Pat McAfee did not enjoy his time at the University of Utah this weekend as the school hosted ESPN’s College GameDay ahead of the No. 10 Utes showdown with No. 14 Houston. On Monday, both ESPN and the university responded to what turned into a larger-than-expected drama with statements regarding the matter.
During the final segment of Saturday’s show in which the hosts pick the home game they’re broadcasting from, McAfee voiced several frustrations he had with the weekend at Utah before going on to pick Houston to win on the road. McAfee cited a video shared across the university’s social channels before the broadcast, in which some students made jokes about him sometimes employing a corny line while making his picks and taking his shirt off as a bit to rile up the crowd. He also referenced the student who was chosen to partake in his kicking contest, who balked at the offering of $1 million for the kick, noting that the prize the previous weekend at BYU was $3 million.
The video, which likely would have gone mostly unnoticed if not for McAfee raising attention to it, has since been deleted from Utah’s social channels, but as with everything else anyone tries to delete from the internet, lives on elsewhere.
This is the video the University of Utah posted on Instagram that people claim turned Pat McAfee against Utah.
They’re calling him a creep for taking his shirt off… (when the entire crowd was chanting for him to do it???) https://t.co/rvs9FWz2TD
— Bill (@Billgetzfroggy) October 24, 2026
McAfee doubled down on his criticisms on his show on Monday, alluding to the assassination of Charlie Kirk.
“And then I thought to myself, has anything like really scary happened at like a college gathering in the state of Utah recently?” asked McAfee. “Like, do we think we should be amplifying reasons for why people hate my guts as a university? I don’t know.”
Watching the video, it doesn’t read like any of the students involved hate McAfee’s guts, but rather that they are familiar with his gimmick. Still, after McAfee’s show on Monday, in which he not only restated his frustration with the weekend but also noted that he was “very, very uncomfortable” throughout the show, both ESPN and Utah weighed in.
At the Worldwide Leader, McAfee’s bosses said that they took security extremely seriously and recognized “the very real and valid concerns [McAfee] has around safety and security” in a statement provided to Chris Vannini at The Athletic, which you can read in full below.
The safety and security of our on-air team, crew and fans is paramount at College GameDay. We are committed to ensuring a safe environment, and given the very real threats that members of our team face, we take issues involving their safety seriously. We support Pat and recognize the very real and valid concerns he has around safety and security.
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Meanwhile, the University of Utah apologized to McAfee for posting the video to its social media accounts, as well as for “creating any perception that Pat was unsafe or unwelcome on our campus.”
You can read that statement in full below.
The University of Utah is grateful to have had the chance to welcome Pat McAfee and the entire ESPN College GameDay crew to campus. ESPN College GameDay has visited our campus seven times and we have always enjoyed a terrific relationship and positive experiences with the entire crew.
Our goal during the visit was to create lighthearted engagement regarding Pat being back on campus, but we missed the mark. University staff are responsible for reviewing and posting content on official social media accounts and we take full accountability for that decision.
University officials have reached out to Pat to express appreciation and regret. We sincerely apologize for creating any perception that Pat was unsafe or unwelcome on our campus. Nothing could be further from the truth. Pat and the entire GameDay crew are always welcome at the University of Utah and we deeply appreciate the opportunity ESPN provides to showcase our university and community.
While McAfee clearly didn’t enjoy his weekend in Utah, he flexed his power on Monday, and got apologies from all parties involved. Whether he returns remains an open question, but he’ll have plenty of time to address it when the time comes.
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