Pat McAfee made sure ESPN’s College GameDay opened with a jolt in Boise on Saturday, arriving on horseback after travel chaos had threatened to keep him away from the show’s set.
Rece Davis set the scene at the top of the broadcast, explaining that McAfee was dealing with the nationwide flight stoppage that had disrupted travel across the country. Then McAfee’s voice came through the broadcast.
“Rece Davis, can you hear me? I got you,” McAfee said.
“Don’t you worry about an airplane. Don’t you worry about an automobile.”
The show then cut to McAfee riding in on a dark horse, dressed in a dark suit and waving a Boise State flag as handlers guided him through a packed crowd and toward the desk. Once he reached the set, he played up the moment and the atmosphere around Boise State’s campus.
“This particular Saturday is going to be a magical one,” McAfee said.
He also gave a shoutout to the horse that carried him in. “That horse’s name was Rodeo, and I will say to Rodeo, thank you for not bucking my ass off,” McAfee said.
“I’ve never ridden a horse before. I certainly lied to them to let that happen.”
The entrance fit the setting perfectly. Boise State’s equine mascot tradition goes back to 1965, when a horse named Spyieche began running a lap around the field after every score.
McAfee’s arrival came against the backdrop of a nationwide ground stop that began Friday at 3:45 p.m. ET.
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said the pause followed “a communication issue impacting all Air Route Traffic Control Centers.” The stoppage lasted more than four hours before ending at 8:15 p.m.
ET. Later that night, Duffy said aging equipment had taken on “overloaded data, and they went down.”
It was the first nationwide ground stop since January 2023, and it forced several college football teams to adjust travel plans for Saturday. Oregon State had not left for Boise when flights were grounded, according to ESPN’s Pete Thamel. The Beavers lined up buses as a backup before flying out Friday night.
Boise is hosting College GameDay for the first time since 2010, when Boise State beat Oregon State 37-24 behind quarterback Kellen Moore.
The Broncos enter Saturday at 8-1 overall and 5-0 in the Pac-12, riding an eight-game winning streak. They’re ranked No. 24 and are the only Group of Six team in the College Football Playoff rankings.
Oregon State is 5-4 overall and 3-2 in conference play. A Boise State win would send the Pac-12 Championship Game to the blue turf in December.
Former Broncos All-American running back Ian Johnson is the celebrity guest picker. Johnson is remembered for the winning two-point conversion in Boise State’s 2007 Fiesta Bowl upset of Oklahoma.
McAfee’s horseback entrance also added another memorable chapter to a busy fall for him. In late October, the University of Utah issued an official apology after a school video showed students calling him “corny” and “creepy” before GameDay’s stop in Salt Lake City.
Oregon State and Boise State are set to kick off at 6 p.m. ET on USA Network.
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