As soon as Kalen DeBoer stepped off the plane at Tuscaloosa National Airport Friday evening, he jumped into a car driven by Alabama athletics director Greg Byrne and took off to meet with players. The new football coach of the Crimson Tide needed to get to work straight away, as keeping key roster pieces together despite a 30-day transfer portal entry window triggered by Nick Saban’s retirement would be key to his future success.

When he got to Mal Moore Athletic Facility, he offered up his pitch to the assembled team.

“Just give me a chance,” DeBoer said he told players. “Give me a chance to show you a few of the things. I’m gonna listen to you. I’m gonna meet you where you’re at right now and try to show them through proof of things that have happened, whether it’s at Washington or, we haven’t got into much beyond that, but what this will look like.”

DeBoer emphasized that he is going to bring in a solid staff, that could help players in their development. That started with Courtney Morgan, his general manager at Washington, who rode the plane to Alabama with him and had already been at work calling parents of players on the roster.

He acknowledged the fact that they committed to play for Saban, a legendary figure who is now not running the show. Even so, he told players about the experience he was trying to provide for them at Alabama.

“How great it will be to be out there on the football field,” DeBoer said. “Because of what we’re doing schematically. Because of the people that are going to be around you as you show up in the weight room for that workout and the people that are around you from a coaching staff standpoint, developing you. Show them that, their development, and what we’ve done with guys entering the NFL in the past and how we do that, that it’s special.”

Alabama’s first game of DeBoer’s tenure is scheduled for Aug. 31 at Bryant-Denny Stadium against Western Kentucky.