Weak Football Take: Nick Saban Beat South Carolina, Not LSU
College football is such as massive sport in America, there are outlets to find a new take on something every day. How do people feel about the new College Football Playoff? What bowl game is this program projected for, what about that one? Or...how did a retired coach help beat an SEC school this past Saturday?
That is what one of the loudest voices, on one of the biggest platforms, has declared. That a former coach, a retired NFL player, and a TV show beat South Carolina last week, not LSU.
The LSU Tigers beat South Carolina 36-33 in Columbia, South Carolina. After the game, ESPN's Paul Finebaum went on the The Matt Barrie Show to declare that LSU didn't actually beat South Carolina, it was ESPN's College Gameday that beat South Carolina. Finebaum said:
“I think South Carolina would have beaten LSU without GameDay. I am convinced that (South Carolina head coach Shane Beamer) spent way too much time, you know, grabbing shots with McAfee and Saban and Herbie and not enough time working on the game plan. The last couple minutes of that game, Beamer was atrocious.”
I'm not sure who that's more disrespectful to; South Carolina, LSU, or Pat McAfee and Nick Saban. South Carolina played an incredible game, LSU was a more talented team that had to grind to find a way to win, and the duo of McAfee/Saban is one of the most entertaining sports pairings on TV. None of these groups deserves this blast by Finebaum.
The fact that GameDay comes to a school, and that a coach engages in one of the best recruiting tools handed to them, doesn't change whether or not a defensive back covers an out-route. GameDay being on campus doesn't change whether or not a running back can break away, or if an offensive tackle can hold a blindside block.
Blaming GameDay for a tough loss isn't just lazy work from Finebaum, it's pretty disrespectful too.