ESPN College GameDay faces major shake-up after $3.7m loss and Pat McAfee admission

ESPN might be pulling the plug on the popular kicking contest that has become a staple of their College GameDay program.

As host Pat McAfee hinted multiple times in recent days, the segment, which has become a must-watch for fans, may be in its final season.

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McAfee’s kicking contest sees college students make a field goal for a huge amount of money.

However, the first hint at the possibility of this ending came last week when Texas A&M student Austin Roberts missed a $1 million kick as McAfee said this could be “our final kick of the season, maybe of the entire series.”

Then, when Roberts missed the first attempt, McAfee gave him another try and said, “One more kick. Final kick of the season. Final kick, maybe, of the field goal kicking contest.”

Roberts missed that kick too, but fans were more alarmed at the words coming out of McAfee’s mouth.

McAfee and the crew were in College Station, Texas on Saturday for the second part of their CFP first round double header having been in Norman, Oklahoma on Friday for Alabama’s visit to the Sooners.

McAfee ending the segment would prove highly controversial

The former Indianapolis Colts player has given away more than $2.7 million this season alone.

And the money comes out of his own pocket; last year, he coughed up $1 million.

So why could the contest end? 

That is something even sources at ESPN are not sure of.

“It would make absolutely no business sense. That’s for sure. They had the Corso thing for almost four decades. This is a similar deal. It’s a main attraction for the show,” a source told Front Office Sports. 

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“It has a benevolent quality to it because a lot of money goes to charity. So everybody is really proud of that.

“Now if Pat, all of a sudden, is saying, ‘I’m in the poorhouse because I gave away 2 million bucks,’ well that’s his problem for making bets he can’t cash. Still, he gives a lot of money away. It’s a fantastic segment every week.”

Or it could be a ploy by ESPN, according to FOS.

If McAfee is not willing to give up his own money anymore, the outlet speculated that ESPN want to look for a sponsor, and the threat of ending the segment will allow a big corporate company to save the day.

“It’s a smart one,” the outlet wrote.

“If Allstate’s going to sponsor field goal nets, surely there’s a deep-pocketed corporate sponsor that would love to slap their brand all over a highly entertaining segment that combines the best of college football, charity, and campus spirit.

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“In which case, McAfee and ESPN would be getting paid, not paying. Allstate’s sponsored ‘Good Hands’ nets are synonymous with college football. Ditto for McAfee’s kicking contest.”

Perhaps McAfee is just joking

There is a scenario that fans are just readingtoo much into things, and there’s no way McAfee is ending the segment.

The Pat McAfee Kicking Contest is too good to end and worth every penny, and has emerged as the successor to Lee Corso’s long-running mascot headgear pick.

College GameDay also just enjoyed its most-watched season, growing its audience 23% to 2.7 million average viewers.

Why would ESPN and McAfee risk fan fury by dumping the segment?

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