Alabama HC Kalen DeBoer Can Reverse His Fortune vs Kentucky

The Alabama Crimson Tide will face the Kentucky Wildcats at 3:30 p.m. ET on Saturday afternoon in a matchup that has Alabama on alert.

Well, sort of.

Many have placed the Crimson Tide on upset watch in this affair, as they are playing on the road against a Kentucky team that looks improved from last year.

And based on Kalen DeBoer's history on the road, that's understandable.

Throughout his head-coaching career, which began at Fresno State in 2020 and also included a two-year stop at Washington, DeBoer has gone just 7-5 in games in which his team has been favored on the road. He has also gone just 4-8 against the spread.

Alabama is favored by 10.5 points against the Wildcats, and given that the Crimson Tide are ranked 12th in the country and Kentucky is unranked, that makes sense.

But in the past, that has sometimes worked to DeBoer's detriment, and at 'Bama, DeBoer has gone just 3-3 in such situations.

Saturday, however, represents a golden opportunity for DeBoer to reverse his fortunes, and while I wouldn't go as far to call the clash at Kroger Field a "statement game," a convincing win would sure help DeBoer's reputation.

Or, at the very least, it would prevent the "same old DeBoer" arguments.

DeBoer has gone 21-8 overall sine taking over at Alabama in 2024. Good? Sure. Good enough in Tuscaloosa? Absolutely not.

The Crimson Tide simply aren't as talented as they were during the Nick Saban years, and that has a whole lot to do with how NIL has changed the college football landscape.

Alabama fans don't want to hear that, though. They just want wins, and they want national championships. Thus far, DeBoer hasn't delivered.

Would a win at Kentucky get him any closer to that ultimate goal? Not really. The Crimson Tide should win this game. But it could represent somewhat of a stepping stone for DeBoer to prove that this year is not like the others.

The Wildcats aren't Georgia or LSU, but they are a decent opponent with an innovative new head coach in Will Stein and plenty of interesting pieces on both sides of the ball.

At the very least, Kentucky isn't East Carolina, so Alabama can't expect to walk into Lexington and coast to a victory.

The Crimson Tide must be prepared, and something tells me DeBoer will have them more than ready given what's at stake.