Paul Finebaum Eats Crow On Opinion Of South Carolina Football

Sports radio show host Paul Finebaum has never been known to hold his tongue, particularly when it comes to college football teams not named Alabama. His dramatic takes and divisive opinions can often cause an uproar throughout the sports world, but he’s still widely considered one of the better national personalities in the SEC.

Of course, sometimes those hot takes don’t ring true. That can be said of his opinion of Shane Beamer and the South Carolina football team in 2021.

Finebaum came to town for the Kentucky game where he and the SEC Network hosted their pregame morning show on the Horseshoe. At the time, South Carolina had jumped out to a 2-1 start and were welcoming in a Wildcats team that had yet to lose.

With a new coaching staff pumping life into the program, Gamecock fans were amped and eager to cheer on their squad as they looked to secure their first SEC win under coach Beamer.

Unfortunately, South Carolina dropped a 16-10 matchup and had major struggles on offense. It was the start of a stretch where the Gamecocks would go 2-3 with three straight conference losses.

When the team got to the midway point of the year, it was 4-3 and fresh off a one-point win over Vanderbilt. Finebaum was not impressed with how the Gamecocks looked under their new leadership.

Here’s what he had to say about the program at that point.

"“I was there four weeks ago and I could not believe it. They thought they were gonna win every (game)… I think he had a game plan, and then it got blown up.”"

He then spoke directly to coach Beamer’s impact (or lack thereof) as a first-year coach. Check it out below.

"“There’s no way to know whether he has worked. I mean, he’s won a couple of games. He beat Vanderbilt at the last second, he beat East Carolina at the last second, and somebody else, which I don’t remember.”"

It’s safe to say that he was far from impressed with the Gamecocks’ play.

Fast forward to the end of the year and that tune is changing.

Paul Finebaum commends South Carolina football

When asked about the Gamecocks today on the McElroy and Cubelic in the Morning Show, Finebaum had a much more positive response for Shane Beamer’s bunch.

Between the time that Finebaum made his original comments and the conclusion of the South Carolina season, the Gamecocks had picked up wins over Auburn, Florida, and North Carolina. All three of those came with the team listed as double-digit underdogs.

The program picked up its first postseason invite and victory in three years with a 17-point blowout of the Tar Heels in the Duke’s Mayo Bowl.

The Gamecocks ended the year with some momentum, which has now carried over to the recruiting trail. Coach Beamer will look to continue this recent success in year No. 2 as the South Carolina football coach.