Pat McAfee did the last thing anyone expected. He picked the Utah Utes as his championship sleeper on Saturday’s College GameDay, even after the school posted a video making fun of him. The move comes right after a week where the host felt “very, very uncomfortable” during a trip to the campus. The school scrubbed the video and issued an apology, but the tension remains high. McAfee’s choice signals a shift from personal beef to cold football logic.
The pick that shocked everyone
McAfee stood in front of the board and named the Big 12 team as his dark horse. He admitted the selection was a surprise. “I don’t think anybody would’ve expected this,” McAfee continued during the segment, according to the New York Post. He pointed to a specific game where the Utes trailed Houston in the fourth quarter. The team responded by blanketing the Cougars and securing a huge win. He believes head coach Morgan Scalley has the best team in the conference when it is all said and done. The logic is sound. The Utes have shown they can close out games under pressure.
The drama started last Saturday when GameDay visited Utah. Students mocked McAfee’s personality and his habit of taking off his shirt. The university posted the clip on social media, which made the host feel targeted. “The university puts that out,” McAfee said on his ESPN show earlier this week. He described the feeling as getting “a lot of shrapnel from a lot of places.” It was a moment he had never experienced in his entire life. Despite the bad feelings, he looked past the drama to the talent on the field.
Beadle calls the reaction too soft
Not everyone agrees that McAfee is right to move on. Former ESPN star Michelle Beadle thinks his reaction was weak. She appeared on “The Dan Le Batard Show” on Thursday to discuss the incident. Beadle noted that women in sports media face constant death and rape threats. She said she could never be that soft. According to her, those positioned at the apex of the food pyramid require tougher skin.
McAfee posted on social media explaining the unique danger of the week. References were made by him regarding the killing of Charlie Kirk during September 2025 at Utah Valley University. For the journey, the FBI recommended that he don a vest capable of stopping bullets. He noted that snipers were sent down and police had a huge presence. “We had no idea what to expect,” McAfee wrote in a social media post, according to the New York Post. He stated that no one had previously encountered such a scenario. The fear was real, not just a feeling of being mocked.
Despite the criticism, McAfee stuck with his pick. He even joked about the conference representation. “I will say, you know who hasn’t been represented up here? Big Ten, SEC, Independent, ACC… How about — boom — Big 12!” he said. The school has since apologized for the video. McAfee vowed to “never go to that place” again, but he still trusts the team. The Utes are the sleeper pick for a reason. They have the grit to win when it matters most.
