SEC Network analyst Paul Finebaum says he’s done with the Kalen DeBoer era at Alabama after the Crimson Tide’s 38-3 Rose Bowl loss to undefeated Indiana on New Year’s Day.
Finebaum criticized Alabama’s performance during a recent episode of “The Paul Finebaum Show” while giving the Hoosiers minimal credit for their dominant win.
“But this just felt like the beginning – this wasn’t the beginning,” Finebaum said. “This was a continuum. We’ve seen this movie before. Every time DeBoer would have one of these, he would make up for it. This game was different, but the Georgia game in Atlanta was an absolute bludgeoning, except he was able to turn that Oklahoma game around – by the way, against an Oklahoma team that probably had no business being in the playoff, either.”
The loss ended Alabama’s College Football Playoff run after just one game.
Finebaum compared the situation to former coach Nick Saban’s tenure. He pointed to Alabama’s 2019 loss to Clemson as an example of how rare blowout defeats were under Saban.
“You knew, walking out of that stadium in Santa Clara [in 2019 against Clemson], Alabama would win again,” Finebaum said. “[Nick] Saban was still going to be great. It was just an incredibly bad night. Those happened very rarely.”
Under DeBoer, those performances have become more common.
Indiana advances to face Oregon in the Peach Bowl semifinal. The Hoosiers beat the Ducks during the regular season in Eugene.
The winner plays either Ole Miss or Miami in the national championship game.
Alabama’s playoff exit raises questions about DeBoer’s ability to maintain the program’s championship standard. The Crimson Tide struggled in several games this season, including losses to Vanderbilt and Oklahoma before the Indiana defeat.
The College Football Playoff continues without Alabama for the first time since the format expanded.
