The Alabama Crimson Tide is improving under Kalen DeBoer, but improvement is not the same as acceptance. That is the reality facing Alabama as it enters the 2026 college football season. Progress might satisfy most programs, but Alabama is not most programs, and that is where the tension begins. Through two seasons, the results point in the right direction. Alabama moved from nine wins in DeBoer’s first year to 11 wins and a return to the College Football Playoff in his second. At face value, that is exactly what a successful transition looks like. In Tuscaloosa, it is viewed as a work in progress that still falls short of the standard. That standard is not vague. It is dominance. The expectation comes from what Nick Saban built. Six national championships in 17 seasons did more than elevate Alabama. It reset the bar for what sustained success looks like in college football. That kind of run is not just rare.…