Paul Finebaum decides against run for U.S. Senate

ESPN’s Paul Finebaum will not run for US Senate as originally teased earlier this fall. AL Dot Com reported the news Tuesday.

“I have been deeply moved by so many people in Alabama who have reached out encouraging me to run for the United States Senate,” Finebaum shared with AL.com. “It has been a gratifying and rewarding experience.”

Funny enough, Finebaum addressed the topic Monday night on CNN. He was brought on to talk about Lane Kiffin’s move toLSU and said that’s all he could concentrate on.

“It has been difficult to concentrate on anything else lately but Lane Kiffin, so the answer is no,” Finebaum joked during a segment discussing Alabama‘s chances at the CFP and the Kiffin-LSU hire. “But hopefully very very soon.”

Finebaum told OutKick‘s Clay Travis that the assassination of activist Charlie Kirk made him rethink his priorities earlier this year. He told OutKick that he struggled to do his show following hearing the news of Kirk’s death.

“I spent four hours numb talking about things that didn’t matter to me. And it kept building throughout that weekend,” Finebaum said. “I felt very empty doing what I was doing that day … It’s hard to describe, not being involved in politics, how that affected me and affected tens of millions of people all over this country. And it was an awakening.”

Kirk, 31, was killed on September 10th during a speaking engagement at Utah Valley University. He was an outspoken right-wing activist who made his bones as a talk show host and debater, especially on college campuses. He challenged both sides of the aisle to discuss many of the hot button issues throughout America.

Upon the initial news of Finebaum’s consideration to move into politics, ESPN reportedly removed him from the network. However, that proved to be temporary as ESPN’s PR denied they did so, after OutKick’s report.

For context, Finebaum did not appear during his regular SportsCenter hit that Sunday morning where he recaps the happenings in college football prior to an NFL slate. However, Finebaum was on ESPN’s College Football YouTube channel during his weekly appearance with SC anchor Matt Barrie on The Matt Barrie Show.

Finebaum’s reaction to the news of Kirk’s death really changed the way he thought, as he told Travis. A sports radio show amid that news seemed irrelevant to him.

“One or two people in Washington had reached out to me about whether I would be interested in politics, something I never thought about before. Something I didn’t really think possible,” Finebaum said. “I gave some thought to it as the [after Kirk’s murder] weekend unfolded and got a little bit more interested.” 

Finebaum actually changed his perspective on the Senate seat once Tommy Tuberville, the former Auburn football coach, said he would run for Alabama governor. Not only that, recently retired Auburn basketball coach Bruce Pearl said he would not run for a Senate seat, despite rumors linking him to the job.

“I was … hesitant at first because I was very aware of Bruce’s interest and [I’m a] huge fan of Bruce … I didn’t take it too seriously,” Finebaum said. “I ended up talking to someone … who made it clear that there was a desire for me to be involved. And this person … was compelling and compassionate in the approach to me, and I started thinking about this.”

Finebaum actually opened up to Travis about his political allegiances, which he never really discussed while on the air for ESPN. He hosts his own radio show, plus has regular appearances on Get Up, First Take and SportsCenter, among others. Finebaum also said he voted for current President Donald Trump in the most recent election and added: “but (ESPN) also tells us not to discuss that.”

“I’ve never said this before, but why am I going to hold this back,” Finebaum said. “I just moved and registered in Alabama, but I am a registered Republican in North Carolina as of this hour. And I was a registered Republican in Alabama before I moved.”