{"id":80683,"date":"2025-09-30T09:43:27","date_gmt":"2025-09-30T13:43:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/?p=80683"},"modified":"2025-09-30T10:36:30","modified_gmt":"2025-09-30T14:36:30","slug":"80683-espn-host-to-consider-us-senate-seat","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/2025\/09\/30\/80683-espn-host-to-consider-us-senate-seat\/","title":{"rendered":"ESPN Host to Consider US Senate Seat"},"content":{"rendered":"<div dir=\"ltr\">\n<div>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">ESPN SEC Network host Paul Finebaum revealed to Clay Travis of OutKick that he is considering a run for the United States Senate in Alabama, aiming to fill the seat vacated by former Auburn Tigers football coach Tommy Tuberville, who is running for governor.<\/p>\n<h2 dir=\"ltr\">ESPN Host to Consider US Senate Seat<\/h2>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">Finebaum confirmed he is a registered Republican and voted for Donald Trump in 2024, making him the only ESPN employee to publicly declare support for President Donald Trump in the most recent election.<\/p>\n<h3 dir=\"ltr\">Decision Pending<\/h3>\n<p><a id=\"cqMGt4leRUxmvKsEOOXDUQ\" class=\"gie-single\" style=\"color: #a7a7a7; text-decoration: none; font-weight: normal !important; border: none; display: inline-block;\" href=\"http:\/\/www.gettyimages.com\/detail\/1245981980\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Embed from Getty Images<\/a><script>window.gie=window.gie||function(c){(gie.q=gie.q||[]).push(c)};gie(function(){gie.widgets.load({id:'cqMGt4leRUxmvKsEOOXDUQ',sig:'MJedTUUsVoJLeeF4j9GTO6dCsGJmIMkuAfeEAZJDo4Y=',w:'594px',h:'396px',items:'1245981980',caption: true ,tld:'com',is360: false })});<\/script><script src='\/\/embed-cdn.gettyimages.com\/widgets.js' charset='utf-8' async><\/script><\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">In his interview with Travis, Finebaum cited the assassination of Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk as a pivotal moment that prompted him to reassess his priorities. \u201cI spent four hours numb, talking about things that didn\u2019t matter to me,\u201d he said. \u201cIt kept building throughout that weekend. I felt very empty doing what I was doing that day.\u201d<\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">At first glance, the idea of a sports talk radio host becoming a U.S. senator may seem far-fetched, but Finebaum\u2019s candidacy has serious potential. His name recognition in Alabama is unmatched, built over 35 years as a prominent voice synonymous with the Southeastern Conference\u2019s passionate football culture.<\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">Finebaum\u2019s popularity in the state arguably surpasses that of Tuberville, who won both the 2020 Republican primary and general election with over 60% of the vote in each. The \u201cTrump effect\u201d could also play a significant role.<\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">We will be talking more about the legitimacy of Finebaum seeking political office on the newest <a href=\"http:\/\/www.lastwordonsports.com\/podcasts\" target=\"_blank\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=http:\/\/www.lastwordonsports.com\/podcasts&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1759278158563000&amp;usg=AOvVaw1h0qddgIJ-cLHAmp8q8YcP\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">\u201cLast Word on Sports Media\u201d Podcast<\/a> this week on this feed:<\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">\n<p><iframe style=\"width: 100%; max-width: 660px; overflow: hidden; border-radius: 10px;\" src=\"https:\/\/embed.podcasts.apple.com\/us\/podcast\/nfl-today-50th-anniversary-greg-olsen-unhappy-with\/id1549396526?i=1000728156214\" height=\"175\" frameborder=\"0\" sandbox=\"allow-forms allow-popups allow-same-origin allow-scripts allow-storage-access-by-user-activation allow-top-navigation-by-user-activation\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>In Alabama, a Trump endorsement virtually guarantees a candidate\u2019s success in a statewide election. Finebaum told OutKick that if Trump personally urged him to run, he would not refuse. \u201cIt\u2019s impossible to tell him no,\u201d Finebaum said. \u201cThere\u2019s no way I could. I would tell him yes.\u201d<\/p>\n<h3 dir=\"ltr\">Timing<\/h3>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">With Trump\u2019s backing, Finebaum would be well-positioned to win the race. While the notion of a college football commentator representing Alabama in the Senate may sound unconventional, Finebaum\u2019s widespread recognition and potential high-profile endorsements make it a realistic possibility. It is also believed that Bruce Pearl, who recently announced his retirement as basketball coach at Auburn, is considering a run for the seat.<\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">Finebaum said he will decide whether to enter the race within the next 30 to 45 days. The Alabama Republican Party\u2019s qualifying period runs from January 5 to January 23, 2026, with the primary election scheduled for May 19, 2026.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div>Main Image: Brett Davis-Imagn Images<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div dir=\"ltr\"><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>ESPN SEC Network host Paul Finebaum revealed to Clay Travis of OutKick that he is considering a run for the United States Senate in Alabama, aiming to fill the seat vacated by former Auburn Tigers football coach Tommy Tuberville, who is running for governor. ESPN Host to Consider US Senate Seat Finebaum confirmed he is [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1675,"featured_media":80686,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[35709,17],"tags":[3739],"class_list":["post-80683","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-media","category-news","tag-paul-finebaum"],"modified_by":"Tony Siracusa, CFB Managing Editor","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/80683","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1675"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=80683"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/80683\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":80695,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/80683\/revisions\/80695"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/80686"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=80683"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=80683"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=80683"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}