Alabama fans may finally rid themselves of Paul Finebaum, but at what cost

Paul Finebaum is an SEC institution, but one that plenty of fans would love to shut down. From declaring Arch Manning is the next Tim Tebow to doubting Ohio State in the preseason, Finebaum has had a career’s worth of terrible takes in the last two months. 

Now, Finebaum may finally be ending his run as the “Voice of the SEC” on The Paul Finebaum Show, but that doesn’t mean fans of the Crimson Tide in Alabama will be done hearing from him. Finebaum has not yet announced his candidacy, but he told Clay Travis that he’s considering leaving ESPN to run as the Republican candidate for the open U.S. Senate seat in Alabama for the 2026 election. 

Paul Finebaum eyeing Senate run and ESPN departure

While it may sound absurd, Finebaum has considerable reach, and sports have become intimately tied to that Senate seat in particular. The seat is being vacated by former Auburn head coach Tommy Tuberville as he vies for the governorship. Recently retired Auburn basketball coach Bruce Pearl has been rumored and shown interest in becoming a candidate for that seat in Congress. Now, Finebaum could be throwing his hat in the ring. 

Pearl’s retirement came as quite a surprise, just over a month before the season. The timing appeared to be orchestrated to set up his son, Steven, as the head coach, with Auburn completely out of options this close to the start of the year. Steven was signed to a five-year contract quickly after Bruce’s announcement. Now, the former head coach of the Tigers and Tennessee Volunteers may be gearing up for a second act in politics. 

It’s been an Auburn-heavy Senate seat for years, but it could be particularly painful for the Crimson Tide faithful if they’re forced to choose between a man who took Auburn basketball to the Final Four twice and a radio personality, who many find insufferable. 

There are those, however, who are still big Finebaum fans, so his candidacy could gain traction after floating the idea to Travis. If you’re tired of hearing his takes on the radio and on ESPN, that could be great news. But he certainly wouldn’t be out of your life. 

As for Alabama, Finebaum actually caught flak after Week 1 for predicting that Alabama was a legitimate national championship contender and that the Crimson Tide would beat Florida State. In that case, it wasn’t fun for Tide fans to be Finebaum faceplant. Still, since that loss to the Seminoles, Kalen DeBoer’s team has looked like one of the best in the country and is 1-0 in SEC play after beating Georgia 24-21 in Athens on Saturday night.