There will be an open U.S. Senate seat up for grabs in Alabama in next year's elections, and speculation is running wild about who may step up to fill that vacant spot, including some seemingly unlikely potential candidates who are not seasoned politicians.

One of those is longtime ESPN and SEC Network analyst Paul Finebaum, who recently revealed that he is giving serious thought to leaving behind the college sports world to enter the political arena in his home state of Alabama, according to NewsNation.

In a stunning interview, Finebaum publicly shared his heretofore unknown ideological leanings, how he voted in the last election, and the shocking incident that motivated him to reflect on his chosen career path and consider the shift into elected politics.

Sen. Tuberville not seeking re-election

In May, Fox News reported that Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-AL) announced that he would not seek re-election to the Senate in 2026, but instead would launch a gubernatorial campaign to replace the outgoing and term-limited Republican Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey.

Tuberville, a staunch ally of President Donald Trump, easily won election to the Senate in 2020 -- and will undoubtedly be the frontrunner for the governorship -- in part because of Trump's endorsement but also because of his immense popularity in the state, given the decade he spent as the successful head coach of Auburn University's football team.

That announcement from the coach-turned-senator has prompted several politicians and non-political figures alike to contemplate launching a campaign for Tuberville's Senate seat, including, according to NewsNation, Auburn basketball coach Bruce Pearl -- though he reportedly opted against it -- and former NFL star and Alabama University quarterback A.J. McCarron, who led the school to consecutive national championships in 2011 and 2012.

Deeply affected by the Charlie Kirk assassination

As revealed in a recent exclusive interview with Outkick's Clay Travis, ESPN and SEC Network TV and radio analyst Paul Finebaum is also strongly considering a Senate run, which was sparked by the horrific assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk during an event on a college campus in Utah earlier this month.

"I spent four hours numb, talking about things that didn't matter to me. And it kept building throughout that weekend," Finebaum recalled of the day Kirk was murdered. "I felt very empty doing what I was doing that day."

That incident had a huge impact on him, even though he'd never met Kirk, and he said, "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."

"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," Finebaum continued. "I gave some thought to it as the weekend [after Kirk's murder] unfolded and got a little bit more interested."

A registered Republican and Trump supporter

According to Outkick, Finebaum's career as a sports analyst began as a columnist in Birmingham before he became a radio host, which led to the gig with ESPN that prompted his move in 2013 to Charlotte, North Carolina -- the location of the SEC Network's headquarters -- until he and his wife moved back to Alabama earlier 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 of his beloved home state. "I've spoken to people from Alabama for 35 years, and I feel there is a connection that is hard to explain."

In the interview, Finebaum also revealed that he is a registered Republican who voted for President Trump -- two pieces of information he's kept secret in large part because of ESPN's policies and known partisan bias -- and that, if asked by Trump to run for office, it would be "Impossible to tell him no. There's no way I could. I would tell him yes."

He acknowledged that the deadline to qualify for the ballot as a Senate candidate is in January, which is "ideal" as it comes after the end of the college football season, though Finebaum stated, "I would like to make this decision fairly soon, in the next 30 to 45 days."