Buckeyes and Lions: College GameDay Travels to Columbus Ahead of Top Ten Matchup Between No. 2 Ohio State and No. 8 Penn State

• Eddie George to Join Show as This Week’s Guest Picker

  

College GameDay Built by The Home Depot is heading to Columbus, Ohio for this weekend’s show. The three-hour traveling pregame show (9 a.m. – noon ET) will be live from in front of St. John Arena, preceding a Big Ten matchup between No. 2 Ohio State and No. 8 Penn State. The show will move into the Horseshoe for the final hour, capturing the atmosphere and pregame warmups. Ohio State great, Heisman Trophy winner and former NFL player Eddie George will serve as this week’s guest picker, joining host Rece Davis, and analysts Desmond Howard, Lee Corso and Kirk Herbstreit for Saturday Selections – the show’s final segment.

The 11-time Emmy Award-winning show is hosted by Davis, and joined by analysts Corso, Herbstreit, Howard and David Pollack, as well as contributors Chris ‘The Bear’ Fallica, Jen Lada, Tom Rinaldi, Maria Taylor and Gene Wojciechowski. Pat McAfee will join the crew this weekend, contributing to several segments throughout the show.

College GameDay will air on ESPN and ESPNU as it does each Saturday throughout the season. Countdown to GameDay Live sponsored by Coca-Cola and Samsung QLED, will also be live on-site on Twitter, YouTube, Facebook and the ESPN App, featuring Jason Fitz, Pat McAfee and David Pollack.

The shows precede a full slate of action across ESPN networks, beginning at noon ET. Chris Fowler, Kirk Herbstreit and Maria Taylor will be on the call for ABC Saturday Night Football as No. 6 Oregon visits Arizona State, with coverage beginning at 7:30 p.m. on ABC.

Show Highlights

• A Hero’s Journey – Two years ago, former Oregon receiver Keanon Lowe returned home to Portland following the death of his best friend, because as Lowe put it “I needed to come back and help other people. ‘Cause when I help other people, it makes me feel good.” Earlier this year Lowe’s heroic act not only helped other people…it saved a life. Reporter: Gene Wojciechowski
• Lean Back – Kirk Herbstreit sits down with Ohio State running back J.K. Dobbins to talk Penn State, the College Football Playoff, and how J.K.’s offseason regiment – which saw the Buckeye bell cow cut his body fat from 12% to 8% — is paying dividends on the field. Reporter Kirk Herbstreit
• Instant Impact – As Chase Young returns, teammates and opponents react to the impact the Buckeye defensive stalwart may have on and off the field
• Tua –Tom Rinaldi reflects on the player and person that Alabama quarterback Tua Tagovailoa is as he begins his recovery

Corso Facts

• Lee Corso is 10-7 in headgear picks in Columbus, including last season when he incorrectly picked Michigan to beat Ohio State
• Corso has put on the Ohio State headgear 29 times and is 21-8 when picking the Buckeyes
  • He is 6-10 when picking against the Buckeyes and has lost each of the last four times he’s picked against the first mascot head he donned in 1996
• Corso has picked against Penn State 13 times and is 10-3 when picking against the Nittany Lions
  • He has picked Penn State six times and is 3-3 in those six picks

Stats from ‘The Bear’

• This is GameDay’s 18th trip to Columbus, marking the fifth straight year the show has made an appearance in Columbus
  • The Buckeyes are 12-5 with GameDay present for one of their games
• This is the third straight year GameDay is present at the Ohio State vs Penn State game. This is 7th time GameDay will be in Columbus for an Ohio State vs Penn State game and the 10th time total, including the three in State College. Ohio State is 5-1 in Columbus and 2-1 at Penn State.
• For the first time ever, GameDay has attended five straight games in a single season that were decided by seven points or fewer
• The Buckeyes opened as a 19-point favorite over Penn State. GameDay has been to 26 games where the spread was at least 18 points. The only underdog to pull the outright upset – 2012 Stanford, which won at Oregon as a 20.5-point favorite.

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