Alabama's DeVonta Smith Calls Players Who Transfer Out 'Idiots'

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New Alabama football coach Kalen DeBoer has been busy recruiting since starting his first day on the job last Friday.

Recruiting new coaches, new players and current Alabama player, and that includes the backups.

So far so good with junior reserve defensive back DeVonta Smith of La Salle High in Cincinnati. Not to be confused with the Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver of the same name and spelling. That Smith will play at Tampa Bay Monday night in the NFC playoffs (8:15 p.m., ABC).

Smith met with DeBoer over the weekend and has a message for any teammates considering transferring out of Alabama.

Alabama Coach Kalen DeBoer Impresses DeVonta Smith

"Any of these cats that are thinking about leaving need to meet with him immediately," Smith said, according to a tweet from Bama Recruiting 247. "And if they still want to leave, then they are idiots, and we don't need them."

And this is from a backup. Those players tend to be quick to the NCAA Transfer Portal. Smith completed his junior season at Alabama in the 2023 season. After recovering from an injury, he played sparingly. In 2021 and '22 he played often, but primarily on special teams. And he signed as a four-star prospect in 2021 with coach Nick Saban, who retired after 17 seasons on Wednesday.

DeBoer arrived in Tuscaloosa on Friday night and has been trying to talk to as many players as possible via the phone and in person.

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Kalen DeBoer (right) replaced Alabama coach Nick Saban on Friday. (Getty Images)

DeVonta Smith Says Don't Be An 'Idiot'

"Working tirelessly with who we have here," Kalen DeBoer said Saturday after his introductory press conference. "Having one-on-ones. I've done that a bunch already."

He impressed Smith.

"He's a cool dude," Smith said. "He met with me for two hours, and it wasn't just about football. He wants to get to know us."

Since Saban announced his retirement on Wednesday effective immediately, Alabama top wide receiver Isaiah Bond entered the portal and decided on Texas on Sunday. Other players have been considering entering the portal as well.

"I want to be very thorough," DeBoer said.

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Guilbeau joined OutKick as an SEC columnist in September of 2021 after covering LSU and the Saints for 17 years at USA TODAY Louisiana. He has been a national columnist/feature writer since the summer of 2022, covering college football, basketball and baseball with some NFL, NBA, MLB, TV and Movies and general assignment, including hot dog taste tests. A New Orleans native and Mizzou graduate, he has consistently won Associated Press Sports Editors (APSE) and Football Writers Association of America (FWAA) awards since covering Alabama and Auburn at the Mobile Press-Register (1993-98) and LSU and the Saints at the Baton Rouge Advocate (1998-2004). In 2021, Guilbeau won an FWAA 1st for a game feature, placed in APSE Beat Writing, Breaking News and Explanatory, and won Beat Writer of the Year from the Louisiana Sports Writers Association (LSWA). He won an FWAA columnist 1st in 2017 and was FWAA's top overall winner in 2016 with 1st in game story, 2nd in columns, and features honorable mention. Guilbeau completed a book in 2022 about LSU's five-time national champion coach - "Everything Matters In Baseball: The Skip Bertman Story" - that is available at www.acadianhouse.com, Amazon.com and Barnes & Noble outlets. He lives in Baton Rouge with his wife, the former Michelle Millhollon of Thibodaux who previously covered politics for the Baton Rouge Advocate and is a communications director.