Rece Davis has found himself defending College GameDay decisions again.
The show’s host addressed criticism over comedian Theo Von being selected as the guest picker for Saturday’s Alabama-Vanderbilt broadcast in Tuscaloosa. Von has zero ties to Alabama and has spent the season cozying up to Vanderbilt quarterback Diego Pavia, even making a viral bet about dating Pavia’s mother.
When asked about the pick, Davis immediately fired back with his own questions.
“Have you checked out his social media following?” Davis said via the Tuscaloosa News. “Do you know how many people follow him?”
Von brings 8.5 million Instagram followers and a popular podcast to the table. He’s attended Vanderbilt practices this season and developed a friendship with coach Clark Lea. His connection to Pavia went viral during the Commodores’ win over South Carolina, when SEC Network’s Cole Cubelic reported on-air that Pavia had promised Von a date with his mother if Vanderbilt won. The Commodores rolled 31-7.
Davis defended Von as a perfect choice despite the obvious Vanderbilt connection.
“He’s hilarious, he’s been on the show before,” Davis continued. “I mean, I understand that schools like to have their legends. And we do that a lot. We’ve had Joe Namath here. If memory serves, we’ve invited Ozzie Newsome here… When you have someone who sort of transcends the game and kind of expands your reach, and he’s also awesome like Theo Von, I mean, Theo Von’s like an easy yes.”
The pick breaks from College GameDay tradition. Guest pickers usually have ties to the home school. Von appeared on the show once before, at the 2023 SEC Championship between Alabama and Georgia. He picked Georgia.
Von is a Louisiana native who bounced around multiple colleges, including LSU, before graduating from the University of New Orleans. He moved to Nashville in 2020, lives in former Vanderbilt coach Derek Mason’s house, and has become a Commodores fan.
That’s the problem. Von joins a long list of guest pickers in Tuscaloosa with zero Alabama connection: Nate Bargatze, Sam Hunt, Eric Church, Verne Lundquist, Rick Ross, Marcus Luttrell, Jake Peavy, and Brian Wilson. The exception came last year when Miss Terry Saban served as guest picker and beat her husband head-to-head in the picks segment.
When pressed about Von’s Vanderbilt ties, Davis invoked Nick Saban.
“I haven’t heard anybody complain about Nick (Saban) being up there every week,” Davis said. “I mean, Nick is going to play it and tell you what he thinks. And he might pick against Alabama tomorrow or any other time. He’s got the right to do that, and he might. But if you’re talking association, is there anyone more associated with Alabama than Nick Saban? He’s able to do his job without any problem because of past association.”
The comparison doesn’t quite hold. Saban is a GameDay analyst whose job is to provide objective analysis on all teams. Von is a guest picker specifically brought in to generate excitement for the home crowd. Having someone who’s publicly aligned with the visiting team defeats that purpose.
Regardless, Davis said GameDay is “delighted” to have Von as “a big time star” and acknowledged some fans would prefer a former player. But he argued the picks segment is just one part of the show. If the picks actually mattered, Davis said, the hosts would own Las Vegas.
“It’s fun,” Davis said. Von is “in the business of fun.”
This isn’t the first time Davis has defended a questionable GameDay decision this season. He previously addressed backlash over the show going to Miami-Florida instead of Illinois-Indiana, explaining that the show weighs storylines and atmosphere alongside rankings when selecting destinations.
Both Davis and Saban recorded videos urging Alabama fans to show up Saturday morning. Saban said he “always thought we had the best energy and enthusiasm and spirit of any place in the country in the years that I was the coach here.” But asking fans to create energy for a guest picker actively rooting against them tests that loyalty.
GameDay airs Saturday morning at 9 a.m. ET from Tuscaloosa. Alabama hosts Vanderbilt at 3:30 p.m. on ABC.
About Sam Neumann
Since the beginning of 2023, Sam has been a staff writer for Awful Announcing and The Comeback. A 2021 graduate of Temple University, Sam is a Charlotte native, who currently calls Greenville, South Carolina his home. He also has a love/hate relationship with the New York Mets and Jets.