"I think he underachieved": Former college athlete shares why Kalen Deboer needs to be held to a higher standard in Alabama

Kalen DeBoer and the Alabama Crimson Tide had a disappointing 2024 season, and how much of the blame falls on the head coach? According to insider Jake Crain, quite a bit.

On Sunday’s edition of "Crain & Company," Jake Crain and Blain Crain discussed the 10 highest-paid coaches in college football. Jake took a shot at DeBoer, arguing that the Crimson Tide coach is overpaid at $10.25 million per year, especially after just one season on the job.

“I hold Bama in a higher regard than anybody else," Jake said (2:59 mark). "And it’s not like you inherited the sisters of the perpetual poor. You had Jalen Milroe. You had these pieces. Ryan Williams ended up sticking with you."

"I think he underachieved and I’m almost projecting this one. I think he is going to continue to underachieve.”

Under Nick Saban, Alabama was a perennial championship contender. In 2023, the Crimson Tide finished 11-2, made the College Football Playoff, and defeated Georgia in the SEC Championship Game.

In Kalen DeBoer’s first season, Alabama finished 9-4, losing to unranked Vanderbilt and Oklahoma and falling to Michigan in the ReliaQuest Bowl.

Kalen DeBoer will face increased pressure in his second season at Tuscaloosa. He will still have wide receiver Ryan Williams and will start a new quarterback in Ty Simpson, Austin Mack or Keelon Russell — all of whom might fit his passing scheme better than Milroe.

If Alabama struggles again in 2025, DeBoer’s seat could get warm quickly. He is currently the seventh-highest-paid coach in college football.

After Kalen DeBoer rant, Jake Crain criticizes another coach

After calling out Kalen DeBoer, Jake Crain went after another coach from a program that has lost a step after being a championship contender: Clemson’s Dabo Swinney.

“I’m going to give you another one: Dabo Swinney," Jake said. "We’ll see with Clemson this year, we’ll see. I feel like they’re paying Dabo for what he did, not what he’s doing."

"At the end of the day, Clemson hasn’t done what they’ve done (before). They haven’t been as championship relevant as they were when he was earning that money.”

Swinney is currently earning $11.5 million per season, the third-highest salary among college football coaches. He led Clemson to national titles in 2016 and 2018, and took the Tigers to the CFP this year.

However, Clemson did not finish the season in the Top 10 and only made the playoff by virtue of winning a watered-down ACC. Swinney’s reluctance to embrace the transfer portal could also be working against him in college football’s evolving landscape.