Image edited by Liam McGuire

Forget about College GameDay vs Big Noon Kickoff, Dave Portnoy is putting Miss Peaches up against Kirk Herbstreit’s beloved golden retriever, Peter.

Herbstreit’s golden retrievers have generated massive fanfare in recent years. It started with his late dog, Ben, traveling alongside Herbstreit every week to College GameDay and into the broadcast booth. And the fanfare has continued to follow his most recent companion, Peter.

Recently, Herbstreit claimed that the attention surrounding Peter has become so big that the golden retriever is the “Taylor Swift of college football.” Well, Portnoy heard the claim, and he took that personally.


“He was quoted, though, as saying his dog is the Taylor Swift of college football. I love his dog,” Portnoy admitted on this week’s Barstool College Football Show. “If I brought Peaches on the road, we’d need the National Guard, Secret Service, and everybody in between with crowd control.

“And he has a male dog…I just gotta defend Miss Peaches’ honor here, she is so big she cannot travel to campuses. With all due respect, if we’re gonna compare one dog in the college football world – and you’re on a panel – to Taylor Swift, it is clearly Miss Peaches.”

When Dan “Big Bat” Katz suggested Portnoy should test the theory by bringing Miss Peaches on the road, the Barstool Sports founder and Big Noon Kickoff contributor said it’s not possible. But imagine if he did it on a day when Big Noon and GameDay were in the same city? A picture of Miss Peaches and Peter together might break X. Although sometimes it seems that’s not hard to do.

“There’d be cities that would be shut down,” Portnoy said. “She’s that popular.”

This is why Fox went out and added Dave Portnoy to Big Noon Kickoff. Good luck finding someone else willing to challenge Kirk Herbstreit’s golden retrievers, albeit respectfully.

Anyone with a heart loves people who love their dogs. Because few things are more relatable and endearing than people who love their dogs. Less relatable, however, are dogs who have their own lemonade or travel to College GameDay on a private jet. But hey, that’s why Miss Peaches and Peter are duking it out to be known as the Taylor Swift of college football.

About Brandon Contes

Brandon Contes is a staff writer for Awful Announcing and The Comeback. He previously helped carve the sports vertical for Mediaite and spent more than three years with Barrett Sports Media. Send tips/comments/complaints to bcontes@thecomeback.com