For better or worse, technical difficulties are a part of every live broadcast. They either happen, or you do everything in your power to make sure that they don’t.
On Saturday’s edition of College GameDay, we saw Kirk Herbstreit’s mic go out, as he discussed the matchup between Kansas State and Texas, and how the Wildcats have the No. 1 scoring defense in the Big 12.
As Hebersiterit, among his colleagues, scrambled to figure out what to do, Pat McAfee took it upon himself to start pretending to get undressed. Last week in Salt Lake City, Utah, McAfee went shirtless in the 34-degree weather, and the crowd in Tuscaloosa wanted him to do the same.
Fortunately for McAfee, the mics turned back on after 10 seconds of silence. However, that didn’t stop him from unbuttoning his shirt when Alabama head coach Nick Saban was on set — after he said he would not be getting undressed Saturday.
And yet, that managed not to be the biggest takeaway from College GameDay. As Herbsreit questioned whether it was someone who unplugged something to cause the technical difficulties, McAfee had other ideas.
“Probably Connor Stalions,” McAfee quipped, referencing the Michigan recruiting analyst at the center of the sign-stealing scandal. “Where is that son of a b**** at?”
Stalions resigned from his position on Friday. Shortly after that decision was made, both Stalions and his attorney, Brad Beckworth, issued statements on the matter.
“I love the University of Michigan and its football program,” Stalions said in a statement, shared by Bruce Feldman of The Athletic. “And I am extremely grateful for the opportunity I’ve had to work with the incredible student athletes, Coach Harbaugh and the other coaches that have been a part of the Michigan family during my tenure. I do not want to be a distraction from what I hope will be a championship run for the team, and I will continue to cheer them on.”
“As he informed the school earlier today, Connor chose to resign because recent stories regarding his time with the University of Michigan have created a distraction for the team. He hopes his resignation will help the team and coaching staff focus on tomorrow’s game and the remainder of the season. Connor also wants to make it clear that, to his knowledge, neither Coach Harbaugh, nor any other coach or staff member, told anyone to break any rules or were aware of improper conduct regarding the recent allegations of advanced scouting.”
Stalions fell on the sword for Michigan, but we shouldn’t expect him to fall on the sword for the technical difficulties experienced in Tuscaloosa on Saturday.
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.