Popular ESPN host Paul Finebaum said he may run for the U.S. Senate after Charlie Kirk’s assassination forced him to reconsider his priorities.
Finebaum, a college football analyst and SEC Network host, said Kirk’s Sept. 10 murder was “an awakening” that began soon after he heard of the Turning Point USA CEO’s killing.
“I spent four hours numb talking about things that didn’t matter to me. And it kept building throughout that weekend,” Finebaum told OutKick’s Clay Travis. “I felt very empty doing what I was doing that day.
“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.”
So much so that some people asked Finebaum whether he would consider running for public office.
“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,” said Finebaum, a Republican who voted for President Donald Trump.
“I gave some thought to it as the weekend [after Kirk’s killing] unfolded and got a little bit more interested.”
With Finebaum having spent many years as a reporter, columnist, and sports talk radio host in and around Birmingham, Alabama, and with Sen. Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala., running for governor, Travis asked the sportscaster whether he was eyeing the former Auburn football coach’s seat.
Former Auburn basketball coach Bruce Pearl, who was rumored to be interested in Tuberville’s seat, said recently he won’t run for the Senate, Alabama Political Reporter reported last week.
“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.”
Finebaum said he’ll make a decision in the next few months about whether to run.
“I’ve been made aware that the qualifying deadline is in January,” he said. “That’s ideal. I’d love to get to the end of the [football] season. I don’t know if that’s realistic. I would like to make this decision fairly soon, in the next 30 to 45 days.”
Travis asked Finebaum if Trump called to say, “‘Paul, you’re my guy.’ Can you tell him no?”
“Impossible to tell him no. There’s no way I could. I would tell him yes,” Finebaum said.
Although Finebaum and his wife in 2013 moved to Charlotte, North Carolina, the location of SEC Network’s headquarters, the couple moved back to the Yellowhammer State this year.
“Alabama has always been the place I’ve felt the most welcome, that I’ve cared the most about the people,” he said. “I’ve spoken to people from Alabama for 35 years, and I feel there is a connection that is hard to explain.”
© 2025 Newsmax. All rights reserved.
