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Paul Finebaum has never been one to shy away from giving his opinion.
The veteran college football analyst did so again on Wednesday, taking a side in the Bret Bielema-Jim Harbaugh beef. On Tuesday night, a report came out that Michigan plans on fighting the cheating allegations involving former staffer Connor Stalions. A video was posted from Harbaugh’s time as the head coach of the 49ers when the coach declared “if you cheat to win, then you’ve already lost.”
Bielema responded to the post by asking Harbaugh why he left Michigan and said he understood why the coach “ran to the NFL.”
Less than 24 hours later, the ESPN analyst publicly took Bielema’s side on The Paul Finebaum Show.
“I’ve always liked Bret. He was fun when we were together,” Finebaum said. “But he is right. Harbaugh is just a disingenuous fraud about all the things he used to say. He didn’t want to face the music. By the way, Michigan didn’t really want him to stay.”
After the sign-stealing controversy came out, Harbaugh left to take the head coaching job with the Los Angeles Chargers last offseason. The coach received a 4-year show-cause order from the NCAA for recruiting violations and unethical conduct.
Finebaum is familiar with Bielema from his time as the head coach at Arkansas. Bielema was with the Razorbacks from 2013-17 and has been the HC at Illinois since 2021. The coach saw great success in 2024, leading the Fighting Illini to a 10-3 record and a win in the Citrus Bowl.
Bryce Lazenby covers college football for Saturday Down South. A Nashville native, his previous stops include FanSided, Dimers, and The Leaf-Chronicle.
