John Buhler

Always be 'crootin'. That is the name of the game in major college athletics. When it comes to Kalen DeBoer at Alabama, he and his staff have some serious work to do to turn their 2027 class around. While it may rank

Elijah Haven is exactly the type of player the Alabama Crimson Tide needs playing for Kalen DeBoer. He is every bit the five-star out of Louisiana, opting to pick Alabama over the Georgia Bulldogs during his high-profile recruitment. While neither SEC power is a major player in the NIL space, apparently, that did not matter for Haven until the end. He picked between these schools for all the right reasons.

Patience is a virtue. Alabama fans could need to have that in droves when it comes to their polarizing head coach Kalen DeBoer. While some national pundits are higher on the Crimson Tide head coach than others, he is widely viewed as a top-10 head coach in college football. He could be as high as No. 6 in some people's eyes, while others may not view him as even a top-15 head coach in the sport.

Every schedule is different. While the Alabama Crimson Tide catch some breaks early and later on in their slate, a four-game stretch in the middle part of their season looks incredibly menacing for the time being. Alabama draws Georgia, Tennessee, and Texas A&M to round out October, before playing at LSU right after the bye. If Alabama splits those four, the Crimson Tide will likely make the playoffs.

Cameron Williams comes to Duke with big shoes to fill. He is expected to replace Cameron Boozer as the star power forward on the Blue Devils' roster. This rapid

Say what you want about Kalen DeBoer's recruiting prowess, but the Alabama head coach knows quarterbacks. DeBoer just picked up another blue-chip signal-caller on Friday in the form of 2028

There is more than merely NBA pedigree working in Jaxon Richardson's favor. The five-star recruit of the Alabama Crimson Tide picked them over the Creighton Bluejays in the 11th hour to much fanfare. As expected, he projects to be a mega athlete much like his father Jason was. The good news for him is Nate Oats will have a role for him right away in Tuscaloosa.

You win some, you lose some. While Duke has done a lot more winning on the college football gridiron in recent years, there is still work to be done. Manny Diaz has won 18 games over his first two seasons on the job. However, he still has to carry the weight of a football program that has historically paled in comparison to its prestigious basketball powerhouse. He must take it all, one game at a time.

Sometimes, all the Alabama Crimson Tide need to do is show up to win games. When you have an undisputed top-four program in the sport, these sorts of things tend to happen. Alabama has claimed more national championships than anyone with 18, and boasts the second-best all-time winning percentage at a sensational .733. To achieve that standard, you must beat the tar out of opponents.

Until Duke gets more unique teams on its future schedules, all it can do is protect its territory here. By John Buhler |