Memphis has a powerful conference realignment advocate in ESPN's Paul Finebaum | Giannotto

Paul Finebaum landed in Memphis Monday afternoon with 45 minutes to spare, and spent it sneaking into Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium.

Yes, you read that right.

The celebrated ESPN personality was on his way from the airport to an appearance at the Memphis Touchdown Club, and decided a nostalgic detour was in order. So Finebaum drove over to Liberty Park, to where he spent his childhood attending Memphis State games at the Mid-South Coliseum and what was then called Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium.

Then he saw a gate open and went inside.

“It brought back an avalanche of memories,” Finebaum said.

Perhaps that’s why he seemed intent to turn his return home into a reminder that one of the biggest voices in college sports is also a powerful advocate for Memphis athletics and its hopes of joining a new conference.

“I thought the ACC, quite frankly, a year ago made a mistake not taking Memphis versus SMU. What does SMU bring to the table? Absolutely nothing, in my opinion,” Finebaum declared. “... I think the Big 12 made a bigger mistake when they took Houston, UCF and didn’t come Memphis’ way. I’m not waving a flag here because of my birth certificate from Baptist Hospital downtown. I’m saying this because I know what this program is capable of.”

The Memphis native and White Station High School graduate didn’t stop there, either.

He praised the recent announcement of FedEx’s landmark NIL program with the university, calling it “one of the most critical pieces ever. If you see one of the most important companies not only in this country, but in the world enter into this space, it has to energize you.”

Finebaum, 68, also made it a point to offer a mea culpa about football coach Ryan Silverfield. He previously criticized Memphis for electing to retain Silverfield after the Tigers finished up their second-straight 6-6 regular season.

"There’s such a thing in this industry as being completely and totally wrong, and I was,” Finebaum said. “I really didn’t see the turnaround and I didn’t see the excitement that was going to be re-attributed to this program, and I think this is a great time in Memphis.

“It’s a good thing that the now-former athletic director didn’t listen to some of the talking heads,” he added later, “because had he done so, I don’t think I’d be able to tell you how excited I am as a Memphian.”

If that weren’t enough, Finebaum was even willing to enter the fray when asked about the possibility of Memphis basketball playing Arkansas on an annual basis now that former Tigers coach John Calipari is in Fayetteville. Penny Hardaway said on his coaches show filmed earlier this month that he was hopeful the series could be restarted again.

“It would be absolutely absurd not to rekindle it.” Finebaum said. “I think now it would do (Calipari) some good to reverse his previous decision because why wouldn’t you have a basketball game the whole country would be excited about, especially two fan bases that are among the most rabid.”

Finebaum, of course, has no power to make any of these kinds of decisions. But he does have something of a bully pulpit with his daily ESPN show on the SEC Network and his frequent appearances throughout the ESPN family of networks. He’s never been afraid to share bold opinions.

On Monday, for instance, he called Ole Miss football a national championship contender this season under Lane Kiffin. He predicted Mississippi State would have a tough transition under new football coach Jeff Lebby. He openly wondered if former Arkansas football coach Bobby Petrino – now back with the Razorbacks as an offensive coordinator – might supplant current coach Sam Pittman by November.

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But he saved his most enthusiastic comments for Memphis, for the progress he sees – especially within the football program. He endorsed the possibility that the Tigers have a chance to be the Group of Five representative in the College Football Playoff this season and that it “really does matter” if the school is to eventually leave the American Athletic Conference for the ACC or Big 12 or any other league.

“I’ve always argued that for Memphis to be taken seriously, they have to act like a lot of other schools and not tolerate anything but excellence,” Finebaum said. “I think now what happened on the football field last year, what happened five or six years ago, shows what the program is capable of. The most important thing is money and I think Memphis now has the money and facilities.”

Yes, you read that right.

He even complimented Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium – in its current form, as well as what it will become when the $220 million in renovations that are planned to begin ahead of the 2024 college football season are complete.

In Finebaum’s mind, the gate is now open for Memphis.

“I went to the Liberty Bowl as a kid and watched Memphis State play and there weren’t very many happy days,” he said. “But in many ways, happy days are here again.”

You can reach Commercial Appeal columnist Mark Giannotto via email at mgiannotto@gannett.com and follow him on X: @mgiannotto

This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: Memphis has powerful conference realignment advocate in Paul Finebaum