When Nick Saban retired in January, a group of Alabama football players not only lost their head coach but also essentially their position coach.

The defensive backs not only played for Saban as the CEO of the program but also as his unofficial position group. As a former defensive backs coach long before he was winning national championships, Saban continued to work with the secondary in practice throughout his entire 17 seasons in Tuscaloosa, alongside whatever secondary coaches Alabama also had on staff.

So, it’s no surprise that position saw more shuffling than most in the aftermath of the switch from Saban to Kalen DeBoer.

While there was a bit of a mass departure in the secondary, how much did the Crimson Tide actually lose in terms of production and experience? Here’s a deep dive into the numbers for the 10 departures and the five additions, with data from the 2023 season based off statistics from ESPN and Pro Football Focus.

NICK SABAN BOOK:Relive Nick Saban’s epic Alabama football coaching career with our special book!

KALEN DEBOER:Who is Kalen DeBoer? A collection of stories about the new Alabama football coach

The number of departures, additions

Alabama saw 10 defensive backs depart after the 2023 season; two of those, Peyton Woodyard and Jameer Grimsley are set to be freshman this fall and had not yet played college football but had signed to play for the Crimson Tide. Caleb Downs was far and away the most prominent name to depart; he entered the transfer portal after Saban retired. Outside of him, the most notable names were Trey Amos and Kristian Story.

Meanwhile, Alabama has added five defensive backs from the transfer portal since the end of the 2023 season in Domani Jackson (USC), Keon Sabb (Michigan), Kam Howard (Charlotte), DaShawn Jones (Wake Forest) and King Mack (Penn State). Jackson had committed to Alabama while Saban was still coach.

How much starting experience Alabama lost, gained

Even with twice as many departures as additions, the Crimson Tide saw a net gain in starting experience from this past season. The 10 departing players tallied a combined 17 starts (1.7 starts per player), and Downs had 14 of those. Meanwhile, the new group has a combined 29 starts, an average of 5.8 starts per player. Jackson (11) and Jones (10) combined for 21 of those starts.

How many snaps Alabama football lost, gained

The Crimson Tide also saw a net gain in snaps on defense; the departing players tallied a combined 1,485 snaps on defense. Meanwhile, the additions registered a combined 2,020 snaps on defense in 2023. That’s an average of 404 snaps per added player compared to 148.6 snaps per departing player.

Special teams snap average saw an increase as well. Alabama went from an average of 51.3 snaps on special teams for its departures to an average of 78.6 snaps per addition.