The Alabama Crimson Tide’s horrific loss to the Florida State Seminoles to start off the regular season has been the subject of national headlines all week long, as everyone has given their opinion on Kalen DeBoer and what his team looked like to kick off his second season.
Alabama got bullied and embarrassed off the field in Tallahassee, and as the game went on things got worse and worse.
Reactions have ranged from preaching of patience to outright calling for DeBoer’s job. But when searching for an explanation, many have pointed to the changing times in college football as to why the players don’t have the relentless attitude they used to.
U.S. Senator Tommy Tuberville (R-Auburn) addressed this phenomenon during an appearance this week on “Alabama’s Morning News with JT.”
“At the end of the day, coaches get paid a lot of money,” Tuberville said. “But what we’re seeing now is different, players are getting paid a lot of money. So it’s not just the coaching staff at any school to this point who has lost a game. Did they make the right choices in spending [booster’s] money to buy the right players?…Players win and lose games, it’s about players.”
After discussing NIL and the changes it’s caused to the game, Tuberville turned his focus on DeBoer and the team specifically.
“That happens,” Tuberville said of the ugly loss.
“You just gotta regroup, and they will they’ll come back this week and try to get better every week…anybody who comes to the State of Alabama knows you have to win games and the pressure is on you. But that’s how you want it as a coach, you want people to be enthused about it and if they’re not — then you came to the wrong place.”
From one coach to another, it seems Tuberville still believes in DeBoer and thinks he’s going to be successful if he can get the time to get things back on track.
Michael Brauner is a Senior Sports Analyst and Contributing Writer for Yellowhammer News. You can follow him on Twitter @MBraunerWNSP and hear him every weekday morning from 6 to 9 a.m. on “The Opening Kickoff” on WNSP-FM 105.5, available free online.