How Kalen DeBoer went from South Dakota to Tuscaloosa to succeed Nick Saban as Alabama’s head coach.

You could start at the top if you were going to write a corny, feel-good story to counter the knives-out, free-for-all style of contemporary college football. It’s noteworthy when a coach takes over a 4-8 program and makes such significant changes that the team advances to the College Football Playoff championship game in just two years. And when that coach is a nomadic, go-where-the-job-is lifer, an overnight success after twenty years, and a native of the most underappreciated area in the nation, well, then you’ve got yourself the makings of a charming little story of goal accomplished and hard work rewarded.

Kalen DeBoer was selected by Alabama on Friday afternoon to take Nick Saban’s place as head coach. It represents the pinnacle of a career that has, thus far, involved one coaching gig at a time and a half of the nation. Five days prior, DeBoer expertly reconstructed the Washington Huskies program and led them to the national championship game.

DeBoer is the epitome of a throwback, even as college football as a whole hurtles toward an uncertain future. Washington qualified for the national championship despite overwhelming odds. DeBoer, however, had to overcome far greater obstacles to reach Tuscaloosa, Alabama, beginning with his home state.