Gene Stallings' advice to Kalen DeBoer during his first season at Alabama

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Gene Stallings says he’s yet to meet with Kalen DeBoer. However, the former Alabama head coach does have a bit of advice for the Crimson Tide’s newest leader.

Stallings, 89, traveled back to Tuscaloosa from his home in Powderly, Texas to make an appearance in support of the RISE Center on Thursday afternoon. During his return to his old stomping grounds, the former Crimson Tide head coach was asked if he had some words for DeBoer in his first season taking over for Nick Saban as Alabama’s head coach.

In short, Stallings hoping DeBoer gets off on a better foot than he did during his first season in charge of Alabama in 1990.

“I’d tell him not to start off the way I did,” Stallings said with a smile. “We lost our first [three] games. Now they were all close, but we still lost them. So I do not advise anybody who goes to Alabama to start off [0-3].”

To Stallings’ credit, his 1990 team was able to rebound and finish 7-5, including a win over Auburn in the Iron Bowl. Of course, DeBoer will have higher aspirations than that this fall.

Interestingly enough, DeBoer addressed the high expectations placed on his program during an appearance on The Next Round Live earlier Thursday when he was asked whether it was fair to expect a national championship in his first season.

“In all honesty, that’s what you come here for,” DeBoer said. “Right? You come here and there’s gonna come a point in time where there’s a lot of pressure going into a week, or going even into a moment in the game. And the thing I’m always gonna remind the guys of is, this is why you came here. And that’s why I came here too, is to be a part of that, having those expectations, and that’s what it’s been and that’s what it needs to be.”

DeBoer led Washington to a 14-1 record and a Pac-12 title last season, taking the Huskies to the College Football Playoff National Championship Game where they fell to Michigan.

With the College Football Playoff field expanded to 12 teams this season, DeBoer has a bit more leeway in leading Alabama to the promised land. However, the first-year head coach said he isn’t planning on taking anything for granted during his debut season.

“You gotta keep the pedal down and you gotta make it about getting better every single game and focusing on that moment,” DeBoer said. “And yeah, I get what you’re saying, there is a little bit of that, but if you’re really trying to reach the top, you gotta find the best path to get there.”

Alabama will open its season on Aug. 31 when it hosts Western Kentucky inside Bryant-Denny Stadium.