Alabama’s season is still ongoing, but that isn’t stopping Michigan from pursuing Crimson Tide head coach Kalen DeBoer.
Michigan has “serious interest” in hiring Alabama’s head coach, FOX Sports college football insider Bruce Feldman said on the most recent episode of the “Bear Bets” podcast.
“What I’ve heard is that [DeBoer] does like it at Alabama and I know the AD (athletic director Greg Byrne) really likes him and the leadership likes him and thinks he’s the guy they want to lead the program,” Feldman said. “But if they lose, man, I wonder if that changes the calculus for a lot of people — including DeBoer.
“There’s serious interest, from what I’ve been told, at Michigan for DeBoer. He’s really a good offensive coach and they at Michigan have been dreadful on offense. They were horrible last year and weren’t that much better this year. I think that’s something they’ll look at.”
The ninth-ranked Crimson Tide are playing No. 8 Oklahoma in the first round of the College Football Playoff on Friday, throwing a wrench into Michigan’s possible pursuit of DeBoer. Earlier in the week, DeBoer also stated that he was committed to Alabama amid the Michigan rumors.
Still, the buzz surrounding DeBoer’s possible candidacy to become Michigan’s next head coach hasn’t slowed down. DeBoer has already dealt with some hot-seat chatter in Alabama despite posting a 19-7 record in his first two seasons with the Crimson Tide as he replaced Nick Saban.
Even with the hot seat chatter surrounding DeBoer, he’s one of the more accomplished active head coaches in college football. He led Washington to the national championship game in his second season as head coach in 2023, where it lost to Michigan. He’s gone 123-19 in his career as a head coach, having successful stints at Fresno State and Sioux Falls, a Division II program.
DeBoer also has a strong record of coaching quality offenses and developing quarterbacks, as Feldman mentioned. Michael Penix Jr. became a first-round pick after working under DeBoer when he was an offensive coordinator at Indiana and during their time together at Washington. Former Alabama quarterback Jalen Milroe became a third-round pick in the 2025 NFL Draft after DeBoer coached him in 2024. Current Alabama quarterback Ty Simpson earned some Heisman buzz this season and some have speculated that he could be a first-round pick in the 2026 NFL Draft. Three wide receivers from DeBoer’s 2023 Huskies team were also selected in the first three rounds in the 2024 NFL Draft (Rome Odunze, Ja’Lynn Polk, Jalen McMillan).
That track record could be enticing to a Michigan team that’s not only had its fair share of offensive struggles, but also has promising young talent on offense that it’d like to keep. Of course, Bryce Underwood was the highest-rated quarterback recruit in the Class of 2025, but wide receiver Andrew Marsh (641 yards, three touchdowns) showed promise as a freshman. Running back Justice Haynes and Jordan Marshall were also among the best players at their position in the Big Ten this season, rushing for a total of 1,789 yards in 2025.
If DeBoer turns down Michigan’s overtures, Feldman has a couple of other coaches who might be strong candidates for the Michigan job.
“The names that I think are at play here are Jedd Fisch, a former Michigan assistant under Jim Harbaugh and did an amazing job at Arizona,” Feldman said. “He just led Washington to nine wins in Year 2. He’s also a really good offensive coach. I think he’s in play for the job. Kenny Dillingham at Arizona State is in the mix, I believe.”
Fisch, as Feldman mentioned, just went 9-4 at Washington after going 6-7 in his first year with the program. He went 16-21 over his three years as Arizona’s head coach. However, the Wildcats went 10-3 in Fisch’s final season with the program, improving each year.
Dillingham, meanwhile, has been one of the biggest surprise stories in college football over the last three years. The 35-year-old has gone 22-16 in his three seasons as Arizona State’s head coach, turning the Sun Devils into the class of the Big 12 after struggling in their final seasons in the Pac-12. Arizona State won the Big 12 Championship in 2024, going 11-3 the year before, and posting an 8-4 record in 2025.
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