Paul Finebaum rips Kalen DeBoer calls Alabama loss 'inexcusable'

On Saturday, Alabama suffered its third loss of the season, falling in stunning 24-3 fashion to Oklahoma. During an appearance on The Matt Barrie Show on Sunday, ESPN’s Paul Finebaum tore into head coach Kalen DeBoer and the Crimson Tide for their lackluster performance.

“It was 2010 the last time Alabama lost three games. That was after their national championship season,” Finebaum said. “Let me cut to the chase. It was simply inexcusable. And you can blame anyone you want, but you would be smart to start at the very top, because that team did not look prepared. They didn’t look focused. They didn’t look like they had a clue what they were getting into.

“I don’t know how that could be the case because everyone who watches football knew that Brent Venables had an elite defense. They just have no offense because of all the wide receivers being hurt and in chaos at quarterback. And I just don’t understand it.”

Alabama didn’t have any answers for Oklahoma’s defense in the loss, only amassing 234 yards of total offense. Worse, the Crimson Tide committed three turnovers, including a pivotal pick-six in the third quarter.

The loss not only eliminated Alabama’s chances of appearing in the SEC Championship but also put their College Football Playoff hopes in flux.

“That loss was a body blow,” Finebaum said. “I know what my good friend Heather Dinich is saying, that there is a path for Alabama. And maybe there will be, but the real question is why? I don’t understand how Alabama can be considered a legitimate playoff team.

“I realize that there are probably schools in there that aren’t legitimate either. But, I mean, they’ve lost to Vanderbilt, a five-loss team, and now Oklahoma, [another] five-loss team. If you were looking at a chart of the SEC, [Oklahoma is] probably 12 or 13 out of the 16 in the league, and the other loss is at Tennessee.”

With an 8-3 overall record and a 4-3 mark in conference play, Alabama is sixth in the SEC standings. Despite Alabama’s dominant win over Georgia earlier this season, Finebaum isn’t convinced the Crimson Tide deserve a spot in the first 12-team CFP.

“I know they have a win against possibly the SEC champion, but please,” Finebaum said. “If they get in, good for them. I’ll be happy, and everybody will sing Kumbaya. But are they really a playoff team after what we saw on Saturday night? That was just hard to wrap my arms around.

“In the middle of the night, I’m getting texts from old-time Alabama fans who were going, ‘What have we gotten ourselves into?’ Because this is the same Alabama team in many ways — actually, it’s not — it’s a worse Alabama team what we saw against Vanderbilt. I mean, this team was completely clueless.”