SEC analyst Paul Finebaum let loose on the newest edition of “The Matt Barrie Show,” as the pair recapped the first round of College Football Playoff action.
Ohio State was one of two Big Ten teams to advance to the quarterfinals, routing Tennessee at home 42-17 Saturday night. While Finebaum praised the Buckeyes’ performance after the scrutiny surrounding coach Ryan Day after a Week 14 13-10 loss to Michigan last month, the same could not be said for the Indiana Hoosiers.
The Hoosiers came up short against Notre Dame, 27-17, in a game that wasn’t as close as the score indicated. Trailing by 17 with 10:41 left in regulation, coach Curt Cignetti opted to punt to a nearly unstoppable Buckeye offense to that point, backfiring in the worst way with a touchdown to seal the eventual win minutes later.
Finebaum quickly discredited the Hoosiers’ playoff resume, arguing they didn’t do enough to earn their opportunity to be amongst the 12 best teams.
“Indiana did nothing,” Finebaum said. “SMU did nothing, and that’s really my biggest beef on this Sunday.”
Finebaum took it a step further, criticizing Cignetti for his snarky pregame comments and categorizing the Hoosiers as a team that was picked by a committee that did a “lousy job.”
“What he has done is beaten Purdue 66-0 and a bunch of meddling teams,” Finebaum said.
Clearly, Finebaum wasn’t a fan of Indiana, pointing to both of its losses as an exploitation of “frauds.” Although Cignetti may disagree, Finebaum boldly predicted the Hoosiers’ demise next season, guaranteeing they will miss the CFP altogether.
As for why Indiana decided to punt, Cignetti kept it simple.
“I mean, I didn’t want to punt, but we were doing nothing on offense, and our defense was still fighting,” Cignetti said following the loss.
The playoffs resume on New Year’s Day, and Oregon, Ohio State, and Penn State are the only remaining Big Ten teams.
This post was originally published on this site be sure to check out more of their content.
