Paul Finebaum reveals what firing Kalen DeBoer would do to Greg Byrne

The 2025 season is off to a rocky start for the Alabama Crimson Tide. Now, there is mounting pressure on head coach Kalen DeBoer. Of course, as Paul Finebaum knows, that pressure could eventually increase on the man who hired DeBoer, athletic director Greg Byrne.

Finebaum recently appeared on Beat Everyone. There, he warned against putting the pressure on Byrne just yet, comparing him to Florida AD Scott Stricklin. At the same time, the results on the football field haven’t been good enough.

“Well, it’s complicated,” Finebaum said. “I think Byrne is well thought of, so I don’t think — remember, Scott Stricklin was on the hot seat last year with Billy Napier. He won a basketball national championship. He just got a three-year extension. So, I think Greg Byrne is the wrong person to go after right now.”

Byrne got to Alabama in 2017, inheriting Nick Saban as his football coach. Since then, he’s made several major hires, including Nate Oats for the men’s basketball team and Kalen DeBoer. Prior to his time at Alabama, Byrne hired Dan Mullen at Mississippi State and Rich Rodriguez at Arizona.

While Finebaum may not be calling for Byrne, he has been very critical of DeBoer since the loss to Florida State. That’s despite having what seemed like a good offseason on the recruiting trail. However, it’s an informed opinion based on the boosters and fans he speaks to frequently.

“I talked to a booster. I’ll sound like you guys, quoting everybody but Legend. On Monday, I was up in New York and I called somebody I consider to be as good a barometer reading, and this is not just some guy who gives a couple of bucks. Okay? This is a major league booster, and I said, ‘Is there any supper right now?’ He said, ‘No,’ but that was not a surprising answer. He also said that something has to change very quickly for people to come back in,” Finebaum said.

“I was all in on this guy Saturday morning. So, I hate to jump off the horse here, but I do think we have to be real. What you’re doing is very real. This is not some manufactured media story. This is a legitimate situation for Kalen DeBoer. I’ll quote another Finebaum caller, Brandon the pressure washer, he’s the Nick Saban of pressure washers. One week last year, after Georgia, he called in our show and said, ‘I’m Brandon, the Nick Saban and Kalen DeBoer of pressure washers.’ He called in after the Vanderbilt game and said, ‘I’m no longer the Kalen DeBoer of pressure washers.’ He called in Monday and I actually had to interrupt him it was getting so vicious.”

DeBoer is now 9-5 since getting to Alabama and 5-5 in his last 10 games. In the wake of the Nick Saban era, that’s a difficult success rate to accept for many people. There’s plenty of time to turn things around this season, though, and it’s hard to say how good Florida State will be by the end of the year. If a turnaround is coming, however, it needs to come quickly.

“The problem for DeBoer is he doesn’t even have the base anymore, the hardcore. The people that will be there,” Finebaum said. “Doesn’t matter what the score is, doesn’t matter what time it is, doesn’t matter what the temperature is. They’re waiting for the plane when it comes in.”