Kirk Herbstreit wanted nothing to do with his Primanti Bros. sandwich during NFL Draft

One of the staples of College GameDay these days is the smorgasboard of local cuisine that the analysts devour during the show. But not everything on the platter is worth potentially messing up your suit over.

ESPN’s premiere college football showcase acted as one of the studio desks during Thursday’s presentations of the 2026 NFL Draft, and host Rece Davis and analysts Desmond Howard, Nick Saban, and Kirk Herbstreit were on hand to discuss the prospects who heard their names called during the first round.

Given that the event was held in Pittsburgh, it was only natural that sandwiches from local staple Primanti Bros. would make an appearance. Sure enough, towards the end of the night, platters with their iconic sandwiches, famously piled high with grilled meat, melted provolone cheese, coleslaw, French fries, and Italian bread, showed up on the GameDay desk.

No one had to tell Davis to dig in; he palmed one of the sandwiches and went to town.

“No trip to Pittsburgh is complete without going to Primanti Brothers,” said Davis, who then turned his attention to Herbstreit, who didn’t seem eager to handle the sandwich in front of him.

While Howard started picking at his plate and Saban eventually snagged a sandwich, Herbstreit tried to deflect and refused to eat anything. He even went as far as to pick up the sandwich in front of him, turn, and offer it to someone off-camera.

For some reason, Herbstreit needed that thing far, far away from him as soon as possible.

He’s lucky Pat McAfee was busy with his own broadcast; he probably would have shamed his buddy into taking a bite whether he wanted to or not.

It’s fair enough that Herbie didn’t feel like eating. Maybe he’d loaded up on Raising Cane’s beforehand. It did, however, seem like a missed opportunity for one of his dogs to have the meal of a lifetime.