’re all excited to do. From a coaching standpoint, to me, there’s a lot of pieces to our job, but right now, it’s for us to give them feedback. They need feedback on everything that happened — the grading on every play, and giving feedback to our guys so they can understand, whether it’s that play or that practice or the session we were in, like a 7-on-7 period or a team period, and even individual. Why did this drill go well? Giving them feedback all the time is a big priority for us as a coaching staff so the guys can continue to understand the expectations and continue to improve."
Speaking about the coaching staff in particular, DeBoer shed light on their overall receptive nature, emphasizing the intentional and purpose-driven approach to learning that defines the Crimson Tide's mindset.
"I think they really take coaching well," DeBoer said. "We have specific jobs or descriptions of what the coaches job and players job are. We’re very intentional, I’ve said that word a lot. We talk about the coaches job is being to teach, critique and demand. We really talk about the critique part and the demanding part. When we’re pushing a guy and we’re asking more out of him. When we’re coaching them up, that’s a good thing because that means we care and we see that potential in them and that’s our job. I think the guys just really see that and can feel it today.
In regards to practice logistics, DeBoer shared insights into the team's progress, highlighting the players' adeptness and mental aptitude on day one.
"The guys had a pretty good feel of where to go," DeBoer said. "What that allows you to do is then have the expectation of hustling and having a bounce in your step. The energy never fell off the entire length of practice. I think when it comes to execution as far as how smooth things were. I think practice one is just your base stuff on each side of the ball. Where it will get hard is when you get into each continual install. Practice two, but then especially practice three and four and five. As we continue to put more in offensively or defensively and then the other side of the ball is putting something in as well and that’s when it becomes something where not just what you have to do but also what you’re going against. Today was great. I thought it was smooth from transitions to just how hard we competed."
As the Crimson Tide charges into the spring season under DeBoer's leadership, the synergy between coaching philosophy, player receptiveness, and on-field execution appears to be painting a promising picture for future success.
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