Has Paul Finebaum ever said anything positive or nice about Clemson football?
Honestly, I don't think so. But that changed this week.
No, this is not a month-late April Fool's joke. This is serious. No, this isn't satire. Finebaum actually said something nice about the Tigers, telling people that Clemson is in the national title race.
Don’t sleep on Clemson 👀 pic.twitter.com/GRcdgLSOCM
— Rivals (@Rivals) May 5, 2025
You can file this under "grass is green" or "water is wet" but you do have to give Finebaum some credit -- he's not used to saying nice things about any programs outside of the SEC, especially not Clemson.
Saying that "I think Clemson is in the national championship race" is the equivalent of saying that Duke is probably going to be good at basketball next season or that Patrick Mahomes will be in the running for MVP every year. It's just common sense, but after the past few quiet seasons that Clemson has had, it makes sense that hearing Finebaum mention the Tigers in the same sentence as a national title is headline-worthy.
Clemson is fresh off another playoff appearance under Dabo Swinney and it has arguably the best quarterback in the country along with the best defensive end and edge rusher and potentially the best receiver and best cornerback. Basically, the Tigers are talented.
It is rather surprising to hear even Finebaum thinks so. He usually veers away from giving credit to any rising team, especially the Tigers. But this must mean Clemson is good good.
The Tigers have been in the top five of essentially every post-spring AP Top 25 projection and I think that may even be too low. This team has what it takes to win it all, folks.
Even Paul Finebaum thinks so.