How ESPN landed Pat McAfee for ‘College GameDay’ and made the best college football hire of 2022

ESPN chairman Jimmy Pitaro generally does not get involved in broadcaster hires at his company. Because ESPN employs close to 1,000 people who work in front of a camera, the company has a talent department charged with negotiating such contracts. Pitaro will tell you that he wants to make the job of his talent department easier, not harder, and in most situations, the absence of the ESPN chairman provides better clarity for all sides. But there are times when he will directly become involved — and procuring Pat McAfee was one of those times.

On Wednesday, ESPN announced McAfee will join “College GameDay” as an analyst. He debuts this Saturday for the show’s visit to Austin, Texas, as a prelude to Alabama-Texas. As part of his ESPN deal, McAfee will contribute to coverage of the Rose Bowl, the College Football Playoff semifinals and national championship game, the Super Bowl and Pro Bowl, and also make select appearances on “Get Up.” He has a separate agreement with Peyton Manning’s Omaha Productions to host six college football alternate telecasts produced by Omaha in collaboration with ESPN.

What’s particularly interesting here is that McAfee had previously worked at ESPN — and it was not a seamless fit by any stretch. He joined ESPN in 2019 and was given a potpourri of assignments including working as a game analyst for Thursday night college football and appearing on “GameDay.” I personally found him a unique broadcasting figure, but for some ESPN staffers, it was akin to driving a Ferrari at full speed in the middle of Manhattan traffic. There was a push among McAfee’s fans (and McAfee himself) to get him an analyst role on “Monday Night Football” before ESPN ultimately announced the team of Joe Tessitore and Booger McFarland. The sides parted ways, and McAfee’s broadcasting star has exploded since, including hosting a massively popular YouTube show appropriately titled, “The Pat McAfee Show,” and as a commentator for the WWE’s “Smackdown” program, which airs Fridays on Fox.

“From the day he left, we all wanted Pat back at ESPN, starting with ‘College GameDay,’” Pitaro said. “Pat and I agreed that he and I would try to figure this out together, which is what happened. To be clear, that’s rare.  As I’ve told you in the past, I have a tremendous amount of respect for our talent department, and they do fantastic work. My job is to make their lives easier, not harder. Sometimes me getting involved and in the weeds creates challenges. Again, while somewhat of an anomaly, it worked out well this time. There’s no ambiguity when talking with Pat; he’s very clear on what’s important to him and what’s not, and I appreciate that as it makes it all easy.”

“Our business relationship has been a really cool one,” McAfee said Thursday night of Pitaro. “Since our first conversation, he seemed to understand me a good bit more than most TV execs. (Pitaro) has been nothing but cool to me. I’m very thankful for that. The national championship invite was an insanely nice gesture. That type of s— goes a long way with me. I’m pumped that we have figured out how to make this ‘GameDay’ opportunity happen. The show’s an institution, I’m lucky to be a part of it. I’m going try my best to be an additive for the good of the show, for the good of college football, and also as a thank you to Jimmy for his efforts and never giving up on our potential together.”

In a frenetic and interesting stream of consciousness Wednesday on his daily show, McAfee provided background on why it didn’t work full-time with ESPN on his first go-around with Bristol and how appreciative he was that Pitaro stayed the course to do business together again. He explained how he crafted what is now a unique sports media career and how he plans to navigate his multiple jobs. He said his “GameDay” deal is for two seasons.

“He could have very easily given up on a relationship with me and the multiple things that have happened,” McAfee said on his show of Pitaro. “ESPN at one point banned their employees from coming on this show. That’s what it got to at one point with ESPN. So me and Jimmy since those moments have become pretty cordial. Like pretty good friends.”

“It’s been incredible to see what Pat has accomplished without the support of a major sports media company,” Pitaro said. “I think that’s largely because he’s real, authentic and unafraid. His top attributes are exactly what we look for — he’s willing to say what he believes, he is genuine, incredibly knowledgeable and passionate. He resonates strongly among young fans, and he has a significant and engaged social presence. He’s that rare talent that both my teenagers and I find compelling.”

McAfee said Pitaro invited him last January to watch the college football national championship game in Indianapolis inside an ESPN suite. While no deal was consummated that night at Lucas Oil Stadium, it clearly had an impact on McAfee and Pitaro.

“He and his team were incredible guests in our suite,” Pitaro said. “Very thoughtful and gracious the entire time. I was definitely thinking that event was just another step in terms of building our relationship. By no means was I thinking that we’d work out a deal in that suite or soon thereafter, nor did that come close to happening. But it was a good next step for us in terms of getting to know each other, building some trust and continuing the dialogue. It’s a marathon, not a sprint, and we ultimately got to a great place. I think Pat would echo that sentiment.”

There was a time I used to give out Sports Media Awards, an entirely made-up set of accolades that had zero meaning or relevance other than getting people mad at me for not making a list. If I were to offer awards in 2022, McAfee would have the pole position on the 2022 Sports Media Personality of the Year. In a short time since retiring from the NFL in 2016, he has developed a huge audience both in the digital and linear space. McAfee’s professional resume includes two iconic sports entertainment companies (ESPN and WWE), and he found his way back to ESPN on his terms. The New York Post was first on the reporting of McAfee to ‘GameDay.’

Sports broadcast riches for former NFL players are usually the domain of former quarterbacks, former coaches, or players who were stars at a non-quarterback position. McAfee was a punter in the NFL. Shams Charania of The Athletic and NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reported that his current deal with FanDuel Sportsbook is valued at $30 million a year. He has created a path for ex-athletes with an untraditional on-air skill set to find audiences and riches, and his star has created significant financial opportunity for the producers and the cast members on his show — that is a real achievement. He has parlayed relationships with newsmakers such as Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers into plenty of publicity for his show.

“I am a lucky f—— human,” McAfee said on his show. “I know that. I am trying to enjoy it as much as possible. I’m living the dumbest life possible. I think I work my ass off, so hopefully karma does come around.”

If you watch McAfee on WWE programming or his YouTube show, his gift is simple to define but hard to replicate: He lets the audience in. Charles Barkley does the same thing. I don’t know McAfee beyond some brief communication exchanges, but informed analysis through those who have covered him make it clear that he enjoys people. He is a performer without feeling performative. “Pat loves people,” says The Athletic writer Bruce Feldman, who profiled McAfee in this fantastic 2020 piece. “He has a great sense of how to connect with people because he’s very self-effacing and doesn’t take himself too seriously.”

In a clear sign of how much they value him as an on-air performer, McAfee said the WWE will let him take off from his “Smackdown” responsibilities during the college football season. He has excelled as both a commentator and someone who can perform in the ring, as he did at WrestleMania 38 in Dallas.

“Pat’s work ethic is as exceptional as his on-air product is,” said Nick Khan, the co-CEO of WWE. “We wish Pat the best, and look forward to him remaining as part of the WWE universe.”

“College GameDay” is crowded. It has a lot of voices to feed — and highly-paid voices at that. It mixes frivolity, best-in-class features, on-site visuals, analysis, energy, and cast chemistry. The challenge for “GameDay” coordinating producer Drew Gallagher, producer Jim Gaiero and managing producer Lindsey Lloyd — a trio of talented and well-liked production staffers — is to find ways to integrate McAfee seamlessly. My educated guess is that they will use McAfee as a regular member of the cast. He’ll be on the desk at the start of the show; he’ll be on the desk at the end of the show. He’ll be part of the conversations of college football — this is a guy who doesn’t run out of things to say. The production challenge, along with massive opportunities, will be not to overuse or overproduce him.

“Our ‘College GameDay’ team is already strong,” Pitaro said. “There’s a reason why it’s the preeminent pregame show. Pat’s addition makes ‘GameDay’ that much stronger, and the folks on that set are excited to welcome him back. We don’t have to worry about chemistry — it’s already there.”

Pitaro deserves a ton of credit here because there are media executives who would not have followed up with McAfee. He kept the lines of communication going and just made the best college football broadcasting hire of 2022.

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(Photo of McAfee, center, on the set of “College GameDay” in 2019: Steve Limentani / ISI Photos / Getty Images)