Alabama Lands Stunning Prediction to Replace Kalen DeBoer

While Kalen DeBoer definitely showed significant improvement during his second season with the Alabama Crimson Tide, he is still not on entirely solid ground.

Not after Alabama get absolutely hammered by the Indiana Hoosiers in the Rose Bowl last month.

DeBoer has gone 20-8 over his first couple of seasons at Tuscaloosa, and while that is certainly respectable, the Crimson Tide are accustomed to excellence.

As a result, the 51-year-old's seat is a bit warm heading into 2026, and Stewart Mandel of The Athletic has gone as far to predict Alabama will fire him ... and then replace him with LSU Tigers coach Lane Kiffin.

"Lane Kiffin leaves LSU after nine games for Alabama, which fires Kalen DeBoer after eight games," Mandel wrote. "DeBoer then goes to Clemson to take over for Dabo Swinney after he gets too distraught over tampering to continue."

The idea of Kiffin leaving LSU that quickly seems a bit farfetched even if he has developed a reputation for bolting schools.

Kiffin just took the Tigers job this past fall amid significant controversy, as it occurred during Ole Miss' run to the College Football Playoff.

Nevertheless, Kiffin embraced the bigger opportunity, and now it seems like he will be in Baton Rouge for the foreseeable future.

But if a more significant opportunity opens up once again, is it possible that Kiffin could again switch programs?

It honestly seems incredibly unlikely that it would happen this soon. Kiffin's reputation is already hanging on by a thread; he would absolutely destroy whatever is left of it if he decides to leave LSU for Alabama in his first season with the Tigers.

At that point, Kiffin would probably have a difficult time ever getting another head-coaching job if things go haywire with the Crimson Tide.

If anything, this just shows how shaky DeBoer's rep at Alabama actually is. He just took the job two years ago. Is it already time for the Crimson Tide to can him, even considering how much they would have to pay him?

It will certainly be interesting to see how all of this unfolds, but I can tell you that the chances of 'Bama replacing DeBoer with Kiffin are remarkably slim, if not non-existent.

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