“Colorado is everybody’s Superbowl.” Paul Finebaum took this quote by Shedeur Sanders quite literally. On the SEC Network, Finebaum went on a major rant against CU. “They’re not going to the playoffs this year. And I’m not sure Deion Sanders is ever going to get them to the playoffs……They are irrelevant in the big picture of college football,” he had noted. Guess the Buffs just can’t catch a break. From getting bashed for a disastrous 2023 season, to now getting called out even before the 2024 season has started off.

However, what could actually be the motive behind this? Up to a certain extent, understandably, the Buffs deserve the bashing they received because after all the “shit-talk” and “we coming” mantra, they still couldn’t leave a mark last season. But you cannot disagree that Deion Sanders has brought value to the program. Robert Griffin says it best. “One thing is for sure though. Coach Prime is building something at Colorado and as an analyst, I don’t think we should be trying to kick him and his team down because they are confident and believe in themselves,” Griffin mentioned in his post on 16th July, on X while sharing the clip of Paul Finebaum’s rant. Griffin stands corrected, Deion Sanders alone has managed to make Colorado games some of the most enjoyable out there.

Nothing can top out what the Big 12 commissioner said about Deion Sanders and the Colorado Buffs. “he builds legacies, he doesn’t inherit them,” he had noted. With over 10 million viewers against their match with Oregon and solid overall viewership records throughout their 4-8 run last year. When Shedeur said “Colorado is everybody’s Superbowl” what he meant is that everyone wants to crush the Buffs because they know that Deion Sanders and his team will pull the views in. Especially with a potential No.1 QB (Shedeur Sanders) and a potential No. 1 WR (Travis Hunter) on the team, it is no surprise that everyone has it out for Colorado.

Even Laura Levy took to X to defend the Buffs and Deion. “And now “middle of nowhere” Colorado (I’ll send you a map, Paul) with Shedeur, Travis, Shilo, completely revamped trenches and coaching staff… now we aren’t relevant? Now you’re no longer interested? So, it’s no longer interesting after year one?” she wrote in her post. It is not a new fact that the core players present in the team are all set for the new season. With better training and an increase in overall accuracy and skills, the Buffs are currently in the best spot they can be. So why is there so much hate from Finebaum? Is it just for the 4-8 season or does Finebaum hate the fact that Coach Prime is trying to keep a perfect balance at Colorado with a good GPA and winning games? What’s wild is that amidst all of this, even Lincoln Riley was given the cold shoulder by Finebaum.

“Disaster” at USC

In the same interview with SEC Network, Finebaum called out Lincoln Riley, HC for the Trojans. “I thought last year was one of the worst coaching jobs I’ve ever seen. Quite frankly … I would’ve fired Lincoln Riley,” he said. While during year one, the Trojans under Riley went on for 11-3 and Caleb Williams went on to grab the Heisman in 2022. Comparing that to the 2023 season, there were some major setbacks for the team; with losing 5 out of 7 games. However, what is funny is that back in 2021, when Riley was leaving Oklahoma for USC, Finebaum had quite a different take on him. “This is one of the best hires in recent memory. I think he will win a national championship at Southern Cal,” he said, regarding Riley on ESPN.

So why this sudden change of taste and preference? Why this agenda of switching from praising a team to bashing them or directly not admitting what they could be good at? From what we can see, Paul Finebaum is only doing his job as an analyst. As much as Robert Griffin or Laura Levy stand up for CU or any other team of their choosing, the main worth of the team in the public eye will only be decided through the number of wins they had. Both CU and Trojans have got a lot at stake this season.