One of the biggest stories of the offseason was Alabama Crimson Tide head coach Kalen DeBoer signing a new seven-year, $87.5 million contract extension.Kalen DeBoer Cashes InThe reason it was such a big story is that many people aren't sold on DeBoer as the head coach in Tuscaloosa just yet. DeBoer is 20-8 in his two years, has not won the SEC and has just one College Football Playoff appearance. While the Crimson Tide did win one game in the CFP, they were dominated 38-3 by the Indiana Hoosiers in the quarterfinals.At Alabama, that shouldn't be acceptable. However, getting this type of contract shows that the administration does think it's acceptable and that things are moving in the right direction. Because his contract also states that the Crimson Tide would be responsible for paying approximately 90% of the remaining salary if the university chose to dismiss him without cause.Alabama Crimson Tide head coach Kalen DeBoer speaks in a press conference. | Kirby Lee-Imagn ImagesPaul Finebaum Questions Why Kalen DeBoer Won't Address the Michigan RumorsOn "The Paul Finebaum Show," the SEC Network analyst discussed this contract extension. Finebaum said he feels the extension happened because there was a real threat of DeBoer leaving to take the Michigan Wolverines job. Finebaum said that Nick Saban, who is still employed by Alabama, essentially admitted that a few months back, but he wonders why DeBoer won't. "I mean, Saban's an employee, as you pointed out, I forgot that it's only $500,000, but who cares?" Finebaum said. "I mean, he he he essentially confirmed that. So, which brings me to DeBoer. I'm not around him like you are. He does have an interesting way of approaching things, but why not just admit it? What's the big deal?"It's understandable why DeBoer wouldn't admit something like that. You don't want your players to believe that you were looking for a better job. That's an easy way to lose a locker room. However, when a coach at Alabama gets this big a contract extension without winning anything significant, it does raise a question. Why did he get this? What has he done to deserve this? The reality is, it was probably fear that he would leave, and Alabama would be doing another coaching search. However, some fans might argue that's a good thing.Alabama is Betting DeBoer Can Keep Building MomentumDeBoer, though, is a good coach. He's proven that. He took the Washington Huskies to the national championship game and went 25-3 there in his two seasons. The Huskies are a good program, but they aren't on the level of programs like Alabama. So, being able to accomplish that is quite impressive.That's ultimately what this extension is about. Alabama didn't hand DeBoer a seven-year deal because of what he has already accomplished in Tuscaloosa; it handed it to him because it believes he can still become the coach it hired him to be.But that kind of contract also changes the conversation. Progress is nice, and Year 2 was a step forward, but at Alabama, a massive extension comes with massive expectations. Now DeBoer has to justify the faith the administration showed in him by turning improvement into championships. Add us as a preferred source on GoogleFollow