What Kalen DeBoer Said After Alabama's Win Over Auburn

AUBURN, Ala. — No. 10 Alabama took down Auburn 27-20 on Saturday night at Jordan-Hare Stadium.

Alabama head coach Kalen DeBoer is speaking to the media after the game to discuss his team's performance during the win.

Opening Statement:

"I just couldn't be more proud of these guys, first of all, for this game and just how resilient they were within the game," he said in his opening statement. "Obviously, we jumped on 'em pretty quick early, but they had some explosive plays, and I feel that's the one thing that disappointing is we gave him some explosives and we didn't have the explosives, but the takeaways and taking care of the football ourselves was huge. But just the fight and the belief. I think there's some teams that hope they can find a way. I think our guys really understand that they're get in these spots that they're going to make happen and nothing's going to be given to you. Got to earn it. These guys have done that since day one. They've worked for this — situational football, four downs, whatever it might be.

"You know, I think a lot of the things that are a part of our identity stuck out tonight. So I think tonight is just a small piece of what this team is all about when it comes to our full season and even over the last two years, you know, taking the things that we've learned — and it's still not perfect, there's some missed opportunities that we had to stay on the field, some missed opportunities we had to get off the field. But, you know, we take those and, again, that gives you a lot of understanding that there's a lot more room to be better."

On Ty Simpson and Alabama’s final drive:

Just not panic. Just try to try to find a way to get the next first down. It starts with one and just focus on the next play. And, you know, never worry about the what-ifs, the situation, just focus on the moment, get your, get your call in, get your your pass protection set, get your check made, whatever it is, and go out there and just execute the best you can. And when it goes well, you stay on the field, you know, and that's what these guys did. So I'm proud of Ty and just the way he executed, obviously, the fourth down.

On the trust Alabama coaches had in Isaiah Horton:

I told Isaiah a long time ago, when we got into the SEC games, you know, that this is where the offense — the ball will find him in big moments. And, you know, we have so many guys that we rotate in— four or five guys that are really a part of the rotation most weeks and sometimes it doesn't end up going his way. But tonight, he found opportunities, and he took advantage of them.

On going for it on fourth-and-two:

I figured it was 29 yards shorter than the last time we needed a touchdown here. So probably percentages were much more in our favor. But no, I just, I feel like there's a confidence you have in the offense. OK, you get the two yards, you didn't need to have a touchdown on that play, but we needed the two yards. And I think there's also a piece where backed up like that, you got confidence in your defense. You know, in that situation, you got a chance to score, you got a chance to get a stop, and you also got a chance to maybe get another — get the ball back again. And obviously all those things, there's some things that don't work for you to be in that spot, and some things that do work for you to be in that spot to where you get two chances at it. So again, just a lot of trust in our guys on both sides of the ball that we can get it done.

On Alabama clinching the SEC Championship and if’s enough to make the College Football Playoff:

Oh yeah. I definitely do. I definitely believe that we got that type of team — 7-1 in the SEC and as many ranked teams as we had, and then winning a rivalry game here on the road shows a lot of grit, what this team is all about. But, yeah, I think it goes back to week one, and what you can believe, what people tell you who you are. You know it really comes to life. And the character of this team really never wavered. They dug in. And it's been a grind for these guys, because they really knew that it was a backs-to-the-wall type of journey it was going to be with the way week one went. But we got some guys healthier after week one, week two, week three, even the guys that were out there playing, they got healthier. And, you know, our guys were playing probably their fastest football here over the last third of the season, just physically. And so they stayed the course. They kept playing and kept getting better. And so again, there's still things we can get better at. So that's the exciting part.

On Jam Miller and the run game:

It isn't just about tonight. I think we took some steps against Oklahoma. I think there were some things that we did against a very good defense there. A lot of people have struggled to run the football against them, and I thought there were lanes, and I thought there were things that we did, that we hit on, and also some things that we didn't quite execute, and we took another step on that tonight. And you know, we needed it. We needed it, but it's just continued to be a work in progress, and it keeps getting better. And we face really good fronts each and every weekend. There's just dynamic players. There's big players up front that we got to block and move. And I think our communication has gotten better with the offensive line. I think we've emphasized it, obviously, more and more. And they, I think, are starting to really get a belief that they can make it happen. And I can't wait to see what the next step is next weekend.

On Jam Miller’s Status and Conor Talty’s performance:

Yeah, with Jam, I know he's got a lower-leg injury. Want to evaluate that here, going to get more information on Monday. And then Conor, I'm just really proud of him. He's been kicking really well in practice. I know that what matters is in the games, but that 45-yarder, I think it was right around that, the first one into a little breeze, man, that's a hard kick, especially coming off of what I think most people would probably perceive as some rough outings. And so, man, I'm proud of the way the team supports him. I'm proud of the way that he's responded. He just went back to work. It's a lesson in resiliency for everyone, and it's a lesson in just, you know, the brotherhood. You know, no matter what it looks like or feels like inside, it's tight, these guys forgive, forget and move on, and all they care about is what's best for the team. And, you know, that's the competitiveness of Conor, that's the competitiveness of our whole team.

On Deontae Lawson’s Performance:

I'm glad you brought that up. You know, he's one of those guys when I talk about guys playing faster and they're at their best at the end of the season, you know, week one, week two. The first, probably third of the season — he's exactly, I don't know the number of months, but coming off of last year's injury, you know, really didn't get many reps live in camp. And I think it showed, I think it showed early in the season, week one, for sure. And you know, the next couple weeks, he just stayed the course. You got that bye week, and you started feeling a little bit more but really the last half of the season, you know, you can see him feeling good about what he's doing. It's not just his plays on the field, but it's his energy, the confidence that he has, and that's so important for us because he's a huge leader on our football team.

On Bray Hubbard’s Performance:

I know he'll be fine, but he was, I know he was working through just some some sickness and stuff like that. Wasn't feeling perfect. Not a huge deal. He was out there, obviously, doing some things, and that's just what you'd expect from Bray. Wanted to bring that up because he's just tough, he's resilient. And, you know, he's one of the many guys that have epitomizes what I'm proud of our team about, you know, just goes to work every day, has a mindset, it means so much to him. He's going to be a great teammate and give everything he has out there, you know? And so again tonight, saw that out there him just, you know, gutting it out.

On the feeling of being in the playoff:

I would definitely agree with that part, as far as us feeling like we probably are in a playoff. You know, you got a little bit of wiggle room, probably, but not much. And I'm interested really see what our team does here moving forward, you know, playing with kind of a spirit about them. They've just really, you know, even this celebration in here, I mean, it's, it's exciting, but it's very business like, it's very — they're kind of stuck in this mode where it's like, OK, we got another one. We got to go do it again. And they just keep doing it. And it's been that way in practice. They have never fallen off. Someday, we'll talk about this more. But just the way they practice, and the way you can measure practice and see what it is, the effort and the energy that these guys put into practice, I've never seen anything like it. And you can see it, you can hear it, but you can also quantify it with just the level of intensity that you have with the technology that we have these days. And just, you know, it wasn't perfect. I mean, I know there's some things that we're disappointed in, as far as letting them move the ball down the field. I know there's some times where we really felt like we got to stay on the football field. But they have had their backs the wall, and I'm really proud of the way they've just continued to grit and grind. And this is the team that I think we thought we had to begin the season.

On the idea that the resumé could be on the line in the SEC Championship:

Yeah, I mean, we're 7-1 in the SEC. I mean, that would blow my mind. But I know what you're getting at. That's crazy. I'm not saying your question is crazy, but just that would be unreal, you know? I mean, we're 10-2 and 7-1 in the SEC with all these ranked wins. Some wins on the road. We got more than a playoff caliber football team. There's not a question my mind.

Live Updates

On Deontae Lawson: "You know, he's one of those guys when I talk about guys playing faster and at their at their best at the end of the season, you know, week one, week two, week I mean, the first probably third of the season. You know, he's exactly number of months, months, but coming off with last year's injury, you know, really didn't get many reps live in camp. And I think it showed, I think showed early in the season, we've won for sure, and the next couple of weeks more, but really the last half of the season, you can see him feeling good about what he's doing. It's not just his place on the field, but it's his energy, you know, the confidence that he has, and that's so important for us."

On Conor Talty: "That 45 yarder, I think it was right around that the first one into a little breeze. And that's a hard kick, especially coming off of what, you know, I think most people with Barack perceive is, you know, some rough outings. And so, man, he just, I'm proud of the way the team supports him, proud of the way that he's responded. He just went back to work. It's a, it's a lesson in resiliency for everyone, and it's a listen lesson in just, you know, the brotherhood you know, no matter feels like inside these guys, forgive, forget, move on, and all they care about is what's best for the team."

DeBoer said Jam Miller has a lower leg injury and will be evaluated more on Monday.

On the run game: "There's big players, and up front that we got to block and move. And I think our communications gotten better. The offensive line emphasizes, obviously, more and more. And they, I think, are starting to really get a belief that they can, they can make it happen. And can't wait to see what the next step is."

On reaching the SEC Championship: "Some guys healthier after week one, week two, week three, even the guys that were out there playing, they got healthier. And you know, our guys were playing probably their fastest football here over the last third of the season, just physically. And so they stayed the course. They kept they kept playing and kept getting better. And so again, they're still thinking. So that's an exciting part."

On going for it on fourth down: "Figured it was 29 yards shorter than the last one. You're in that situation, you got a chance to score, a chance to get a stop, and you also got a chance to maybe get another and obviously all those things, there's some things that don't work for you, two chances at it. So again, just a lot of trust in our guys."

On Ty Simpson during the final drive: "Just not panic. Try to find a way to get the next first down and start taking one and just focus on the next play. And, you know, never worrying about the what ifs the situations, just focusing on the moment. Get your get your call in, get your your path protection set, get your, you know, check made whatever it is, and go out there and just execute the best you can."

"I just couldn't be more proud of these guys, first of all, for this game and just how resilient they were within the game. Obviously, we had some explosive plays, and i feel one thing that's disappointing, we gave some explosives, and we had the explosives with the takeaways and taking care of the football ourselves was huge.

Follow along for live updates from DeBoer's press conference following the 90th Iron Bowl. Be sure to refresh your browser, as this story will be updated with the most recent quotes on top.

Additionally, this article will be updated with a full transcript of what DeBoer said.

What Kalen DeBoer Said After Alabama's Win Over Auburn

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