Paul Finebaum didn’t sugarcoat Alabama’s 40-35 loss to Vanderbilt in Nashville on Sunday.
“This is the worst loss I’ve ever seen by a quality Alabama team,” the SEC Network analyst told The Matt Barrie Show on Sunday. “I’ve seen bad Alabama teams lose, … but I’ve never seen a great Alabama team lose like this.
“It’s sending shockwaves through the Alabama eco-system now. For all the good we felt a week ago, the questions that linger in the crevices of Alabama fans’ minds are starting to pop up.”
Finebaum blames one person beyond all others.
“Nick Saban would have never lost a game like that,” Finebaum said during Sunday morning’s “SportsCenter.” “He did lose his first year to Louisiana-Monroe, but he had a 6-7 team he had inherited. … He had a .500 team that year.
“But you know something? I’m going to blame this game on Nick Saban. … Do you remember what Nick Saban said two weeks ago? He said the only place you play in the SEC that’s not hard is Vanderbilt. That went up on the bulletin board. They played it all week.”
Sedrick Alexander ran for two touchdowns, Randon Fontenette scored on a pick-six and Diego Pavia outplayed Heisman Trophy candidate Jalen Milroe as Vanderbilt stunned Alabama for the Commodores’ first win over the nation’s top-ranked team.
Vanderbilt came into Saturday having lost all 60 games against AP top-five teams. The Commodores hadn’t beaten Alabama on the field in 40 years. They snapped a 23-game skid giving coach Clark Lea his alma mater’s biggest win ever.
