Paul Finebaum’s Friday morning started with a small airport disaster and ended with a very public shot at Lane Kiffin.
Before he ever got on ESPN’s “Get Up,” Finebaum was trying to make the segment work from the Birmingham airport when the technology gave him trouble. With no tech help nearby, he got an assist from an unexpected source: Brett Carlisle, the 28-year-old lead singer for Great White.
Finebaum said Carlisle was the one who got him set up for the appearance.
“Mostly, I felt like a fool not knowing who he was,” Finebaum told this reporter Friday. “He was so helpful. Without him, I wouldn’t have been able to get on talk to (LSU coach Lane) Kiffin at a critical juncture.
“Like Bill Walton used to follow the Grateful Dead, I may spend the offseason following the Great White around the world as a groupie.”
Carlisle later shared the encounter on Facebook, saying he had helped a man with his phone at the airport and only realized afterward that it was for a live ESPN hit.
“I helped this guy out with his phone this morning at the airport,” he posted on Facebook. “Turns out it was because he was going live on ESPN!
Super cool. And yes!
Paul Finebaum likes a lot of good music, too.”
Once the connection held, Finebaum wasted no time turning to Kiffin.
“I cannot believe that Lane Kiffin will put his entire career on the line by spitting in the face of the SEC.” @finebaum sounds off 👀 pic.twitter.com/BhoWrOo9d8
- Get Up (@GetUpESPN) September 4, 2026
“I just cannot believe that Lane Kiffin will put his entire career on the line by spitting in the face of the SEC and, in particular, Greg Sankey,” Finebaum said.
He went a step further, suggesting there was more going on beneath the surface.
“I believe there is, as crazy as this sounds, a deep personal connection that Kiffin feels, like he owes Sankey something,” Finebaum added.
Finebaum also made his prediction clear: Kiffin would eventually give in.
“I believe when, at the end of this day, Kiffin will back down,” Finebaum explained. “Now, it may be nuanced.
I don’t believe they’re going to play, as far as the roster. I know we’re talking about technicalities.
But I don’t believe that that university will put itself in this type of harm’s way.”
In Other News...
Ryan Coleman-Williams Enters A Defining Alabama Season With One New Focus
Ryan Coleman-Williams heads into his junior season at Alabama with a different voice guiding the wide receivers, and that matters for a player trying to keep building on a productive year. Derrick Nix takes over the group this fall, giving Coleman-Williams a fresh set of eyes as he prepares for an important stretch in Tuscaloosa after putting up 689 receiving yards and four touchdowns on 49 catches last season.
For Coleman-Williams, the timing adds weight to every rep. He is eligible to enter the NFL Draft after this season, and he has already talked with Nix about the coaching changes and the areas he wants to sharpen. With a new receiver coach in place and a pro decision looming, Alabama will be watching closely to see how he handles a season that could define the next step in his career. [Read more 🡒]
Alabama Enters Season With Its Toughness Under Fire
A familiar preseason spotlight has landed on Alabama again, and this one is less about star power than about edge. With Kalen DeBoer entering the season under pressure to get the Tide moving in the right direction, the outside conversation has already started to circle around how this team looks when the competition tightens and the margins shrink.
The schedule will do plenty to shape that answer, with difficult road trips and key home dates against SEC opponents that should reveal plenty about where Alabama stands. For a program that measures itself by how it handles physical football, the question hanging over this season is whether the Tide can turn that scrutiny into something sharper on the field. [Read more 🡒]
LSU Just Gained A Roster Opening Alabama Fans Need To Watch
A federal ruling has opened the door for a wave of roster movement across the SEC, and LSU appears positioned to be one of the first programs to test it. Judge William Jorden granted an injunction making more than 40 athletes eligible for NCAA and SEC competition, a group that includes former NFL players Zxavian Harris and DaeQuan Wright, creating an immediate wrinkle for teams in the league that have spent the offseason building with the old rules in mind.
For Alabama, the significance goes beyond LSU simply gaining more bodies. Any added depth in Baton Rouge changes the competitive picture, and it comes at a time when the SEC is already preparing to push back hard. The league plans to appeal the ruling and has filed a separate lawsuit aimed at enforcing new punishments against teams that add former professional players, leaving the issue far from settled as roster decisions begin to play out. [Read more 🡒]