Alabama appears to have found its next head coach, as ESPN’s Pete Thamel reports that Washington’s Kalen DeBoer will be stepping in for the now-retired Nick Saban.

DeBoer has been the head coach at Washington for the past two seasons, where he led the Huskies to a 25-3 record over that span. Washington made it all the way to the national championship game this past season before losing to Michigan.

Prior to his time at Washington, DeBoer was also the head coach at Fresno State. This will be the first time DeBoer has ever coached in the SEC.

DeBoer will take over for Saban, who announced his retirement on Wednesday after spending 17 seasons at Alabama. Saban went 206-29 during his time at Alabama, including an 8-2 record against the Georgia Bulldogs.

On Thursday, Georgia head coach Kirby Smart spoke glowingly of Saban.

“A lot of respect for him as a coach and a person and a man. What he and Mrs. Terry have meant to really the game of football but especially to Tuscaloosa,” Smart said in an interview on 92.9 The Game. “They’ve been incredible. I mean, he’s put a lot of coaches through his coaching factory. I can assure you of that.

“He’s really good at what he does and from what I hear he was still working and coaching right up to the last minute, it sounds like, over there, yesterday. So a lot of respect for him and he meant a lot to my career.”

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