The entire first Saturday of the college football season was leading up to beloved ESPN commentator Lee Corso making his final headgear pick at the College GameDay desk.
ESPN and its rival, Fox, even struck an agreement that would allow Fox to simulcast Corso’s selection on its Big Noon Kickoff pregame show. Everyone was set to bid farewell to the icon, with both shows broadcasting live from Columbus, Ohio, for the Ohio State-Texas game.
In the final moments of the 11 a.m. ET hour with GameDay live on-field at the Horseshoe, the GameDay crew saved Corso’s pick for the very end of the broadcast. But Fox narrowly beat ESPN to the punch.
A review of each broadcast shows that Big Noon Kickoff cut to Corso’s pick of the Buckeyes over the Longhorns 18 seconds before ESPN showed it. That probably wasn’t what the Worldwide Leader had in mind when it chose to play nice to honor its legendary analyst.
When ESPN announced Week 1 would be Corso’s final broadcast, it was a signal that the first College GameDay of the season would be primarily centered on the beloved host and his legacy. The show lived up to the high expectations of honoring Corso, featuring former GameDay host Chris Fowler, putting Corso’s colleagues in headgear with his likeness, and airing multiple tribute videos to commemorate Corso’s nearly 40-year career at ESPN.
No matter what network you work for or what team you root for, the end of Corso’s career is worth celebrating. The inspiration for Fox to show Corso’s final pick seemed genuine. Whether they jumped the gun or there was a delay on ESPN’s end, the time differential didn’t do much to sully the final moments of an iconic broadcasting career.
About Brendon Kleen
Brendon is a Media Commentary staff writer at Awful Announcing. He has also covered basketball and sports business at Front Office Sports, SB Nation, Uproxx and more.