Paul Finebaum praises Nick Saban for running up the score on Michigan in Citrus Bowl
After trailing Michigan 16-14 at halftime of Wednesday’s Citrus Bowl, Alabama turned it on in the second half, scoring 21 unanswered points, including 14 in the fourth quarter.
That last touchdown made the final score 35-16, and it angered certain Michigan defenders.
However, during an appearance with Mark Heim and Lee Shirvanian on “The Opening Kickoff” on WNSP-FM 105.5 on Thursday, SEC Network host Paul Finebaum called the win a total domination by the Tide (via AL.com):
“People kept texting me asking me what are you going to say after Alabama completely destroyed Michigan and I don’t have anything else to say,” Finebaum said. “I genuinely feel sorry for Jim Harbaugh.
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“I was always told growing up don’t pick on people who aren’t your size, and right now Jim Harbaugh is a very small man in college football. Not that I’m a bigger or better man. I’m just not going to pick on him.”
Finebaum also said he thinks most of America was happy that Nick Saban put Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh in his place:
“I’ve never heard Nick Saban say anything about another coach nor have I ever seen intentionally run up the score on anyone until yesterday,” Finebaum said. “We all know that could’ve easily ended before it did. I think Saban was showing some of the frustration of the season and showing some of the past frustration of Jim Harbaugh calling him a cheater.
“He decided, you know what? My foot is on his throat. I’m just going to kick him one more time. I felt like the college-football world cheered Saban yesterday in doing that. I know I did. Leave it to Nick Saban in a game against a middle-of-the-pack Big Ten team with an additional score at the end to make a statement to end a season with most Alabama fans feeling good about themselves.”
Do you agree with Finebaum’s take on Alabama’s final score?
I wouldn’t even consider pushing it to 3 scores to be running up the score.
Thank you.
Anyone who really knows Saban knows that he is exactly and calculated (it’s one of his biggest flaws). He slightly “ran up the score” as a preemptive warning shot to Partridge that if you go to Ole Miss I’m gonna stick it to you.
What stupidity! Running up the score on a bunch of college players to get at the coach. I couldn’t give a sh$t what the coach said, but saban going for points when it wasn’t necessary, makes the man look small. I’ll add that finebaum is a true idiot
52-14 in the 2011 Gator Bowl…don’t throw a rock for a 19 point separation, when our former HC really stuck it too Mich with a 38 point margin of victory.
renorocketsfan, how about Shea Patterson going for a TD in the end zone down 19 with one second on the clock. In the end he threw a pick. Don’t you think that was Harbaugh trying to get back at Saban for the late TD? Harbaugh actually called a time out with one second left.
We all know the bulldogs don’t have the ability to run the score up on Akron. Bitter fans of Sh-tty teams always take exception with everything.
reno…At least can score points & win games ! The coaching situation at MSU is so muddled that even your no * star recruits are wavering now.
Ooops…”At least the Tide can score points & win games”.
Finebaum is a clown and has a man crush on Saban. No one respects or takes the skinny little man Finebaum seriously. Michigan kicked Bama’s a$$ in the first half, but Saban made 2nd half adjustments like incredible coaches do. So glad we don’t have to hear Finebaum for another 7 months until football season starts.
It’s a four quarter game, so I don’t know why the halftime score means anything. We would have been up 14-13 going into half if not for an amazing field goal by Michigan, and that was against our 2nd and 3rd string defense.
Of course it was, that’s the only way anyone scores against bama, when their 3rd string defense is out there!
Oh , you must I’m picking sides. I think any coach that deliberately adds points make themselves look small
MSU does not have to worry about adding points since that comes at a premium.
How did Missouri do in their bowl game?
I concur wholeheartedly. Harbaugh is one of the more unlikable head coaches in the country, a whiner, and the personification of petulant mediocrity. His calling Saban a cheater came as no surprise to me because he’s frustrated he cannot compete head-to-head with the best, and that’s what “small” men do when they’re exposed as being either incompetent or simply iñadequate. Yes, Saban was probably tasting a little revenge, but he was also sending a signal to any other coach who might be tempted to assail his professional reputation. Just hope OSU keeps making Jim’s life in the Big 10 a “hot mess” until the Michigan AD comes to his senses and rids the school of his coaching charlatan.
Isn’t it more of a “slap in the face” when you just kneel that close to the goal? Isn’t that saying “yeah – we could score, but we feel sorry for you”?? Michigan has had a “storied” past – probably due to not playing many SEC teams! I think even my Gamecocks are 2-1 against them!
For such a weird, super awkward and very unathletic person he runs his mouth like Mike Tyson. It would be funny to see him and Harbaugh have an old man fight. My $ is on JH KO in the 1st
I used to actually watch his show but came to conclusion that he is Sabans slave. His sole purpose is to promote Saban. In his dream world Saban would be president and he would be Press Secretary.
If this is the case, explain why he downed Saban after the auburn game and said BAMA football and Saban were on the decline.
“Running up the Score”…not hardly. I remember something that Steve Spurrier said, when he was at Florida(when asked about running up the score). he said something like this…We practice to score touchdowns, you want me to tell these players NOT TO SCORE ? And the Head Ball Coach was right…you play the game to win.
Amen. This entire argument is baseless. If Michigan didn’t want Alabama to score, well, then tackle the ballcarrier. And get off Finebaum’s back. He’s not Saban’s press agent, and I’ve heard him examine Saban quite critically on occasion. The problem here is that virtually everyone else in the SEC other than LSU — both their organizations and their fans– are simply envious of Saban and what he’s built at Alabama. He puts in the work, he recruits at the top level every year, and he produces — EXACTLY what he was hired to do. He’s not a miracle worker, but he is professional in the way he goes about his business. So “get over it” when he “schools” cretins and pretenders like Harbaugh by reminding him of the difference between fantasy and reality.
bamajama..I wholeheartedly agree…Great Post ! It seems that the Bama-haters are like the Duke-basketball-haters…the fact is that both programs win a lot of games period…envy, nothing else.
Thanks, Afan. It’s simply difficult to believe adults could make some of the comments we see here. Those of us who can think beyond our adolescent animus, it seems to be, are obligated to raise the level of the discussion. Silly me.
Not too mention the backing of the boosters that spare no expense to get him what ever he needs regardless of the cost.
That same philosophy has now been adopted by Georgia and Clemson. Not sure if LSU has taken that step quite yet.
yeah it does help when your boosters have old money. Saban was getting it done before the old money rolled in, so he give him all due credit. He turned winning into no salary cap much like Clemson.
Agree. Get over it everybody. Nobody cares about your poor players’ feelings. Fragile little football players..
I just wish he had went for two. Once they asked Woody Hayes why he went for two at the end of a Michigan game and Hayes said “Because I couldn’t go for three”.
Disagree 100%…… running up the score with that little time left would be trick plays and passing plays. All the Saban did was run it up the defense’s gut. He telegraphed…. “here we come, y’all stop us” ♂️
The other option, (take a knee) ……….. Saban don’t do that
At the end of the Tennessee game, Saban was in a similar situation. The game was in hand and they had the ball on the 5 yard line. Handoffs up the gut, with no intention of scoring. Difference was, Bama had a lot of backups in that game. Nothing about the Michigan game was running up the score.
Finebaum called Michigan a “middle of the road Big 10 school.” I think that comment deserves more scrutiny. With the Big 10, there is Ohio St and everyone else. Is he saying Michigan has fallen beneath Penn St and Wisconsin? Are they down in the 3rd tier with Purdue and Indiana?
Penn State fans and Wisconsin fans have reason to be optimistic. Michigan fans don’t.
There was no running up the score. Saban gave all the Seniors in this game every opportunity to add value to their draft status. The last score was a reward to Najee Harris for his efforts and determination to run the ball down the field and help the team get into a position to score. I am glad they called his number to let him end his season with a well earned touch down.
It might have had a little to do with Harbaugh, but I’m going with reward for the players. Najee ran the ball downfield, kept the clock running. He deserved it. It’s not like they were running trick plays. Hearing coach Saban speak after the game about the players who decided the play and their loyalty to the program and their brothers on the field that’s reason enough right there to give those boys one more touchdown. I live in Big 10 country, and no one is crying about Michigan getting scored on in the final seconds of the game.
It was douchey but Saban is douchey so it’s par for the course, against JH who’s even more douchey I’m ok with it living here in Michigan they are all PO’ed. I’m having fun with it.
Paul finebaum is the Jerry Springer of college football. Only thing he knows how to do is pit fans of one team against another.
I often wonder if he got the SEC gig because the corporate giants at ABC thought it would be funny to poke fun at the southerners that take this clown seriously.
Its embarrassing that he is the SEC spokesman. No class at all.
Finebaum is a massive douche and narcissist who chooses to ignore fact in favor of his own predetermined perspective. I don’t know if Saban cheats or not (and am not saying he does) but I think it’s pretty narrow minded and frankly just contrary to reality to pretend that the transgressions of the blue blood programs aren’t often and repeatedly overlooked by the NCAA. Mizzou gets a bowl ban for the same infraction UNC committed on a much larger scale but the NCAA turns a blind eye based on some arbitrary rationalization they came up with to fit the specific situation?
Screw Harbaugh. Way to go Bama!
Do you agree with Finebaum’s take on Alabama’s final score? ABSOLUTELY
Funny how Finebaum chastises Harbaugh for calling someone a cheater. He’s such a Bama fanboy he must have forgotten that he himself called Harbaugh a cheater long before Harbaugh made any accusations. Guy is a complete asshat.