The last 48 hours have been a roller coaster for Clemson fans who have been concerned that head coach Dabo Swinney could be in line for the Alabama head coaching position. Those concerns have lessened through the day, and the end might be in sight.
Per ESPN, Kalen DeBoer is in negotiations with Alabama to become the next head coach of the Crimson Tide, replacing the recently retired Nick Saban.
DeBoer is currently the head coach of the Washington Huskies. Washington was the runner-up in the College Football Playoff this season, losing to the Michigan Wolverines in the championship game.
The Huskies defeated the Texas Longhorns in the Sugar Bowl to advance to the final.
DeBoer coached at Fresno State before succeeding Jimmy Lake as the head coach at Washington.
Swinney was a walk-on at Alabama under head coach Gene Stallings and was a member of their 1992 national championship team. He began his coaching career with the Tide before being dismissed when Mike DuBose was fired as the head coach.
Swinney had long been considered a candidate for the head coaching gig at Alabama should it ever come open. It finally did on Wednesday night when Saban informed his players that he had decided to retire at age 72.
The original target was stated to be Dan Lanning, but by Thursday morning Lanning had informed his team that he was remaining at Oregon.
Overnight BetMGM had increased their odds on Swinney becoming the next Alabama head coach, but we’ve learned through observation that many of the odds that were produced in the last 48 hours were primarily based on speculation and not hard evidence.
The original belief was that Alabama would likely name a new head coach within 72 hours of Saban’s retirement. If DeBoer is the guy, we could hear something very soon.