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The Fresno State Bulldogs faced off against the Northern Illinois Huskies in the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl on Monday. Those watching along with the ESPN broadcast from home saw the ‘Dawgs being called by a different name.
An unfortunate graphic caught the attention of viewers after Fresno State scored its second touchdown. It’s since gone viral on social media.
The Bulldogs struck first in the postseason contest, going up 6-0 on a Bryson Donelson touchdown run. After cutting the score to 6-3, the Huskies watched the Fresno State offense again move down the field for a score.
This time, Joshua Wood scampered into the endzone from 13 yards out. The touchdown extended the lead to 13-3.
As Fresno State celebrated, a graphic flashed on ESPN airwaves to notify viewers of the score change. An extra “N” was somehow added to the team name, resulting in an accidentally explicit visual.
FRESNO STATE BULLDONGS pic.twitter.com/tJeYxBJrP2
— Grayson Weir (@GsonJW) December 23, 2024
ESPN’s graphic read as the “Fresno State Bulldongs,” which didn’t go unnoticed by college football fans. It’s not the first time we’ve seen the network miss the mark.
In February, it whiffed on a graphic attempting to celebrate Black History Month during the ACC basketball season. A few months later, it prematurely posted a poorly aging social media message during a football game between Georgia and Alabama.
Viewers made light of this most recent mishap. ESPN was able to fix the issue in the second half of action to avoid further mockery.