Aaron Rodgers 'so excited' for Cal hosting ESPN's 'College GameDay'
By Joe Lago
This week is a very proud moment for Cal alumni with ESPN's "College GameDay" coming to Berkeley for the first time ever on Saturday, when the Golden Bears play host to the eighth-ranked Miami Hurricanes at California Memorial Stadium.
A quarterback destined for the Pro Football Hall of Fame was especially thrilled about "GameDay" while making his weekly appearance on "The Pat McAfee Show."
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"I'm so excited for you guys going out there," Aaron Rodgers told McAfee and his studio crew on Tuesday.
"It's awesome. It's great for Berkeley," Rodgers said. "There's a great fan base there. It's a really interesting city."
Cal Twitter, the surprising darlings of the college football season, successfully campaigned to have ESPN choose the Miami-Cal game for the Week 6 location of its much-beloved Saturday pregame showcase.
Rodgers said he and McAfee had already texted about what to do in Berkeley. On the show, the former Bears quarterback offered "two Berkeley staples" as dining recommendations.
"One's called Top Dog. It's hot dogs," Rodgers said. "And the other is called La Burrita, which is right next door which is a Mexican spot that I went to a bunch when I was out there."
"It's a great little city. Great college town," Rodgers added. "You were saying, 'Do you think there's gonna be fans there?' I think for sure. GameDay is in town."
"I'm so excited that you're going to Cal for College GameDay..
— Pat McAfee (@PatMcAfeeShow) October 1, 2024
It's awesome and it's great for Berkeley..
There's a great fanbase out there" @AaronRodgers12 #PMSLive pic.twitter.com/npUF87yo8r
McAfee sounded skeptical that Cal fans will fill Memorial Glade, the on-campus setting for "GameDay," and pack Memorial Stadium for the game due to the 6 a.m. PT showtime and the 7:30 p.m. PT kickoff. He did say that the Cal fans who show up "will be bananas."
"I will be very impressed. I will certainly be impressed," McAfee said. "I know that the Cal fans were very loud on the internet about getting (GameDay) there."
After Saturday, the list of schools who have never hosted "College GameDay" will be down to five — Illinois, Maryland, Rutgers, Syracuse and Virginia.
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