Paul Finebaum evaluates the growing lack of faith in Jimbo Fisher at Texas A&M

Paul Finebaum is pretty much unsure of what Jimbo Fisher’s future looks like at Texas A&M following this seven game showing in 2023.

In fact, it could be chalked up to a growing lack of faith. Now at 4-3 on the season after a loss to Tennessee, things look bleak once again.

Could Fisher be on the hot seat despite his huge contract? Will it ever get better?

“Yeah, that game really felt like a stepping off point,” Finebaum said on McElroy and Cubelic. “And what surprised me being around Aggies, Friday and Saturday in Knoxville, was their lack of faith in Jimbo Fisher. In the past, even three or four weeks ago when we were out doing College Station, there were fans who would push back who felt really good but that has been a big drop. 

“I mean these last two weeks have been punishing and really problematic for Jimbo Fisher because there’s nowhere to go. This season seems like it’s over. Road games remaining at Oxford and LSU and a little bit in between and everything that the season was all about is now gone. I still don’t hear anyone and in the circles that matter have the same conversation that we’re having here and the obvious is still $77 million, but in many ways, the respect that Jimbo Fisher had even going into the season has been scraped away and I think he has a very uncertain path ahead.”

Jimbo Fisher losing grip on faithful fans of Texas A&M?

The injury to Conner Weigman definitely affected the offense. It always hurts to lose a starting quarterback. But Finebaum didn’t want to hear that excuse.

“I don’t think you can use Conner Weigman going out because I mean, there are former Aggie quarterbacks flying all over the country right now and then that’s just part of college football,” Finebaum said. “And there was a high degree of confidence three weeks ago how much difference was there between Weigman and Max Johnson and turned out to be quite a bit …

“If you’re going to just dig deep and make this change, there has to be a clear and convincing answer in who will be next and I don’t think there is. And I think that makes it more difficult.”

Fisher had this team primed to make a bit of a run this season. But once again, the Aggies fell short.

The College Football Playoff is off the table and the SEC title is practically out of reach. Are fans still believing in Fisher?

“There’s just this faith that deep down that maybe it can be turned around and I think a lot of people thought this was a season, it wasn’t necessarily a championship run but it may be a serious run,” Finebaum said. “And now that that has been taken off the board it will be extremely interesting to watch and I think as dangerous as Saturday was, the game two weeks from now in Oxford becomes that much more important to get a snapshot of whether there is still fight in this team or not. 

“And what I heard going into this game Saturday … it wasn’t that A&M lost the game in College Station, it was that Alabama stepped up …  I haven’t talked to one of my colleagues yet that I was sitting with Saturday morning, but I just don’t know how you walk out of Knoxville feeling good about anything.”