After the ESPN layoffs in recent months, College GameDay has added a new member to the crew on Saturday mornings in college football season.
In advance of their 37th season, ESPN's College GameDay has announced a new addition to the on-camera crew at the desk: college football betting analyst "Stanford Steve" Coughlin. "Stanford Steve" will replace researcher and analyst "The Bear" Chris Fallica, who left last year for rival Fox Sports.
Coughlin joins a talented cast on College Gameday which includes, host Rece Davis, analysts Lee Corso, Kirk Herbstreit, Desmond Howard, and Pat McAfee, college football insider Pete Thamel, and reporters Jen Lada and Jess Sims. This crew looks a bit different after David Pollack, who was part of the crew a year ago, was part of the layoffs at ESPN in recent months.
"Anyone who has met Stanford Steve knows how passionate he is about college football," said Lee Fitting, ESPN senior vice president of production, in the press release. "Adding him to College Gameday will be a great fit as we tap into both his knowledge of the sport and his betting expertise every week to serve all our loyal fans."
College GameDay: Stanford Steve joins crew as betting analyst for 2023
A former college football player at Stanford University from 1996-2000, Coughlin is quite familiar with College Gameday and excited for his new role.
"I'm jacked up to be part of this crew," said Coughlin. "Charlotte, let's bring it Week 1!"
Coughlin, a long-time staple of the ESPN community and betting aficionado, began with the network back in 2004 as a production assistant. Now, he is prominently known for being a SportsCenter commentator, as well as his joint "Bad Beats" segment with Scott Van Pelt on the midnight Sportscenter with SVP.
Additionally, he is also an ESPN.com columnist as well as a sports betting analyst on the Daily Wager, where he has offered weekly college football sports betting picks.
Coughlin and the newest installation of College Gameday will begin with a two-hour preview shot on Aug. 6, before the team takes off for Week 1 coverage in Charlotte, NC in advance of the tabbed "Battle of the Carolinas," a primetime matchup between South Carolina and North Carolina.