Stephen A. Smith Called Out By ESPN Star For 'Disrespectful' Opinion

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Stephen A. Smith has officially been called out by a prominent ESPN colleague for a “disrespectful” opinion.

The face of ESPN, who reportedly earns more than $20 million per year, decided to weigh in on the ongoing Lane Kiffin saga. Kiffin, the head coach at Ole Miss, has been linked to the Florida and LSU jobs. His family has reportedly taken tours of both campuses. The Tigers and Gators jobs remain open, after the firings of Brian Kelly and Billy Napier. Kiffin has yet to fully commit to a future at Ole Miss.

“I love what we’re doing here,” Kiffin said after last week’s 34-24 win against Florida. “Today was awesome. To even talk about it right now would be so disrespectful to our players and how well they played today. We’ve got a lot of things going here. Doing really well, and I love it here.”

Smith can understand why Kiffin would be considering a departure from Oxford, Mississippi to Gainesville, Florida or Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

“He’s in Oxford, Mississippi. OK? Let’s get this out of the way, now listen ladies and gentlemen — and y’all can’t say it … leave it to me, I’ll say it — the brothers ain’t trying to come to Oxford, Mississippi, for the most part,” Smith said Wednesday morning. “Compared to Gainesville or Baton Rouge, Louisiana, let’s just call it what it is.”

SEC fans were not happy with the comments.

Paul Finebaum, considered the voice of the SEC, clapped back at Smith on his show

Finebaum said that Smith was clearly implying that Black athletes do not want to play in Oxford, Mississippi.

“Again, I realize a lot of you did not see what Stephen A. said, but he clearly made it racial. He clearly said, in his words: ‘the brothers do not want to go to Oxford, Mississippi,’ which I think has been proven to be completely incorrect,” Finebaum said during the 4 pm E.T. hour of The Paul Finebaum Show, per On3. “I’ve been to Oxford a million times and I think it’s terribly unfair to bring up echoes of yesteryear, the ’60s, and try and portray Oxford as that type of place today. It’s not. The South has changed. You can make your own interpretation, but to dump on Oxford while saying Gainesville and Baton Rouge would be a utopia (comparably) is baffling to me.”

Kiffin and Oxford, Missisippi must be doing something right, as the Rebels are 10-1 on the year, barreling toward a College Football Playoff berth.

This story was originally reported by The Spun on Nov 19, 2025, where it first appeared in the Sports Media section. Add The Spun as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

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