Finebaum blames Nick Saban for Alabama's loss to Vandy, calling it 'the worst loss I've ever seen'

Paul Finebaum didn't sugarcoat Alabama's 40-35 loss to Vanderbilt on Sunday in Nashville.

“This is the worst loss I’ve ever seen from a top-tier 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 that.

“It’s now sending shockwaves through the Alabama ecosystem. Despite all the good we felt a week ago, the questions that swirl in the depths of Alabama fans' minds are beginning to emerge.”

Finebaum blames one person more than anyone else.

“Nick Saban would never have lost a game like that,” Finebaum said during Sunday morning’s “SportsCenter.” “He may have lost to Louisiana-Monroe his freshman year, but he inherited a 6-7 team. … He had a .500 team that year.

“But do you know something? I'm going to blame Nick Saban for this game. … Remember what Nick Saban said two weeks ago? He said the only place to play in the SEC that isn't hard is Vanderbilt. This went on the bulletin board. They played it all week.”

Sedrick Alexander ran for two touchdowns, Randon Fontenette scored with a pick-six and Diego Pavia outdueled Heisman Trophy candidate Jalen Milroe as Vanderbilt stunned Alabama and gave the Commodores their first victory over the top-ranked team in the country.

Vanderbilt entered Saturday having lost all 60 games to the top five teams in the AP. The Commodores hadn't beaten Alabama on the field in 40 years. They pulled off a 23-game losing streak and gave coach Clark Lea the most wins ever at his alma mater.

Alabama had just moved to the top of the AP Top 25 after an emotional win over Georgia.

Mark Heim is a reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter @Mark_Heim. He can be heard daily from 6 a.m. to 9 a.m. on “The Opening Kickoff” on WNSP-FM 105.5 FM in Mobile or on the free Sound of Mobile app.