Paul Finebaum has been one of the bigger Jim Harbaugh haters in sports media since the former quarterback took over at Michigan. After the Wolverines finally claimed their first national championship under Harbaugh this week, the SEC Network radio host had no choice but to take the L.
“I say congratulations,” Finebaum said on Get Up. “I don’t know if I’ve ever been more wrong about anything in my entire life.”
Not only did Finebaum not believe Michigan had the bona fides to come out on top of the College Football Playoff, he didn’t even think the program could beat its chief rival.
“I didn’t think [Harbaugh] would ever beat Ohio State,” Finebaum copped. “This is truly remarkable. I don’t want to be wrong about something … but if you’re going to be epically wrong, out of this constellation, out of this universe wrong, I’ll take it. And I think Jim Harbaugh has silenced all those who doubted him in the early days.”
"I don't know if I've ever been more wrong about anything in my entire life."
Paul Finebaum offers a mea culpa on his Jim Harbaugh takes over the years. pic.twitter.com/PGuOPlhbgt
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) January 9, 2024
Harbaugh returned to college football in 2015 after stints at Stanford and with the San Francisco 49ers. He led Michigan to a winning record in his first season helming the program, but didn’t make the CFP until 2021. This year was Michigan’s first chance in the title game, and Harbaugh finally got to the promised land.
In a year in which Harbaugh and Michigan were all over college football news due to a sign-stealing scandal and alleged recruiting violations, there have been no shortage of opinions about the program. Still, few believed Harbaugh could get the team over the hump after a short-lived tenure at Stanford and consistent flirtation with the NFL even while in Ann Arbor.
After all that, Harbaugh gets the last laugh over the legendary Finebaum. And a title for Big Blue.
About Brendon Kleen
Brendon is a Media Commentary staff writer at Awful Announcing. He has also covered basketball and sports business at Front Office Sports, SB Nation, Uproxx and more.