Paul Finebaum has criticized Stephen A. Smith for making race central to discussions about Lane Kiffin’s potential departure from Ole Miss. Smith speculated that Black players might avoid Oxford, Mississippi, and questioned the racial implications of a Dolphins executive being fired. Finebaum argued that such claims were both inaccurate and out of touch with the modern South.
The controversy erupted after Smith, a prominent ESPN commentator, made racially charged remarks during a segment on