It's definitely about relationships and that's where Saban being in their "front office" comes into play. He's gonna tell/show DeBoer where he needs to go, who he needs to see. And when a recruit visits, Saban is gonna be there.
Nobody wanted the Bama job cause their NIL is not good right now. Lanning stayed at Oregon cause the buyout with crazy and he has almost an unlimited amount of NIL. Same with Texas and Sark. Same with Norvell & FSU cause they pay up $ in the portal. IF Bama ever figures out their NIL ****, they'll land a top 5 class, consistently top 10