Paul Finebaum Names 3 Coaches Under 'Most Pressure' In NCAA Tournament
03/18/2025 12:20 PM
The 2025 NCAA Tournament gets underway on Tuesday with two first-four games.
St. Francis PA and Alabama State will play one another at 6:40 p.m. ET before North Carolina plays San Diego State in the second game at 9:10 p.m. ET. Both games will be in Dayton, Ohio.
There will be two more first-four games on Wednesday before the first round of the NCAA Tournament starts on Thursday.
Paul Finebaum is a big SEC guy and knows how great the conference was during the regular season. 14 SEC teams made the NCAA Tournament but he thinks three SEC coaches are under some pressure going into the tournament.
He thinks Auburn head coach Bruce Pearl, Alabama head coach Nate Oats, and Florida head coach Todd Golden all have some sort of pressure on them heading into the tournament.
"I think the highest pressure is on Bruce Pearl for a lot of reasons," Finebaum said on Mcelroy and Cubelic In the Morning (first transcribed by On3). "Been number one most of the year, you know, he had arguably the best team as, as the season developed."
"I think Alabama is in a little bit of a different. I mean, maybe a month ago, I think the expectations were probably higher," Finebaum said about Alabama.
"Then Todd Golden really does have pressure because they look like the best team in the country right now," Finebaum said about Florida.
Auburn is the No. 1 overall seed in the NCAA Tournament and has been one of the best teams in the country this season. Even though Auburn didn't win the SEC Championship, it will still be a very tough out in the tournament.
Alabama is a No. 2 seed in the NCAA Tournament and will try to go on another deep run after getting to the Final Four last season.
Florida is another No. 1 seed and just won the SEC Tournament. The Gators have been one of the hottest teams in the country since January and are trying to carry that momentum into the 2025 NCAA Tournament.
We'll see if one of these three teams takes home this year's national title.
Related: ESPN's Computer Model Finalizes Its National Title Pick
