.jpg)
2 hours ago
2
ESPN analyst Paul Finebaum delivered one of his bleakest evaluations yet of the SEC’s place atop college football, warning the league faces a “nuclear winter” unless Ole Miss wins the national championship.
On Friday's edition of Get Up, Finebaum acknowledged how isolated the league’s traditional talking points have become amid mounting postseason losses.
“It’s getting very lonely up on this hill defending the SEC,” Finebaum said. “Unless Ole Miss pulls this off, it is going to be a nuclear winter for SEC fans.”
"A bunch of people watching this morning have been through breakups ... Not many people win the lottery and get a job promotion the next day. ... That's kind of how Ole Miss fans have to feel this morning." 😅
—@JoshPateCFB on Ole Miss advancing to the CFP semifinals pic.twitter.com/8SHI2IQ0Ns
Finebaum argued that the expanded College Football Playoff has stripped away many of the league’s familiar excuses, calling the results unavoidable. The Southeastern Conference finished the bowl season 4-8 overall and 1-6 against nonconference Power Four opponents, the worst combined mark among the major conferences.
Two of those wins came in conference matchups, with Alabama defeating Oklahoma and Ole Miss eliminating Georgia in the Sugar Bowl.
Ole Miss is now the SEC’s lone remaining CFP representative and will face Miami Hurricanes in the Fiesta Bowl, with a trip to the national championship game at stake.
Finebaum said the Rebels are carrying more than their own title hopes.
“It may be deeper,” he said of the SEC, “but it’s not playing for national championships like it used to.”
The SEC’s coaching-hire tendencies compared with the Big Ten Conference might be the difference here. Some insular staffing has left the league vulnerable as postseason results continue to be bad.
More college football news:
- Oregon's Dan Lanning rips College Football Playoff, calls for major changes
- Deion Sanders buyout, contract details as Colorado Buffaloes coach
- Arch Manning's best performance pushes Texas to Citrus Bowl win over Michigan
- ESPN's grade for LSU hiring Lane Kiffin will make Ole Miss fans even more mad
- Dabo Swinney fires Clemson coaches immediately after loss to Penn State
- Ohio State's Ryan Day faces backlash after Cotton Bowl
English (US)