Last year, it seemed College GameDay was based at SEC sites early in the season. I’ll have to check my archives, but it appeared the show was SEC-heavy early on. For the first three weeks of the new season, College GameDay will in Arlington, Texas; Ann Arbor, Michigan and then Tallahassee, Florida. All of the sites will be from games that will be aired either on ABC or ESPN (naturally). And the usual crew of Chris Fowler, Lee Corso, Kirk Herbstreit and Desmond Howard will on set on the Mothership at 10 a.m. Erin Andrews will be the main host for the early hour on ESPNU at 9.
For this 25th season of College GameDay, ESPN will bring in analyst David Pollack this season to be part of the 9 a.m. hour with Ms. Andrews. Other than that change, the show will have the usual features from Tom Rinaldi, visits to game sites and the predictions that you have come to know and love at the end of the show with the Corso mascot head as the crescendo. I still consider College GameDay as the best sports pregame show on TV and unless something really happens this season, I don’t expect my opinion to change.
Here’s the press release from ESPN.
First Three Sites for 25th Season of College GameDay Selected
Current ESPN Analyst Pollack Joins as Contributor
ESPN’s College GameDay will return for its 25th season Saturday, Sept. 3, live from the neutral site of the Cowboy Classic at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas, beginning at 9 a.m. ET on ESPNU and from 10-noon on ESPN. In a much anticipated opening weekend game, Oregon will face LSU in the Classic as part of the weekly Saturday Night Football series at 8 p.m. on ABC. The College GameDay set will be located outside the state-of-the art facility.
Once again the show will feature host Chris Fowler and analysts Lee Corso, Kirk Herbstreit and Desmond Howard during the 10-noon hours on ESPN. Erin Andrews will anchor the first hour on ESPNU at 9 a.m., and contribute reports, interviews and features throughout the latter two hours. Reporter Tom Rinaldi will also provide features on a weekly basis, and new this year, current ESPN analyst and former NFL player David Pollack will join in a contributing role.
The three-time Emmy-Award winning program will originate from the campuses of Michigan and Florida State during the second and third weeks of the season, respectively. On Sept. 10, College GameDay will head to Ann Arbor – site of the annual rivalry game between Michigan and Notre Dame (on ESPN at 8 p.m.), and week three will be in Tallahassee featuring Florida State versus projected No. 1 Oklahoma (on ABC or ESPN at 7:30 p.m. or 8 p.m.).
New for the 25th Season
In celebration of Corso’s 25th season with College GameDay each Saturday morning this season the show will look back at his top mascot headgear moments. One of college football’s most knowledgeable, opinionated and entertaining analysts, Corso joined ESPN in 1987 and is the only original College GameDay on-air personality. A contributor during the 1987-88 season, Corso began as an analyst in 1989.Meanwhile, Pollack will hold several roles during the 2011 college football season. He will be included in the College Football Live coverage on Friday afternoons from that week’s site as well as some selected SportsCenter segments. Pollack will team with Andrews during ESPNU College GameDay hour and will also appear on ESPN.
“I’ve been a huge fan of College GameDay for years, and when I joined ESPN I hoped to become a part of the show,” said Pollack. “It is very humbling to join the crew and work on the best show in college football.”
A former NFL and University of Georgia standout, Pollack joined ESPN in June 2009 as a college football analyst on ESPNU studio shows and select game telecasts. A three-time all-American at Georgia, he was drafted 17th overall by the Cincinnati Bengals in the 2005 Draft. Pollack’s career was cut short after breaking a cervical vertebra in 2006, and he announced his retirement before the 2008 season.
That will do it. Friday megalinks will come later.
