ESPN’s “College GameDay” is headed back to Penn State.
The network announced on Saturday that its signature college football show will be traveling to State College next week for Penn State’s White Out game against Oregon.
The program will air live from 9 a.m. to noon on Old Main Lawn ahead of the Nittany Lions’ 7:30 p.m. game against the Ducks in Beaver Stadium.
It will be the second consecutive season the Nittany Lions have hosted the show after doing so when Ohio State visited last year, when the show broadcast from outside the Bryce Jordan Center. It’s also the 11th overall time the crew has been on campus since the show’s inception in 1993, with Penn State holding a 5-5 overall record in such games.
The previous games include the following:
1999: Penn State 41, Arizona 7
2005: Penn State 17, Ohio State 10
2007: Ohio State 37, Penn State 17
2009: Iowa 21, Penn State 10
2017: Penn State 42, Michigan 13
2018: Ohio State 27, Penn State 26
2019: Penn State 28, Michigan 21
2020: Ohio State 38, Penn State 25
2021: Penn State 28, Auburn 20
2024: Ohio State 20, Penn State 13
It’s the 26th time overall that ‘GameDay’ has been hosted at the site of a Penn State game, home or away.
The Nittany Lions are ranked No. 2 in the Associated Press Top 25 poll while the Ducks rank No. 6. Penn State was on a bye week Saturday, while Oregon defeated in-state rival Oregon State 41-7. There’s a possibility next week’s game will be a top-five matchup, depending on the polls to be released Sunday afternoon, but it’s guaranteed to be a top-10 showdown.
The main competition for ‘GamedDay’ came from No. 5 Georgia hosting No. 14 Alabama, and with ESPN’s strong SEC ties, it was a strong contender. However, the Crimson Tide’s previous loss to Florida State lessened the appeal of that matchup.
As of now, Penn State is a slight favorite over Oregon in a highly anticipated battle of undefeated squads in their first regular season matchup as conference foes. The Nittany Lions hold a 3-2 record all-time against the Ducks, who won the teams’ most recent meeting 45-37 in last season’s Big Ten Championship Game.
