Paul Finebaum issues update on SEC coach's future before College Football Playoff game

Life in the SEC is always challenging, but a head coach in the league now is almost constantly dodging obstacles. Up one game, down the next, the league turns over more than its fair share of coaches-- consider the five head coaches let go this year from the conference.

But one coach who has sometimes drawn his fair share of attention on the hot-seat lists is now doing just fine. Rumored this very offseason as a candidate for another prestigious job, one coach still working in the CFP "isn't going anywhere" according to Paul Finebaum.

Finebaum dropped his positive take about Kalen DeBoer, who has survived a sometimes tumultous year at Alabama. DeBoer, after winning a first-round CFP victory over Oklahoma and being linked briefly with the Michigan head coaching job, got a significant thumbs-up from Finebaum on McElroy and Cubelic in the Morning.

"He's not leaving, he's not going anywhere, in spite of what somebody's uncle thinks," Finebaum said of DeBoer. "And I think that's actually very good for program that there's a little bit of stability now."

Alabama dropped the season opener to Florida State, which created a near-panic off a four-loss season that ended shy of the College Football Playoff in 2024. After an impressive rebound from that defeat, the Tide also suffered a tough 23-21 regular-season loss to Oklahoma and were smacked by Georgia in the SEC title game 28-7.

But an 11-3 Tide team won a Playoff rematch with Oklahoma despite an early 17-0 deficit... in a performance that somewhat mirrors DeBoer's results with the Tide.

"Let's not forget that under three years ago, he had the most difficult succession in college football history," said Finebaum. "He hasn't been perfect, and he hasn't mastered it, and there's always going to be somebody complaining about something, but I think this season, he faced the crucible. At various points where a loss-- whether it was the Auburn game or whether it was the Oklahoma. game-- it would have felt like all the good had gone down the drain, he was able to call the right play against Auburn and he did the same thing against Oklahoma."

A season ago, QB Jalen Milroe had an uneven transition from Nick Saban's offense to DeBoer's system. Veteran Ty Simpson seemed to have a smoother job at QB in 2025, and Alabama now faces Indiana with a chance to spring a significant upset. Ruining Cinderella's title run is an unusual position for Alabama, to say the least, but they'll take on the battle with a coach who Finebaum notes "should finally be able to exhale."