Ken Ruinard / staff, The Greenville News via Imagn Content Services, LLC

Paul Finebaum Names Major College Football Coach Who Needs to Make the Playoff in 2025

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Jaron Spor | Last updated Jul 3, 2025 8:00 PM ET

Replacing a legendary head coach at a school is a significant challenge. The pressure is immense, and when the season doesn't go as expected, that pressure only increases.

This is the situation for Kalen DeBoer, the head coach of the Alabama Crimson Tide, who took over after Nick Saban retired following the 2023 season. Saban had an impressive 17-year tenure in Tuscaloosa, during which he won six national championships.

DeBoer’s era has gotten off to a rocky start, as the Crimson Tide finished the season with a 9-4 record, marking the worst performance since Saban’s first season in 2007. On "The Paul Finebaum Show," the SEC Network analyst discussed the mounting pressure on DeBoer as he heads into the 2025 season.

"I think he's done a lot of the right things," Finebaum said. "I will forgive what happened last year if he can get this program back on track this year, which I think he can, and move to the playoffs. But if he doesn't make the playoffs this year, we are going to have a serious conversation."

Alabama could face a significant challenge if the Crimson Tide do not have a successful season and decide to part ways with DeBoer. He has one of college football's largest buyouts, which is set to be $70 million in 2025. This amount ranks as the third-highest in the sport, following only Lincoln Riley of the USC Trojans and Kirby Smart of the Georgia Bulldogs.

For context, the highest buyout ever paid to a fired coach was to Jimbo Fisher, the former head coach of the Texas A&M Aggies, whose buyout was $77.5 million. In DeBoer's case, if he were to be dismissed "without cause," he would receive 90% of his remaining contract in monthly installments until the end of that contract term.

Finebaum has previously stated that he expects Alabama to bounce back in 2025. He believes the Crimson Tide will win nine or more games next season and make the College Football Playoff, which would ease the pressure on DeBoer.

Alabama's season kicks off with a major road game against the Florida State Seminoles at 3:30 p.m. ET on Aug. 30.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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