NCAAF News: Alabama HC Kalen DeBoer is set to add a key member to his staff from the NFL

The Alabama Crimson Tide fell short last year, with a season in the NCAAF full of ups and downs that didn’t end with a playoff berth. Given this situation, Kalen DeBoer is looking to strengthen his team in the best way possible, and he may secure a name from the NFL to join his staff.

Ryan Grubb, who most recently served as offensive coordinator for the Seattle Seahawks, is set to reunite with DeBoer at Alabama, with the primary goal of revitalizing a department where the team faced serious issues last season.

The news was announced by ESPN college football insider Adam Rittenberg, who, through his official X (formerly Twitter) account @ESPNRittenberg, reported the imminent arrival of Grubb as the OC at Alabama.

“Sources: Alabama is set to hire Ryan Grubb as offensive coordinator. Grubb is rejoining Kalen DeBoer with the Tide. Grubb served as DeBoer’s offensive coordinator with Washington, and was initially set to join him at Alabama before taking the OC job with the Seattle Seahawks. He has worked with DeBoer at multiple stops over the years.”

Offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb of the Seattle Seahawks speaks to the media after practice at Virginia Mason Athletic Center on June 03, 2024 in Renton, Washington.

Grubb and DeBoer worked together during their time at the Washington Huskies back in 2022. After their experience together, the OC took the next step in his career and joined the staff of the Seattle Seahawks.

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DeBoer reflected on his feelings about Grubb’s arrival

Kalen DeBoer definitely pushed within the program to expedite and finalize Grubb’s arrival to his coaching staff. With the certainty that his arrival is imminent, the head coach spoke to the press and shared his thoughts on the matter.

“We go way back. Great friend of mine. I think the world of him as a football coach and obviously as a person too. I know he is working through his process just after what last season brought. Just kind of see what he does there. Here for him whenever he needs me, and that’s always going to be the case,” DeBoer said via tuscaloosanews.com.

A short stint with the Seahawks

Grubb’s experience in the NFL lasted just one season, where he was part of Mike Macdonald’s staff. After parting ways in January, the Seahawks head coach explained to seahawks.com the reasons why they decided not to continue with the OC’s work.

“It just didn’t manifest itself the way that we expected,” Macdonald said. “The offense, the direction that was going, it just wasn’t the way that I wanted it to go.

“We want it to mirror our football team. All the things we’ve been talking about. It isn’t that we weren’t doing these things on offense throughout the year. We’ve done a lot of great things. But we want our offense to be a physical unit and dictate terms to the defense, and play complementary football. And get the ball to our playmakers frequently in space, (letting) our quarterback play fast. We were doing a lot of those things, offensively. We just decided to go a different direction. It really just was an alignment thing and a vision thing, and that’s why we made the decision.”