Paul Finebaum names college football head coach on 'scorching' hot seat after Week 1

ESPN analyst Paul Finebaum, a man whose very name is virtually synonymous with Alabama football, says that the head coach of the Crimson Tide, Kalen DeBoer, is on a 'scorching' hot seat. Finebaum himself has eaten his fair share of crow after his preseason boosting of Alabama. The Tide's 31-17 loss to unranked Florida State shocked college football in Week 1.

Finebaum unloads on DeBoer

In an early Sunday appearance on ESPN's SportsCenter, Finebaum made extra clear what he perceives as the situation around the Alabama head coach.

It was a shattering loss for Kalen DeBoer.... You started hearing words last night like 'hot seat,' 'buyout,' which by the way is $70 million. So it was get to the Playoffs or bust, and right now, he has lost a golden opportunity, because he has about seven or eight tougher games than he had yesterday. His path is very narrow, and his hot seat is very scorching.
Paul Finebaum

DeBoer's troubles seemed virtually inevitable after the former Washington head coach replaced Alabama legend Nick Saban. After a tough 2007 opening season in which several Alabama wins were subsequently vacated because of NCAA issues begun under Saban's predecesor, Alabama went 199-23 under Saban from 2008 through 2023. That run included six national championships and 11 SEC championships. After the 2007 season, Saban never lost more than three games in any Alabama season, and he lost three just once, in 2010.

DeBoer, on the other hand, lost four games in his first season with the Tide. After losing to unranked Vanderbilt and Oklahoma squads, Alabama missed the College Football Playoff. With another loss to an unranked team to open 2025, it's hard not to notice that DeBoer is utterly failing to fill Saban's massive shoes.

Since 2007, in games when Alabama was favored by at least 14 points:

Nick Saban was 131-2
Kalen DeBoer is 4-4
— Brett McMurphy (@Brett_McMurphy) August 30, 2025

Alabama and coaching hot seats

In light of the $70 million buyout feature mentioned by Finebaum, is it plausible that the Tide could cut DeBoer loose after 2025? The post-Week 1 CFP rankings project a 6-6 record for the Tide. Suffice it to say that sort of year would not be well-received.

Alabama has seen Dennis Franchione depart Tuscaloosa after two years and Bill Curry after three years. While each coach moved on of his own apparent accord, it's safe to say that some in Alabama weren't entirely upset to see either leave. Franchione's 25 games at Alabama is the shortest tenure (other than Mike Price getting fired for off-field issues before coaching a game) for a non-interim Tide coach since World War I.

But, as Finebaum notes, a hot seat under DeBoer is only hotter after Week 1.