College football insider connects $87 million head coach to Michigan opening

Despite the best efforts by Kalen DeBoer to indicate his loyalty to Alabama, the temptation of the Michigan head coaching vacancy has been too seductive for the rumor mill to let go of the speculation that he could jump ship for the Big Ten program.

DeBoer even put out a statement saying that he and his family were happy at Alabama and he was determined to lead the program going forward, but ESPN college football insider Heather Dinich still believes there’s a path from Tuscaloosa to Ann Arbor.

It ain't over til it's over

“I will put an end to the speculation when the coaching search ends,” Dinich said during an appearance with Paul Finebaum on ESPN’s “Get Up” program.

“Look, do you remember Lincoln Riley standing up at the podium and saying I will not be the head coach at LSU, and then, 24 hours later, he was the head coach at USC?

“I realize this is a different situation. But, if Alabama loses to Oklahoma and has an early exit, if I’m Warde Manuel, the athletic director at Michigan, I am going for Kalen DeBoer because he would be the best option. But, we’ve all been in this long enough. It ain’t over ’til it’s over, guys.”

What DeBoer has done at Alabama

DeBoer signed an $87 million contract over eight years with Alabama early in 2024 as the man to replace Nick Saban, and so far the results have been up and down, but mostly positive.

After missing out on the College Football Playoff a year ago, a debut that included a loss to Michigan in the ReliaQuest Bowl, he led the Crimson Tide to a place in the postseason field in 2025.

DeBoer will make his playoff debut this week against Oklahoma, which defeated his Alabama team to boost its own CFP resume this season, and which beat his roster in Norman last season.

Paul Finebaum chimes in

Finebaum tends to think the push for DeBoer by Michigan is over and done, but he did say the Alabama coach didn’t do himself any favors in the process.

“It feels like it’s over, and people at Alabama are pushing back saying they are in the midst of working on a contract,” Finebaum said.

“Something tells me they may wait until after Friday night (and the Oklahoma game) to put it in front of DeBoer, but they were arguing very vehemently yesterday that it is not going to happen.

“Now, DeBoer actually made a mess out of it. He issued a statement on Sunday that cleared it up... It was one of the longest word salads in college coaching history. And, it’s just so simple to say, ‘Are you going to be the coach next year? Yes.’

“But, for some reason, he couldn’t do it. I think some of it is that he likes it there, his family is comfortable there but he also knows, out in the hinterlands, the fans are not crazy about him, especially with another loss on Friday night.”

More college football from SI: Top 25 Rankings | Schedule | Teams

Follow College Football HQ: Bookmark | Rankings | Picks