Texas Gets A Notable GameDay Boost Before Ohio State Showdown

Pat McAfee turns heads with an unexpected choice as ESPN College GameDay sets the stage for the Ohio State-Texas showdown.

Pat McAfee had the spotlight on College GameDay in Austin, and when it came time to make his pick for Ohio State-Texas, he didn’t go with the expected stunt. No Horns Down.

No leaning into the crowd’s boos. Instead, he backed Texas and made his choice in a way that had the Longhorn faithful smiling.

McAfee framed the moment like a sign from above, pointing to the scene around him before landing on the Longhorns. His post read:

OHIO STATE IS THE NUMBER ONE TEAM IN THE COUNTRY..

I NEED A SIGN FROM THE FOOTBALL GODS ON THIS ONE..

IF YOU LOOK TO YOUR RIGHT YOU SEE A T-38C TALON 🇺🇸🇺🇸

GIVE ME ARCH MANNING AND COLEMAN TO GET A HUGE WIN..

🎶I'M CHOOSIN TEXAS🎶 #CollegeGameDay pic.twitter.com/dntJNO7Q3V

  • Pat McAfee (@PatMcAfeeShow) September 12, 2026

The pick came during ESPN College GameDay’s stop ahead of Saturday night’s showdown between No. 1 Ohio State and No.

4 Texas at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium. Rece Davis, Kirk Herbstreit, Desmond Howard, McAfee, and Nick Saban all weighed in on the day’s slate, but McAfee’s choice was the one that drew the most attention.

Kickoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. ET on ABC.

Ohio State vs. Texas TV & Viewing Info

With ESPN Unlimited, you can watch college football all season long without cable on your TV, phone, or tablet. They carry every game broadcast across ESPN’s wide array of sports channels, including ESPN+, ABC, ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU, SEC Network, ACC Network, SEC Network+, ACC Network Extra, ESPN3, ESPNNEWS.

Regional restrictions may apply. If you purchase a product or register for an account through one of the links on our site, we may receive compensation.

In Other News...

Texas May Get An Unexpected Boost Before Ohio State

Texas got a bit of encouraging news this week as Derrek Cooper moved from an early injury concern to a possible game-day option for the showdown with Ohio State. The running back left the season opener with an ankle injury, and Steve Sarkisian had previously suggested Cooper would be in a boot for the foreseeable future, which made the early outlook sound pretty grim for the Longhorns.

Now, the possibility of a quicker return has changed the tone around his status, even if it still comes down to a last-minute decision. Cooper has been seen as a valuable short-yardage piece, and his reputation has been helped along by positive evaluations from both teammates and scouts, so Texas will be watching closely to see whether that unexpected boost materializes in time for one of the biggest games on the schedule. [Read more 🡒]

Urban Meyer Sees Ohio State Texas Coming Down To One Big Play

Urban Meyers take on the Ohio State-Texas matchup was simple enough: it should be tight, and the kind of game decided by a single moment rather than a long stretch of dominance. He pointed to the quarterbacks, Julian Sayin and Arch Manning, as the central figures in a meeting between two teams that both rolled through their openers against overmatched competition, and he also acknowledged the boost Texas gets from playing at home.

Meyer stopped short of treating the Longhorns home-field edge as enough to swing his prediction, even while describing the contest as close to a toss-up. The bigger picture is what makes this one so interesting for Texas: a marquee nonconference game, a quarterback spotlight, and the kind of early test that can turn on one play, one mistake or one timely drive. [Read more 🡒]

Arch Manning Faces A Very Different Ohio State Test This Time

Arch Manning and Julian Sayin met a year ago as two of the most closely watched quarterback prospects in the sport, and the game mostly belonged to the defenses. Since then, both quarterbacks have moved past the label of promising newcomers and into a stage where coaches are talking about confidence, command and the way each has grown into the job.

This time, the matchup carries a different feel because Texas is not walking into the same kind of mystery it faced before. Manning has a year of experience behind him, Ohio State has a clearer read on what he can do, and the Buckeyes challenge is less about surprise than about whether they can again make him uncomfortable when the spotlight is brightest. [Read more 🡒]