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Alabama safety and Dallas Cowboys 1st round pick Caleb Downs shakes hands with Alabama head coach Nick Saban.
Kalen DeBoer eased tensions among Alabama football fans Friday with a monumental recruiting win. Four-star cornerback for the 2028 class Braylen Gibbs dipped out of Vanderbilt for the Crimson Tide. Gibbs’ decision comes amid DeBoer facing constant scrutiny in replacing school legend Nick Saban.
The former Tide coach created a dynasty beginning with landing blue chip recruits. Five stars and four stars commonly said yes to Saban’s Bama offer. DeBoer and his staff, however, have struggled to sustain Saban’s recruiting prowess in Tuscaloosa.
Even Zach Barnett of Football Scoop, who’s not one to always bash coaches, detailed Alabama’s stunning struggles on the recruiting front.
Now Gibbs’ decision fanned the critic flames. But he dropped a comparison take that’ll surely turn heads.
DeBoer, again, is yet to replicate what Saban built in his Tuscaloosa run. Most star recruits take notice and opt for rival programs or elsewhere. Only 2027 quarterback Elijah Haven is DeBoer and Alabama’s lone top 10 overall prospect representing the current recruiting class.
Gibbs doesn’t see any struggles out of DeBoer, however, as he explained one big reason why he flipped via Brett Greenberg of Bama 247.
“I think he picked up right where Nick Saban left off at,” the Knoxville native Gibbs told Bama247. “Nothing went down with the program at all and he is still winning.”
Yes, DeBoer hasn’t endured a losing record and just brought Bama back to the College Football Playoff stage. Gibbs continue to gleam about his future college coach.
“He is a great coach and I just loved how he believed in me early and being able to come to ‘Bama,'” he said.
Fans still ragged on Alabama even after changing the mid of the 6-foot-2 standout cornerback.
“Bama has resorted to sniping, check notes, Vanderbilt commits. Truly dark times in Tuscaloosa,” one fan posted on X, formerly Twitter, in reacting to the move.
Another fan sarcastically joked how Alabama “trended up” after swiping a Vanderbilt commit. Yet past Saban teams siphoned recruits from national heavyweights and avoided plucking from Vanderbilt.
Touchdown Alabama reporter Justin Smith isn’t bashing this move. Smith raved about Gibbs’ overall game on the field.
He even saw glimpses of two legendary Alabama defenders in watching Gibbs more closely on film.
“Ball skills and athleticism stand out immediately when you watch Alabama’s newest 4-Star DB commit, Braylen Gibbs,” Smith began.
Then came the big comparison.
“Possesses playmaking ability at wide receiver former great Alabama defensive backs, Terrion Arnold and Kool-Aid McKinstry possessed as recruits,” Smith added.
Ball skills and athleticism stand out immediately when you watch Alabama’s newest 4-Star DB commit, Braylen Gibbs @braylengibbs21.
Possesses playmaking ability at wide receiver former great Alabama defensive backs, Terrion Arnold and Kool-Aid McKinstry possessed as recruits.
DeBoer isn’t the sole winning coach in this recruitment flip. Co-defensive coordinator and defensive backs coach Maurice Linguist ran point on Gibbs’ recruitment. Lingquist has shown to have an affinity for landing tall perimeter defenders like Gibbs. No doubt the Knoxville Catholic star helps generate some needed enthusiasm for fans who follow Alabama’s recruiting efforts.
But he’s still set to play for a leader who’s yet to escape the shadow of his legendary predecessor.
Lorenzo Reyna covers the Los Angeles Rams for Heavy.com. His NFL, college and high school football coverage has been featured on Pro Football Network, Santa Maria Times, Daily Pilot, 24/7 Sports and Scout Media. He is based in southern California. More about Lorenzo Reyna
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