Of all the recent openings across college football, especially in the SEC, Paul Finebaum said he was most surprised by the opening at Ole Miss with the firing of Matt Luke.

Finebaum, the SEC Network host, made his regular weekly appearance on the Birmingham-based 94.5 FM radio station WJOX for a segment on “The Roundtable” and said when he visited Oxford, Mississippi recently, he got the impression that the Rebels “genuinely love the guy.”

But that changed with the Elijah Moore dog pee unsportsmanlike conduct penalty at the end of the Egg Bowl, which led to a 15-yard penalty and missed extra point, and ultimately a loss to Mississippi State.

“I think what happened is the incident at the end of the game did him in,” Finebaum said. “I frankly think he missed the moment. He defended the player and when he said, ‘Elijah’s a good kid,’ that wasn’t the right statement to make. He needed to show leadership that we don’t accept this type of behavior. And I also thought a new AD, but it’s pretty obvious. They must have someone in mind, and there are a lot of names out there as you guys know, but that one caught me by surprise.”

It was also a series where Joe Moorhead at Mississippi State entered the game with more pressure to save his job.

“I think the more interesting non-decision was at Mississippi State where Moorhead survives by the exact same incident,” Finebaum said. “I don’t know how many people are happy there.”