Tag Archives: College Gameday

Chris Fowler Brings Drama to Gameday

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By Kate Roth

During ESPN’s College Gameday this past Saturday, there was a moment where I had to stop watching to check and make sure I hadn’t accidentally turned my TV to The View. The show which has become widely popular for the dramatic way that Lee Corso puts on the mascots headgear of the team he is picking to win the big game of day had some extra drama in this weekend’s show.

As the gang was getting set to start making their predictions for the day the main host of the show Chris Fowler decided to address the acquisitions of ESPN having an SEC bias, a topic that does not sit well with fans or ESPN.

We’re all used to seeing the calm and collected Chris Fowler comment his opinions on the matters at hand with very little emotion, so it was quite a shock to see how worked up he was over this topic.

Fowler wanted to make it known that ESPN does not feel they have an SEC bias nor do they want to see the SEC or any conference for that matter run the table and take up all of the spots in the new playoff system. While ranting about how tired he is of seeing these reports over and over again he even referred to them as “stupid”, not a terrible word for that matter, but a word that we would not expect to hear come out of Fowler’s mouth.

Fowler continued to make his case by saying that it would be much beneficial to ESPN for the teams that will make up the playoff to come from all different conferences covering the different regions of the country. This way fans from all over the country would be watching the games, not just fans from one area which would help ESPN gain more viewers from all over.

Although Fowler made many good points throughout his rant, the reports in which he claimed were “stupid” also make many great points as well.

It’s as though for the past few years that almost every time we turn on our TV’s on Saturday morning College Gameday is in SEC country, and if some reason they are not, they still spend the majority of the segment talking about the games within the South Eastern Conference for that day.

Yes the SEC does typically have very high ranked team’s week in and week out, but it often feels like ESPN has completely forgotten about the other conferences.

Take for instance the Big 10 Conference this past weekend. Ohio State who is one of the highest ranked teams in the nation and Big 10 Conference, played one of the toughest games on their schedule this season against Penn State. Even though Penn State is not an elite team this year, a Happy Valley white-out at night is one of the toughest environments for any team to play in. This game had the perfect set up for the College Gameday theme, but instead where did they end up again? The SEC.

Don’t get me wrong, the LSU/Ole’ Miss game was one of the most important games of the season let alone weekend, but when you are trying to defend yourself against this so called “SEC bias” it would have been a good idea to take the open opportunity to check out some of the B1G action.

It is clear that each side here has a very strong argument and will continue to defend their opinions throughout the rest of the season and possibly onto many more seasons to come. It will be interesting to see if there will be any more rants on College Gameday from Fowler or any of his colleagues, but for the time being let’s all just take a deep breath and leave the roundtable drama to the ladies of The View.

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The Many Faces of Jonathan Papelbon

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By Alex O’Connor

Jonathan Papelbon is currently the closer for the Philadelphia Phillies. Papelbon is know for his hot-temper and more than eccentric personality. Yesterday, he was one of the featured hosts of ESPN’s College GameDay. College GameDay was held on the campus of Mississippi State University, which is Papelbon’s alma mater. However, less than a month ago on September 17th, Papelbon was pulled from a relief appearance and made a graphic gesture to Phillies fans. As a result of this gesture, he was suspended seven games which was one of the largest non-drug related suspensions of the 2014 MLB season. At the time, Papelbon was heavily scrutinized for his exchange with fans and umpire, Joe West. Though this incident happened so recently, ESPN and many college media outlets have forgotten about his large suspension and instead created positive report through his appearance on College GameDay.

The way Papelbon handled the co-anchors, fans and additional media in Starkville helped his image in a positive way. Throughout the entire day, he was immersed in school pride, whether in his dress or his constant cheering with the fans. In addition, Papelbon lit up a cigar on national television, showing that he was completely relaxed and in control of the situation. He also recited many chants with fans and was interactive with co-hosts Kirk Herbstreit, Desmond Howard and Lee Corso. ESPN allowed this because it creates a large buzz, not only among college football fans, but baseball fans as well. This move only increased their ratings and created more buzz for their program.

Less than a month prior, Papelbon was one of Philadelphia’s least favorite athletes. Though he posted an impressive 2.04 ERA this season, the lack of success of the Phillies and this incident worked against him. He is in the final year of his contract and this may be the last memory that Phillies fans have of him. Philly.com pointed out that the Phillies organization fully supported the MLB’s decision and apologized on behalf of Papelbon. In addition to his large contract, local Philadelphia media were hinting that this might be the final straw for Papelbon and the Phillies.

Jonathan Papelbon’s behavior has gotten him in trouble in the past, and yesterday’s College GameDay appearance helped him immensely. However, the media’s neglect over his seven-game suspension has also worked into his favor. I guarantee that very few people in the crowd thought of his obscene gesture on the diamond, but rather they were focused on the way he was dressed and the many ways he was going to entertain the crowd.

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Manti Te’o’s Girlfriend A Hoax

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BY LORI RAUDIO

Most people who followed college football this season heard the story of Notre Dame player Manti Te’o. The Heisman candidate inspired thousands of people when he led the Fighting Irish to an undefeated season despite two devastating losses in his family: his grandmother and his girlfriend.

Te’o’s tragic tale consumed the media. His story was featured in Sports Illustrated and on College Gameday and became one of the biggest stories of the year. He even wrote a letter to a family who lost a child, identifying with their pain and offering comfort.

Today, however, the story came crashing down. In a story by Deadspin, authors Timothy Burke and Jack Dickey revealed Te’o’s girlfriend, Lennay Kekua, never existed. They found no record of her birth, no death certificate, and supposed pictures of her were traced to a different woman. This news broke on Twitter and immediately went viral.

Within a few hours of the article being published and the Twitter overload, Notre Dame and Te’o released statements. Both acknowledged the hoax as well as an ongoing investigation. Te’o called the situation “incredibly embarrassing to talk about,” and said the woman he thought he was in an online relationship played a sick joke.

This news leaves a lot of questions unanswered. Who is the woman Te’o thought he was dating? Where did Deadspin obtain its information, and why didn’t Te’o comment before the story broke?

With the way the media hyped Te’o’s story, it is simply shocking to believe it isn’t true. While I feel sorry for Te’o, I also feel a little betrayed. How long were we led to believe his story after he learned the truth?

More information will surely come out pending the investigation, and this story will surely be a headline in the media for the coming weeks. It will be interesting to see how Te’o’s fans react and how it affects his NFL prospects.