The verbal war between ESPN's Paul Finebaum and Michigan fans continued on Thursday and, as you may expect, Finebaum did not hold back. The always entertaining personality has previously suggested that the Wolverine have the "most pathetic fan base" in the country and, this time around, Finebaum went off on Michigan as an institution.
During an appearance on "Mike and Mike", Finebaum had this to say, via Scott Davis of Business Insider
"I respect Notre Dame. I don't respect Michigan. Notre Dame stands for something. Notre Dame doesn't think its better than everyone else because it has a record. It, for the most part, has stood on integrity and tradition. Michigan thinks its better than everyone else, and I don't understand why.
"It's a good school. But it's not Harvard, it's not Princeton, it's the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor. So, I just get freaked out when Michigan fans walk around like they've done something. When Harbaugh showed up, it gave them a sense of entitlement that they really haven't earned. Harbaugh's a very good coach, he's one of the best coaches in the country. He's yet to beat his chief rival [Urban Meyer], he's yet to win a championship in two years, and I'm sure in two more years, if he hasn't done that, he'll kick the lockers and walk out and go back to the NFL. But right now, to me, they don't have a seat at the big boy table."
The full video can be found at the link above, but Michigan fans will not be pleased about this development. It has clearly become personal between Finebaum and the school from Ann Arbor, especially when you delve into academic perception and tradition.
Michigan fans will (always) point to the fact that Finebaum's roots are in the South and, as such, he probably isn't the most well informed about Big Ten football and culture. On the flip side, Finebaum doesn't appear to care even in the slightest for anyone clad in maize and blue and this feud will probably continue in the future.