Alabama Crimson Tide football coach Kalen DeBoer is objectively failing at his job. Hard.
Losing the Tide's first preseason opener since 2001 is a sign of the times. So is his defensive coordinator Kane Wommack's defense ceding 230 yards to the Florida State Seminoles on the ground during a 31-17 loss in Tallahassee on Saturday.
For some reason, the man who has made a career off of overreacting to results, Paul Finebaum, has drawn the line here -- claiming that the reactions to the game are overdone, even if DeBoer really stepped in it by not having his team ready.
“You asked me not to sugarcoat it,” 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.
“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. 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.”
Had Hugh Freeze's Auburn Tigers lost to the Baylor Bears on Friday, there would've been calls for his job. Had Brian Kelly's LSU Tigers lost to the Clemson Tigers on Saturday night, there would've been called for his job.
DeBoer's loss was worse than those two would've been. Alabama was a two-touchdown favorite to win. They lost by two touchdowns instead.
Perhaps Finebaum is just covering for the fact that the Crimson Tide don't have the funds for a $70 million buyout check. After all, Alabama AD Greg Byrne has been adamant that the team needs the donor base to ramp up their efforts.
Either way, pile it on DeBoer. He lowered the "Bama Standard" with his dreadful hires and deserves the scrutiny other coaches in his shoes around the SEC would get.