Kalen DeBoer Praises Four Position Groups for Improvement

Spring ball wrapped up last month for the Alabama Crimson Tide, and head coach Kalen DeBoer seems pleased with where his team is at this point in the offseason.

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During the post-spring practice press conference, DeBoer said the team is not where it needs to be, but no team he has ever coached is ready for week one at the end of April. Alabama's lack of scholarship players in the spring transfer portal window has helped the Crimson Tide.

With the Crimson Tide roster pretty much set, with 120 days until the Tide take on Florida State on August 30, DeBoer sat down with CBS Sports' Josh Pate, where he mentioned four position groups he saw the most improvement from since last spring.

DeBoer spoke about wide receivers, who saw significant contributions from a freshman and a transfer last season. Alabama added to the room this offseason, and DeBoer thinks JaMarcus Shephard has done a good job with the room.

"I think JaMarcus Shephard with the receiving group, we had some turnover and really some guys that we've brought into the program that I think add to Ryan Williams and Germie Bernard," DeBoer told Pate. "It's really fun seeing the personality of Shep come out in that group and really attacking everything and the work there. I'm excited about the development of that position."

Defensive back depth at Alabama took a major hit when Nick Saban retired. The Tide's defensive staff has quickly fixed that, turning what was Alabama's thinnest position into one of the strengths for this year's Crimson Tide.

"The defensive backs is, a year ago, where we're at, we had names and we brought guys in, but they were completely new to this program and in many cases new to college football coming out of high school."

"We took some lumps, but I think those lumps are relative to what people thought we were probably going to take at that position is a tribute to Mo Linguist and what he does with the defensive backs there. Kane Wommack as the coordinator [too]. I'm excited about those two groups [wide receivers and defensive backs] and just how different they are than a year ago."

Alabama's linebacker depth took a hit with the transfer portal in the winter and the departure of Jihaad Campbell to the NFL, but the Tide still sits strong at the top of the depth chart with Justin Jefferson, Deontae Lawson, and Nikhai Hill-Green. The room got stronger with the surprise return of Deontae Lawson.

"I think at linebacker, I don't want to say it's a pleasant surprise, but we weren't expecting to have Deontae Lawson. Unfortunately, he had an injury, but he is back, and that turned leadership in that spot. And with Justin Jefferson coming back through the junior college rule and things like that, allowed him to have a year that we weren't expecting."

"That group all of a sudden went from what we envisioned this year probably being a little more youthful with some new faces to all of a sudden being a rock-solid group that we're really counting on to lead the charge at linebacker - how can you not love that?"

The loss of Tyler Booker to the NFL is big for Alabama's offensive line, but the Tide still returns three starters from last year's line, which was a Joe Moore semifinalist.

"I think the offensive line having four, really 3-4 starters back that are high-level guys is really key. And there's some great competition to fill in those other two spots. They are gelling and as an offensive line that's one of the most critical things is getting the right guys in the right seats and the right spots but also just letting them work."

"I love the depth that we're creating with some young guys coming into the program as well that have a great future. The chemistry is there in that group. I'm excited about the offensive line, at least the growth from where we're going to be a year ago."

Want to listen to Kalen Deboer's full interview with Josh Pate? Click here.

Wyatt Fulton is the Tide 100.9 DME and Brand Manager, primarily covering Alabama Crimson Tide football and men's basketball. For more Crimson Tide coverage, follow Wyatt on X (Formerly known as Twitter) at @FultonW_.