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Despite the money they invested in bringing him and his radio show to their network, ESPN has yet to ink a deal with Pat McAfee to return to College GameDay this season, according to reports.
Last season, McAfee was added to the College GameDay desk alongside longtime hosts Rece Davis, Desmond Howard, Lee Corso, and Kirk Herbstreit. McAfee was a punter and kicker at West Virginia University during his college days from 2005 to 2008.
According to Andrew Marchand of The Athletic, the 37-year-old headline-making former Indianapolis Colts punter “remains unsigned” with the start of the 2024 college football season just about two months away.
Marchand reported that both ESPN declined to comment, while McAfee did not answer The Athletic‘s inquiries. He adds that while “the two sides are working toward a deal, nothing has been signed yet.”
Despite his popularity among certain sections of sports fans, McAfee had indicated as early as last October that he might be a one-and-done on College GameDay, as that fondness hasn’t necessarily transferred over to the GameDay audience, which likely skews older than the largely juvenile Pat McAfee Show.
“I have heard you all very loud and clear since the beginning of my stint with GameDay. It’s one of the biggest reasons why I have not re-signed a contract with the legendary show,” McAfee posted on Twitter in response to a survey conducted by The Athletic which found that almost 50% of the 3,100 responses they tallied said they did not care for McAfee’s presence on the show.
Prior to landing at ESPN, McAfee was with Barstool Sports and then FanDuel before taking his show to YouTube. McAfee then signed a deal with ESPN in 2023.