Posted on by

How Alabama football approaches the first game in Tennessee with Kalen DeBoer

How Alabama football approaches the first game in Tennessee with Kalen DeBoer

Ryan Williams’ ranking of Alabama football rivalries hasn’t changed since he was a kid.

It was always the Iron Bowl first against Auburn, with his father being a former Tigers cornerback. But Williams also remembers the “third Saturday in October,” citing Peyton Manning and Jalin Hyatt as the players he thinks of first when it comes to the Volunteers.

“I usually think about the ones where we didn’t do so well, and then that adds fuel,” Williams said.

In the 17 editions of the Alabama-Tennessee rivalry that Williams has survived, he hasn’t experienced much more than Crimson Tide success. The Volunteers’ only win against the Crimson Tide since 2007 was a 52-49 victory in Knoxville in 2022.

It’s a rivalry that holds great meaning in Tuscaloosa, something Kalen DeBoer has understood as he leads a new era of Crimson Tide football. But it’s also a rivalry that DeBoer and the rest of the team look at from a larger perspective.

“As a coach they are all big and you take them one at a time. But definitely understand the importance of the rivalry,” DeBoer said. “The boys will be very motivated to do their best, prepare well and be great on Saturday.”

Alabama Football vs. Tennessee: “We can do whatever we want”

Freddie Roach knows the importance of the Alabama-Tennessee rivalry better than most. And he had a chance at his fair share of victory cigars.

When Roach was a prized linebacker for the Crimson Tide from 2002 to 2005, Alabama split its four matchups against Tennessee. In his first stint as an assistant strength and conditioning coach at Alabama from 2008 to 2010, the Crimson Tide outscored the Volunteers 82-29 in three wins. And since returning to Alabama as defensive line coach in 2020, the Crimson Tide have won three of four games against Tennessee.

But Roach doesn’t accept the rivalry noise.

“We can make this what we want,” Roach said. “But at the end of the day, it’s the football game.”

Alabama-Tennessee was the offensive coordinator of the Crimson Tide rivalry and quarterbacks coach Nick Sheridan was once on the other side, working as a graduate assistant for the Volunteers from 2014 to 2016.

“I think it’s the passion and the intensity of the game that stands out the most,” Sheridan said. “The environments you compete in are as good as college football.”

Each of Alabama’s last three losses to Tennessee in 2022, 2006 and 2004 came at Neyland Stadium.

Neyland Stadium is a safe venue where Malachi Moore has played twice: once, when he beat the Volunteers 48-17; the other was a heartbreaking 52-49 last-second loss.

“Every game feels like a rivalry for us because every team wants to beat Alabama,” Moore said. “And in my opinion, I don’t like every team we play.”

But where does Moore rank “The Third Saturday in October” among Alabama’s rivals?

Moore admitted that as a child he watched Iron Bowl No. 1 owned.

“I didn’t know any better,” Moore said.

Now Moore knows that many think the Tennessee rivalry is bigger than the Crimson Tide’s rivalry with Auburn. He knows how big it is. But almost immediately, Moore backed down.

“Just like any SEC opponent on the road,” Moore said, “it will be a hostile environment.”

Alabama takes on Tennessee at Neyland Stadium on Saturday at 2:30 CT on ABC.

Colin Gay covers Alabama football for The Tuscaloosa News, part of the USA TODAY Network. Reach him at [email protected] or follow him @_ColinGay on X, formerly known as Twitter.