Paul Finebaum breaks down why he is impressed by the Big Ten after media days

Even Paul Finebaum can’t deny the Big Ten’s greatness. During an appearance on “McElroy and Cubelic in the Morning,” the SEC Network analyst praised the Big Ten for its recent changes.

“I look at that league and I really am impressed. It is a it is a great league,” Finebaum said. “Depending on how you view certain schools, it’s on the same level as the SEC. I just marvel at the addition of Oregon and Washington. When it happened, I thought maybe they’re just trying to stuff a couple of schools from a wayward conference into an already crowded field. But by far, those are far more impressive than UCLA and USC, not necessarily from a long-term standpoint, but from a this-year standpoint.

“They’ve got a fantastic league. I think Ohio State clearly should be the favorite, but Oregon isn’t more than a hair or two behind them. Let’s be honest, there were far more storylines at Big Ten Media Days than there were at SEC Media Days. I found plenty to talk about with at least four or five of the different schools.”

With its additions this summer, the Big Ten’s football landscape will be loaded with talent in the 2024 campaign. According to FanDuel, Oregon has the third-best odds to win the national championship in the upcoming season.

Washington is coming off a national runner-up campaign and will led by new head coach Jedd Fisch. USC is always dangerous with Lincoln Riley at the helm and UCLA is entering a new era under head coach DeShaun Foster.

Not to mention, the Big Ten still boasts its traditional powerhouses in Ohio State, Michigan and Penn State. Although Finebaum is more than happy to give credit to the Big Ten, he believes the SEC is still the better conference.

“I get Ohio State people. They’re a different breed. And Michigan people did the unthinkable last year. But, it is not a better league,” Finebaum said. “I’m impressed with the league and the fact that they have two new schools that really do matter… But I think I think it’s just bias.

“But I think they just they’re just so sick of the SEC dominance. So sick of the loud megaphone that people in the SEC have. So, what are they what are they crowing about? They have a national championship and it was at the expense of an SEC team in Alabama in the semi-finals. When Alabama beat Ohio State a couple of years ago by 28 points, nobody really looked at that as anything other than an expected result.”