Paul Finebaum is piling on criticism of Clemson and the entire ACC
The Clemson Tigers and most of the Atlantic Coast Conference are having a rough start to the football season. SEC Network pundit Paul Finebaum has noticed..
Finebaum, who works for ESPN and hosts a daily radio show on the SEC Network, suggested that Clemson’s run of success over the past decade under Dabo Swinney might be coming to an end.
“Dabo’s dynasty is done,” Finebaum said Wednesday on ESPN’s “Get Up” show. “I don’t like anything I see there. … They lost one coach (Jeff Scott) to South Florida and that was a big loss. This is a staff that has always been together but I think it has gotten stale. Yes, recruiting is still good, but will it be elite after what we got through watching? It just doesn’t look like Clemson is part of the cool kids anymore. I think they will pay for it in recruiting and play in a terrible league (ACC) and will pay for it even more.”
Clemson is off to a 2-2 start following the loss at North Carolina State on Saturday. The Tigers have fallen in the rankings, down to No. 25 in the Associated Press Top 25. CBS Sports has the Tigers ranked No. 29 in their list of Top 130 teams in the country.
Former Clemson receiver Amari Rodgers, who is a rookie for the Green Bay Packers, fired back at Finebaum on Twitter.
“Bro been waiting to say this for 10 years,” Rodgers posted.
This wasn’t the first time Finebaum has been outspoken about Clemson’s program this week.
On ESPN Radio’s “Keyshawn JWill & Max” show, he said he thought Clemson might have peaked and their run over the past decade could be over. The Tigers have made it to the playoffs every year since 2015 and won two national championships in that span.
“You have to think it is over for this run,” Finebaum said.
The topic of the Tigers and the ACC came up again Wednesday afternoon on the “Paul Finebaum Show.” A caller made the case that the sport is better when the ACC has a “legitimate contender,” then asked Finebaum how many SEC teams he thought could win the ACC this year.
Finebaum pointed out to the caller that he thought Kentucky, which is off to a 4-0 start, could win the ACC. He also pointed out that Mississippi State, “which is not a great team,” beat N.C. State earlier this year. The Wolfpack then “beat theoretically the best team in the ACC” in Clemson.
Clemson and North Carolina both were expected to contend for a conference title this year and be a playoff contender. No ACC teams are ranked in the AP Top 10 this week. N.C. State is the highest ranked ACC team at No. 23. Wake Forest is No. 24 and Clemson rounds out the poll.
“It gives me no great pleasure to beat up on the ACC. It is a dreadful league right now,” Finebaum said. “If you have to blame someone, I’m blaming North Carolina. They were supposed to be great this year. For Mack Brown to lose two games already is unconscionable. Dabo at least lost a game to Georgia and lost a game on the road to N.C. State, which is always a difficult game.
“Wake Forest is still alive but they won’t be for long. When you have to go down to Wake Forest to come up with an undefeated team in the ACC one month into the season, you’re struggling.”
Swinney reflected Sunday on how the program has had bad times before. In 2009, his first full season as Clemson’s head coach, the Tigers started off the year 2-3 and still played for the ACC championship. Five years later, the team started the season 1-2 before putting together a six-game winning streak for a 10-3 final record.
“We’re 2-2, but the same type of disappointment, the same type of pain. Our best player got hurt that year,” Swinney said in reference to then-quarterback Deshaun Watson. “We’ve got several players hurt this year, but that group responded and this group will respond as well.”
This story was originally published September 29, 2021 at 7:54 PM with the headline "Paul Finebaum is piling on criticism of Clemson and the entire ACC."
