Paul Finebaum sounds alarm on SEC program’s head coaching situation

Not long after the Michigan head coaching position came open, Kalen DeBoer emerged as a potential candidate to take it, even as the coach denied those rumors and is now reportedly working on a contract extension with Alabama.

Working on an extension has proven to be the standard response whenever an employed coach is being floated for another job, but Paul Finebaum wondered aloud if DeBoer has done enough to earn a new deal with the Crimson Tide already.

Does he deserve an extension?

“I’m not really sure what he’s done to deserve an extension, but do I need to remind you of what we talk about every day? It’s just the way that agents operate and it only seems like the fact that it took four days to get that statement tells you everything you need to know,” Finebaum said on WJOX Radio in Birmingham.

If there’s a college football program that could contend with Alabama in terms of prestige and opportunity, it would be Michigan.

And if he were to come to the belief that there was some issue at Alabama that would prevent him being a long-term winner, then it would stand to reason that Michigan would be an ideal escape plan.

But given the Crimson Tide is currently in the College Football Playoff field and DeBoer has gone public with a statement saying he’s content where he is, all signs point to him staying put.

Do the exit rumors help him?

That said, having DeBoer’s name constantly in the news as a potential candidate for this or that job could prove to be good business for the coach, and his representation.

“That statement should have come out pretty quickly if Kalen DeBoer had no interest in going anywhere. I don’t know why it took four days,” Finebaum said.

He added: “And the reason I think it took four days is because [superagent] Jimmy Sexton and his people have been trying to get this extension out of Alabama.”

What DeBoer has done at Alabama

DeBoer has gone 19-7 in his two years succeeding Nick Saban, a mixed record that includes some statement wins, but also some puzzling losses that have somewhat tarnished the program’s reputation nationally.

But the Tide is still heading into a first-round playoff game on the road against Oklahoma that could help him change the narrative.

“This is a pretty important game for Alabama. I realize they only lost two games in the regular season, and a loss Friday night would be two since the Auburn game. It’s still four losses. In the parlance of Alabama football, it’s disappointing,” Finebaum said.

“It hasn’t happened yet. We may be talking on Jan. 19 about Alabama winning the national championship, but it just feels that came rather slow.

“And if Alabama gives him an extension, my question back to you is, what does it really mean? What do any of these contracts mean in college football now?”

DeBoer is 0-2 against Oklahoma, the first loss keeping Alabama out of the playoff and the second nearly doing so.

Is the third time the charm for the Crimson Tide? If so, it would help his agent when he goes to Alabama to ask for more money.

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