For the first time since the memorable 2022 win, Tennessee football will host Alabama inside Neyland Stadium this season.

I spoke with Tony Tsoukalas of TideIllustrated to preview the 2024 game.

Here's what he had to say.

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Things are certainly different. There’s music at practice now, and reporters are allowed to speak to assistant coaches. DeBoer is also on social media and even has Snapchat. There seems to be a positive vibe coming from Alabama at the moment. The players appear to buy into what DeBoer and his staff are preaching. There also seems to be an increased focus on proving doubters wrong this offseason.

DeBoer limited the damage during Alabama’s brief exodus of players following Saban’s retirement in January. Outside of that, he and his staff haven’t faced much adversity this offseason. It will be interesting to see how DeBoer navigates any rough waters should they arise this fall. As for now, things are sailing pretty smoothly.

I don’t think anyone is expecting Alabama to maintain quite the same dominance it had under Saban. However, I still see the Tide as one of college football’s perennial contenders following his departure.

Depending on how a couple of position groups pan out, Alabama should have a top-five roster this season. I’m currently projecting a 10-2 record and a berth in the College Football Playoff. The floor for this team is probably eight wins, but I’d say the Tide is closer to having a 12-win regular season than it is to slipping to eight. We’ll learn a lot more in September, but I wouldn’t hold your breath on an instant dropoff.

As for the future, DeBoer and his staff seem to have found their footing on the recruiting trail. Alabama has received seven commits since the start of June and has the No. 3 class for the 2025 cycle.

That’s the question everyone wants to know. On one hand, Alabama has the top returning Heisman vote-getter from last year and possibly the most dangerous weapon in college football. On the other hand, Milroe struggled with his intermediate passing last season and still needs to work on his decision-making in the pocket. He’ll have to improve on both of those aspects to operate in DeBoer’s offense this fall.

That being said, expect DeBoer to implement some wrinkles into his attack to utilize Milroe’s skill set. While most know DeBoer for his success with pocket passers such as Michael Penix Jr. and Jake Haener, he also has experience working with a dual-threat quarterback.

DeBoer compares Milroe to Lorenzo Brown, who posted a 29-0 record as his quarterback for the University of Sioux Falls from 2008-09. During the 2009 season, Brown earned NAIA Player of the Year honors, completing 68% of his passes for 3,221 yards and 40 touchdowns with six interceptions while also rushing for 844 yards and 16 more scores on the ground.

Milroe has made solid steps toward integrating into Alabama’s new system and improving his comfortability in reading defenses. If he can continue to progress in those areas, he should take his game to another level this fall.

It’s hard to imagine that not providing some sort of extra motivation. However, I feel like the matchup will be big enough on its own. Depending on how things shake out, Alabama and Tennessee could both find themselves ranked in the top 10 by the time the Third Saturday in October rolls around.

The most obvious answer here is Milroe’s improvement as a passer. However, that will only happen if Alabama can keep him on his feet. Last year, the Tide ranked No. 125 nationally, allowing 3.5 sacks per game. That was with top-10 pick J.C. Latham at right tackle.

Alabama was able to bring back Kadyn Proctor after the starting left tackle transferred home to Iowa for a few months. The Tide also returns a fellow five-star tackle in redshirt sophomore Elijah Pritchett as well as two promising redshirt freshmen in Wilkin Formby and Miles McVay. While that quartet of tackles features plenty of talent, it’s uncertain how that will translate to the field this fall.

Alabama did a decent job of restocking its secondary after losing all but one starter from last year’s nickel unit. Still, it will be important for that unit to gel quickly considering the passing attacks the Tide is set to face in the SEC.

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