Pat McAfee is excited for ESPN “College GameDay” to take over Columbia, South Carolina, on Saturday.
“I love [Game]cocks,” McAfee proclaimed during a segment on Friday where he was talking to South Carolina football coach Shane Beamer. McAfee told Beamer in a clip shared on social media that he became aware of Gamecock nation and its fanbase last season when “GameDay” hosted the North Carolina-South Carolina rivalry game on Sept. 2, 2023.
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ESPN’s “College GameDay” will be in South Carolina at noon on Saturday for the Gamecocks‘ matchup with No. 16 LSU.
“I had no idea about this fanbase. And then when you start looking at this roster, obviously, South Carolina has produced some of the greatest football players of all time in your own backyard here,” McAfee said.
McAfee goes viral picking South Carolina over Kentucky
McAfee went viral during Week 2 of the college football season when “College GameDay” was live from Ann Arbor, Michigan, for the top-10 matchup between Michigan and Texas. During the picks segment, McAfee endeared himself when picking the SEC matchup between the Gamecocks and Kentucky.
“I’ll take the cock,” McAfee said, adding he already knew the “GameDay” crew was coming to South Carolina for this week’s game against LSU.
“I saw that,” Beamer said of McAfee’s pick. “I was obviously at the stadium when you were making the picks, getting ready to go. But you endeared yourself to a lot of Gamecocks, pretty much all of Gamecock nation. When you made that pick, there were a lot of people who had your back and are excited to see you here tomorrow because of that pick.”
Pat McAfee praises freshman Dylan Stewart
Dylan Stewart, a 5-star recruit, the No. 15 overall player, and No. 1 edge rusher nationally, according to 247Sports Composite rankings, has made an impression during the first two weeks of the college football season. Stewart has racked up six total tackles, including 2.5 for loss, 2.5 sacks and forced two fumbles. His nine QB pressures rank second in the SEC.
He has certainly grabbed the attention of McAfee.
“This Dylan Stewart guy, he’s the real deal,” McAfee said. “[6-foot-6], 248 [pound] freshman edge rusher. And he’s got this lean and dip. Whenever you recruit someone like that, you immediately think to yourself, this guy is a game changer.”
In his first game, Stewart forced a fumble with South Carolina trailing 19-16 against Old Dominion in Week 1. The forced turnover was a key play in helping the Gamecocks avoid a major upset.
“I don’t if I expected it this quickly but we knew he was really talented when we recruited him,” Beamer said. “But then when he got here and was able to go through spring practice. You get to spring practice and you realize pretty quickly that this guy is pretty special. Then watching him over the summer, the way he developed and then he had a great preseason.
“We have a lot of other good players in that defensive ends and edge room with him and I don’t if I expected him to do what he’s done the first two weeks and there’s a lot to improve on. That’s whats exciting about him and the rest of our team, we can be a lot better that what we showed last week.”
This article originally appeared on Greenville News: Pat McAfee praises South Carolina football ahead of ‘College GameDay’
