Paul Finebaum calls Tony Petitti, Big Ten the biggest loser of the last week

Big Ten commissioner Tony Petitti has recently received blowback for several of his decisions. During an appearance on The Matt Barrie Show on Sunday, ESPN’s Paul Finebaum didn’t hesitate to pour salt in Petitti’s wound.

“The biggest loser last week was Tony Petitti and the Big Ten,” Finebaum said. “This guy can’t shoot straight right now. He was one of the most respected people and influential people in the sport two years ago when he formed that alliance with the SEC, but I don’t hear anything good about him. He’s whiffed on almost everything.

“Ohio State fans hate this Big Noon deal that they’re stuck having to play all the time. They don’t embrace this private equity move. They were belly-aching about Vegas being the site of the Big Ten media days. They don’t feel comfortable with these new schools in, and that’s a big story because he inherited the television deals.”

Finebaum brought up several of Petitti’s questionable decisions in his rant. Perhaps most notably, Finebaum discussed Ohio State fans’ frustration with Petitti.

Ohio State is the best football team in the Big Ten and arguably the most influential school in the entire conference. As Finebaum mentioned, Ohio State fans haven’t hesitated to voice their frustration with the Buckeyes constantly being forced to play early in the day due to the Big Ten’s deal with Fox Sports.

Moreover, Ohio State isn’t yet convinced Petitti’s push to bring private equity into the Big Ten is what’s best for the conference. Petitti is considering allowing UC Investments to pour $2.4 billion into the Big Ten, in exchange for 10% of the conference’s media and sponsorship rights earnings for 15 years.

To pile on, the Big Ten isn’t bringing in impressive television ratings this season. In fact, Ohio State is the only Big Ten program that’s been one of the top-10 most-viewed college football teams in the 2025 campaign. In contrast, SEC has seven teams in the top 10.

“They may do okay the final three weeks of the season because of Ohio State, because of Oregon last week, and the Big Ten championship game. But, they have been absolutely destroyed by lesser games in the SEC on ABC, and that has to crush the commissioner of the Big Ten,” Finebaum said.

Tony Petitti has been the Big Ten’s commissioner for just over two years. He’ll need Ohio State on his side if he wants the conference to reach its potential.