At his press conference on Thursday, Alabama head coach Kalen DeBoer stated that the university “followed all the proper procedures” in response to Miami (Ohio) head coach Chuck Martin’s recent allegation that the Crimson Tide “illegally recruited” and “poached” kicker Graham Nicholson earlier this year.
“I don’t have any details about that comment,” DeBoer said. “(Nicholson) entered the portal, and we reached out to him. That’s the standard process, right? We followed all the required steps.”
Martin’s remarks were initially made on Wednesday during an interview with MiamiRedHawks.com, where he discussed how his former kicker ended up with Alabama for the 2024 season.
“We didn’t lose Nicholson; he’s with Alabama,” Martin said. “We know exactly where he is. It’s not just media talk—Alabama took our kicker illegally and poached him from us, and that’s the truth.”
Nicholson, who won the Lou Groza Award as the top college kicker last season, entered the transfer portal in April. A few days later, he announced his commitment to the Crimson Tide on his X account.
In 14 games with the RedHawks last season, Nicholson made 27 of 28 field-goal attempts, leading FBS kickers with a 96.4% field-goal percentage for those with at least 20 attempts in 2023.
Notably, Nicholson won the Lou Groza Award last season, surpassing former Alabama kicker Will Reichard. Now, Nicholson aims to make a significant impact at Alabama, potentially becoming one of the best kickers in the school’s history.
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