Paul Finebaum explains what Alabama loss to FSU means for Kalen DeBoer, status on hot seat

The Alabama Crimson Tide came into the 2025 season with College Football Playoff expectations on their shoulders. So, when head coach Kalen DeBoer led Alabama into Tallahassee to take on a Florida State Seminoles team coming off a two-win season, they were heavy favorites. Then, the Crimson Tide lost.

Just a day later, there has been a major reaction within the Alabama fanbase to that loss and frustration is rising with DeBoer. ESPN’s Paul Finebaum appeared on SportsCenter on Sunday morning. There, he did what he could to explain what the FSU loss means for DeBoer, including potentially putting him on the hot seat.

“You asked me not to sugarcoat it,” Paul Finebaum said. “I’m not going to. It is downright terrible. I’m in Alabama this morning, and everywhere you go, people are up in arms and, quite frankly, maybe overreacting. But it is really bad.”

In 2024, the first year Kalen DeBoer took over for Nick Saban, Alabama would go 9-4 with a bowl loss. That kept them on the outside looking in of the CFP too. It wasn’t ideal, but it was year one. and then the program had a strong offseason. That includes player retention and recruiting. So, with a vote of confidence from Saban coming down ahead of the season, expectations were high.

Against Florida State, Alabama struggled to get off the field defensively. In particular, they struggled to stop the Seminoles on the ground, as they rushed for 230 yards as a team. On top of that, the offense struggled to consistently move the ball for the Crimson Tide. With all of that, they took a tough loss and it has fans frustrated.

“Everyone bought into what Kalen DeBoer was selling in the offseason. Recruiting was great. He retained the roster. The culture was different. Even Nick Saban told us that yesterday. Well, it looked like the same team we saw last year against Michigan and against Oklahoma and against Vanderbilt. That is the concern. He has a $70 million buyout. Nobody is eager to do that,” Finebaum said. “But the upside is pretty weak right now and uphill for him because he has to get to the Playoff. Right now, he is underwater in that regard.”

Kirk Herbstreit reacts to Alabama loss to FSU

There has been criticism coming in all over for how Alabama lost to Florida State. That includes from some of college football’s biggest voices, like Kirk Herbstreit.

“I think the shocker of the day is Alabama and Florida State,” Herbstreit said. “Both how average Alabama looked and how dominant Florida State looked. Average. As average and lethargic as they could look. On the other end of that, Mike Norvell and Florida State showed up with an attitude and they were tired of hearing about 2-10. Give them all the credit in the world. They look like they’re gonna be a fun team to watch this year, but Alabama’s got ALOT of work to do.”

Certainly, Kalen DeBoer and Alabama are going to want to quickly bounce back from the tough loss. They’ll have the opportunity to do that next week against ULM.