During an appearance on ESPN’s “Get Up” Tuesday morning, college football analyst Paul Finebaum shared his biggest takeaway from the season’s first AP Top 25 poll. His opinion was clear. Alabama is being underrated, and Ohio State is getting far too much credit.
“Don’t be too shocked by this, Greeny, but Ohio State is too high. And, Heather, calm down, Alabama is too low,” Finebaum said.
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Ranked No. 8, Alabama sits lower than many expected, a placement Finebaum finds puzzling. He believes the Crimson Tide are legitimate College Football Playoff national championship contenders, especially following the announcement that Ty Simpson will be the starting quarterback this season. Simpson, now in his fourth year with the program, has served as the backup the past two seasons but has yet to start a game. That will change this fall.
“I really think Alabama is a serious national championship contender,” Finebaum emphasized.
In contrast, Finebaum believes Ohio State, ranked No. 3, is being overhyped. He argued the Buckeyes are benefiting too much from last season’s national championship and not being judged based on the current roster.
“I don’t get Ohio State at all, Greeny. I know they won the national championship last year, but that has nothing to do with it,” Finebaum said. “They don’t have the same team, and that national championship hangover is going to catch up with them.”
Finebaum went a step further and predicted that Ohio State’s high ranking would be short-lived. He expects an early-season loss to top-ranked Texas. “We’ll see that in about two and a half weeks when Texas goes up there and walks out of that stadium a winner,” he added.
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ESPN’s Heather Dinich agreed with Finebaum’s assessment. “He’s right that Ohio State has a lot of questions and they’re too high,” Dinich said.
With the college football season just around the corner, Finebaum believes the AP Poll is already missing the mark on two of the sport’s biggest programs.
This article originally appeared on Buckeyes Wire: College Football analyst Paul Finebaum throws shade at Ohio State
