The iconic Third Saturday in October rivalry will feature two South Dakota natives on opposite sidelines this season.
When Alabama football and Tennessee face off in 2024, Josh Heupel will be coaching the Vols and Kalen DeBoer will be leading the Crimson Tide.
They grew up about 90 minutes from each other, with one from Aberdeen (Heupel) and the other from Milbank (DeBoer).
“I’m not sure anybody pictured two South Dakotans being in the SEC a few years ago,” Heupel said Tuesday at SEC Media Days in Dallas. “Kalen is somebody I’ve known for a long time. I was a little bit younger. I watched him as an athlete. Then through our coaching paths have crossed and stayed in contact at different times. Excited to have him in the league. Great person, great coach. We’ll be ready for Saturday in October.”
After their time playing high school football in South Dakota at their respective schools, DeBoer and Heupel took different paths. Heupel left the state for college with several stops, landing later at Oklahoma where he won a national championship. After a brief stint in the NFL, Heupel began his coaching career that included stops everywhere from Oklahoma to Utah State and Missouri. He’s since been a head coach for Central Florida and now Tennessee.
DeBoer stayed in South Dakota for a while, playing college football for Sioux Falls. He also won a national championship as a player, albeit at an NAIA school. He got his start coaching high school football, then he returned to Sioux Falls as offensive coordinator and later became head coach where he won more national championships. Next, he made stops as an assistant at Southern Illinois, Eastern Michigan, Fresno State and Indiana. Then DeBoer became a head coach at Fresno State, Washington and now Alabama, having accepted the job in January after Nick Saban retired.
DeBoer and Heupel will face off on Oct. 19 in Knoxville.