The Crimson Tide head coach now has the team in the same game that was Nick Saban's last before his retirement from coaching.

Following Alabama's dramatic victory in the first round of the College Football Playoff, head coach Kalen DeBoer appeared on SportsCenter to emphasize themes of resilience, growth, and belief. Despite an early deficit, Alabama achieved one of the most significant comebacks in CFP history to secure a place in the quarterfinals.

The chatter connecting Alabama football head coach Kalen DeBoer and Michigan grew louder on Friday following a report from ESPN's Pete Thamel, who had this to say before the No. 9 Crimson Tide visited No.

Alabama's sophomore star only has four total catches over the Crimson Tide's last four games, but that could change in the Rose Bowl.

Fast forward a few days and it’s still one DeBoer can hang his hat on, at least when discussing his long-term future. ESPN’s Paul Finebaum believes DeBoer “should be able to exhale” because of the first-round victory. And in his opinion, it’s another example of coming through in a difficult moment.

After getting throttled by the Georgia Bulldogs and the termination of Sherrone Moore, people started putting DeBoer's name atop the Michigan head coaching candidate list. Again, DeBoer remained committed to the Crimson Tide, going as far as to release a statement about his preparation ahead of the first round of the CFP against Oklahoma.

DeBoer delivered a Christmas miracle, and now Alabama is playing for the roses. You might be laughing, but Saban never won a first-round playoff game on the road at night after trailing by 17 points. Can DeBoer build off that success for Alabama’s quarterfinal match-up against Indiana?

It’s never easy to be the guy who replaces the guy. That’s exactly what Kalen DeBoer has been trying to do at Alabama for the past two seasons, replacing Nick Saban. Naturally, that’s drawn some criticism as he’s tried to live up to expectations.