Paul Finebaum lives with pangs of regret after he "came this close" to working with Dolly Parton.
The college football analyst and Tennessee native said he and Parton were both at the 2023 Georgia game at Neyland Stadium, and a producer for "SEC Nation" thought they had Parton locked up to appear on the pregame show Finebaum hosts on the SEC Network, he told USA TODAY's "College Football Unfiltered"
show."Unfortunately and very sadly," Finebaum never got to meet the Queen of Country Music after the show appearance fell through, he told host Blake Toppmeyer. Parton memorably walked out after the first quarter with VFL Peyton Manning and sang "Rocky Top" to a raucous crowd.
Watch Paul Finebaum speak to USA TODAY about his memories of Dolly Parton
"It's just great to be home," Parton said afterward in a sparkling orange outfit on the CBS broadcast.
Finebaum also used his ESPN show to pay tribute to Parton on the day of her death.
"She sung one of the all-time memorable renditions of 'Rocky Top.' There was literally not a dry eye in the house listening to Dolly and nobody knew at the time that would be the last time we saw her at Neyland Stadium," he said after breaking the news to his radio listeners.
"It is almost impossible to put into words why this death has so many people upset today."
College Football Unfiltered: Presented by Sports Seriously is USA TODAY Sports’ newest podcast, hosted by USA TODAY Sports columnist Blake Toppmeyer. With sharp analysis, real perspective, and a finger on the pulse of the biggest storylines in college football, delivering news, opinions, and context fans actually care about.
Stream it on YouTube or download via Apple podcasts and Spotify.
This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Paul Finebaum 'came this close' to working with Dolly Parton at Neyland
