Paul Finebaum Says He's Considering Leaving ESPN To Run for Alabama's Vacant Senate Seat

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Outkick — SEC Network host and analyst Paul Finebaum says he is "considering" leaving ESPN to run for the U.S. Senate. And he would run on the republican ticket.

In an exclusive interview with OutKick's Clay Travis, Finebaum said the Charlie Kirk assassination made him rethink his priorities. The 70-year-old radio and TV host said he struggled to do his show shortly after hearing about Kirk's death.

While Finebaum said he didn't know Kirk personally, the murder had a massive impact on him.

"It's hard to describe, not being involved in politics, how that affected me and affected tens of millions of people all over this country. And it was an awakening," he said.

Then came a couple of conversations that piqued Finebaum's interest in something he had never previously considered.

"One or two people in Washington had reached out to me about whether I would be interested in politics, something I never thought about before. Something I didn't really think possible," he said. "I gave some thought to it as the [after Kirk's murder] weekend unfolded and got a little bit more interested."

As far as his potential path to public office, Travis noted that Tommy Tuberville, one of Alabama's senators, is running for governor of the state. So, his seat is likely to be open for someone to take. Finebaum was reluctant, at first, to even consider the possibility because former Auburn basketball coach Bruce Pearl had expressed interest in the seat.

But once Pearl said that wasn't his plan, Finebaum changed his perspective.

"I was… hesitant at first because I was very aware of Bruce’s interest and [I'm a] huge fan of Bruce… I didn’t take it too seriously," Finebaum said. "I ended up talking to someone… who made it clear that there was a desire for me to be involved. And this person… was compelling and compassionate in the approach to me, and I started thinking about this."

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