It’s a different kind of week for Kalen DeBoer and Alabama football. For the first time since 1984, the Crimson Tide lost to Vanderbilt on Saturday in Nashville, dropping 40-35 and falling from its perch as the No. 1 team on the AP media poll.
On Wednesday, DeBoer will have to face Alabama fans in Tuscaloosa. The first-year head coach is scheduled to make his weekly appearance on the “Hey Coach” radio show, on the Crimson Tide Sports Network, for the first time of his tenure after a loss.
DeBoer will also preview Alabama’s first matchup since the loss, a Saturday battle with South Carolina in Tuscaloosa. That game is scheduled to kick off at 11 a.m. CT Saturday, and will be aired on ABC.
DeBoer’s portion of the “Hey Coach” is scheduled to begin at 6:30 p.m. CT from Baumhower’s Victory Grille in Tuscaloosa. Follow along here for live updates once he puts on the headset.
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— DeBoer arrives at Baumhower’s and begins the show, alongside host Chris Stewart.
— Says he’s “extremely disappointed and frustrated” by loss to Vanderbilt, but “the sun came up.” Says Alabama looks to film to find answers about what it needs to fix. Says he’s been proud of how players have responded throughout week.
— Stewart mentions the Malachi Moore outburst at the end of the Vanderbilt game. DeBoer says Alabama had leadership step up in locker room after the loss.
— Stewart asks what made it difficult for Alabama to get off the field on third downs. DeBoer says it comes down to execution, not just from players. Said there’s always things to look back at that could have been better, stresses that it’s important not to overreact.
— Stewart asks about difficulty of balancing fixing Vanderbilt issues and preparing for South Carolina. DeBoer says Sunday was a big day for correction. Says Alabama tries to bank corrective reps, to help when issues resurface down the road. Says Alabama fell behind and had to be perfect, and wasn’t able to do that.
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— Stewart asks about Vanderbilt crowd, where Alabama fans made up most of the audience. DeBoer says he appreciates the fans that showed up to FirstBank Stadium.
— Peewee from Grand Bay. Says he’s been hearing “naysayers” talking about players and DeBoer’s gameday fashion choices. Says Alabama fan base doesn’t need those people around. Says real Alabama fans have DeBoer’s back, which draws cheer from crowd at Baumhower’s. DeBoer says Alabama and its players are working hard to make fan base proud.
— Peewee asks DeBoer about NCAA eliminating NLIs and how it will impact recruiting. DeBoer says it won’t affect anything today or tomorrow. Says there will still be binding things for prospects to sign, but he’ll learn more as information becomes more complete.
— Caller says real Alabama fans are all behind DeBoer. Says he and his wife went to Georgia game, and it was “electric.” Asked what it will take to keep that intensity in every game. DeBoer says he loves all the fans, and understands expectations are high in Alabama. Says Alabama got off to hot start against Bulldogs. Says Tide was hesitant on certain things early against Vanderbilt, notes pick six Commodores scored on. Says he believes Alabama players gave everything they had.
The Philadelphia 76ers selected Alabama guard Labaron Philon Jr. with the 22nd overall pick of the 2026 NBA draft Tuesday night.
Philon is the first pick of the Mike Gansey era after he replaced Daryl Morey as the team’s president of basketball operations.
Who is Labaron Philon Jr.?
Philon, 20, led the Crimson Tide in scoring last season, averaging 22.0 points on nearly 40% shooting on 3-pointers. He was the focal point of one of the nation’s most potent offenses, as Alabama led the country in points per game in the 2025-26 season. The Crimson Tide (No. 16) finished the season with a 25-10 record and went 13-5 against conference opponents.
Philon, who helped lead Alabama to the Sweet 16 in the NCAA tournament, earned Third-Team All-American and First-Team All-SEC honors in his sophomore season.
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In 33 games last season for Alabama, Philon scored 725 total points, which is ranked third-most by a player in a single season in program history.
NBA commissioner Adam Silver shakes hands with Labaron Philon Jr. after he is drafted twenty-second overall by the Philadelphia 76ers during Round One of the 2026 NBA Draft at Barclays Center on June 23, 2026 in New York City.
Arturo Holmes / Getty Images
Philon was the 34th-ranked basketball recruit in the country entering his freshman season at Alabama, according to 247sports. The four-star guard initially committed to playing at Auburn, but decommitted. He then signed a letter of intent to play at Kansas, but didn’t play there, either. He then committed to the Crimson Tide in April 2024.
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Philon impressed as a freshman at Alabama and averaged 10.6 points in 37 games. He declared for the 2025 NBA draft but then withdrew and returned for his sophomore season, where he saw his scoring average jump more than 10 points.
Philon is a Mobile, Alabama, native and played at Baker High School in Mobile County, where he scored 2,334 points in three seasons. He was named the Class 7A Player of the Year twice.
As a junior, he averaged 35 points, 6.2 rebounds and 3.9 assists and was named Alabama Mr. Basketball, which is given to the best high school boys’ basketball player in the state. Philon transferred to Link Academy, a boarding school in Missouri, for his senior year of high school.
Philon now joins a backcourt headlined by Tyrese Maxey and VJ Edgecombe heading into the 2026-27 season. Quentin Grimes could return to Philadelphia next season and add even more depth, but he’s an unrestricted free agent.
The pick the Sixers used to pick Philon was acquired in the deal that sent Jared McCain to the Oklahoma City Thunder at the trade deadline.
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Labaron Philon Jr. scouting report
CBS Sports had Philon ranked as the 14th-best prospect in the 2026 NBA draft.
Here are his strengths and weaknesses, according to CBS Sports:
Strengths
On-ball creator who made an extreme leap as a sophomore, ranking in the 99th percentile in isolations (was 24th percentile as a freshman) and 94th as a pick-and-roll handler (was 32nd percentile as a freshman). Combines smooth attack with sudden change of speed and direction, dexterity, and finishing craft in the lane.
Shot-maker who can make tough shots off both the catch (36% on contested catch-and-shoot 3-pointers), dribble (38% from deep), and has extreme gravity when he’s spacing the floor (46% on unguarded catch-and-shoot 3-pointers).
Shown pliability to thrive in different roles over the years and is a similarly versatile creator, because he’s a scoring threat at multiple levels and also an accurate, and somewhat creative, passer with both hands off the dribble.
Weaknesses
Inconsistent defensive approach. Showed more engagement and potential as a freshman, but couldn’t maintain that as a sophomore when taking on a bigger offensive role.
Lacks overwhelming physicality or highest level explosiveness, and didn’t add any notable muscle mass between his freshman and sophomore seasons (175 pounds at 2025 combine and 176 at 2026 combine).
Unclear how well his creation scales to the NBA level when he will have less usage and volume coupled by more physicality in opposing defenders.
Alabama football hosted a hometown kid for an official visit last weekend when it got Jeremiah Beverley on campus for an official visit.
Beverley attends Hillcrest High School in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, and ESPN currently has him rated as a four-star recruit. He is considering Alabama, Cincinnati, Wake Forest and others.
The Crimson Tide offered Beverley earlier this month and got him on campus for an official visit last weekend. The Alabama target told Touchdown Alabama he used the visit to learn what the Tide has planned for him if he commits.
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“I’m truly happy that I went on that official visit,” Beverley said. “Blessed for that. All I was talking about was the next step, what I got to do? So, just knowing what they have planned for me, knowing what they have set for me.”
At 6-foot-2 and 235 pounds, Beverley makes plays for Hillcrest-Tuscaloosa as a defensive end. Alabama has plans to use him similarly at the next level.
“They’re going to have me at wolf mostly,” Beverley said. “I know coach (Kane) Wommack and coach (Christian) Robinson, I think they see me at other positions, but I know it is guaranteed they’re going to see me at Wolf and me working my way up on special teams, and they expect that out of me.”
Beverley is expected to announce a commitment decision on Friday.
Watch Jeremiah Beverley’s Highlights Below:
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Justin Smith is the Managing Editor and Lead Writer for Touchdown Alabama Magazine with over 10 years of writing experience & expertise. Smith has consistently delivered high quality, extensively researched information on the University of Alabama’s Crimson Tide football team that fans can trust. Smith is official credentialed media with the University of Alabama under Touchdown Alabama Magazine. He is also the Director of Recruiting for Touchdown Enterprises, specializing in scouting and analyzing high school recruits around the nation, specifically focusing on recruits within the state of Alabama.
Alabama football is hiring Noah Fisher to be its assistant tight ends coach, according to CBS Sports’ Matt Zenitz.
Fisher spent two seasons as a graduate assistant working with the offensive line and tight ends at Louisville before joining the Tide’s staff. He played three years on the offensive line at South Alabama and spent one season with Tulane. The Jaguars started Fisher along its offensive line when he was a player for multiple games.
The Crimson Tide appear to want to use their tight ends in multiple ways in the future including as extra blockers along the line of scrimmage. Fisher looks as if he can assist the Tide with this mission.
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Justin Smith is the Managing Editor and Lead Writer for Touchdown Alabama Magazine with over 10 years of writing experience & expertise. Smith has consistently delivered high quality, extensively researched information on the University of Alabama’s Crimson Tide football team that fans can trust. Smith is official credentialed media with the University of Alabama under Touchdown Alabama Magazine. He is also the Director of Recruiting for Touchdown Enterprises, specializing in scouting and analyzing high school recruits around the nation, specifically focusing on recruits within the state of Alabama.
