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Kirk Herbstreit Had Adorable Hidden Tribute for Lee Corso During Final 'GameDay' Show

Corso and Herbstreit made the perfect wardrobe choices Saturday.
Kirk Herbstreit prepared a special tribute for Lee Corso with his suit ahead of Corso's final 'College GameDay' show
Kirk Herbstreit prepared a special tribute for Lee Corso with his suit ahead of Corso's final 'College GameDay' show | Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The legendary Lee Corso made his final headgear selection Saturday in Columbus, Ohio ahead of the heavyweight showdown between No. 1 Texas and No. 3 Ohio State.

Corso, 90, picked the Buckeyes for his last hoorah. A fitting pick, as he chose Ohio State for his first headgear selection in 1996 before they beat Penn State. His longtime running mate Kirk Herbstreit was already understandably emotional in a tribute ESPN released last week. We knew Saturday would bring out all the feels for Herbstreit and the rest of the college football world.

Of course, Herbstreit prepared an incredible, understated salute to his longtime partner and friend for the special show. He showed off his custom suit jacket that was adorned with a myriad of photos of the duo on the inside:

Corso had a special getup himself, rocking a tuxedo for his final College GameDay appearance. He had a 38-year run on the show, debuting in 1987 in the first year the show aired. It began going on the road six years later, and finally, Corso grabbed a Brutus Buckeye mascot head and made his first headgear pick in '96.

The last pick ended up as the same as his first.

Since we won't see Corso on the desk moving forward, his colleagues and even the Ohio State marching band made sure to give him the proper send-off.


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Blake Silverman
BLAKE SILVERMAN

Blake Silverman is a writer at Sports Illustrated, primarily covering the NBA and WNBA. Before joining SI in November 2024 as a breaking/trending news writer, he covered the WNBA, NBA, G League and college basketball for numerous sites, including Winsidr, SB Nation and A10Talk. He’s an alum of both Michigan State and St. Bonaventure University, receiving a master’s degree from the Bonnies’ sports journalism program. Outside of work, he’s a husband, father, yogi and fairly mediocre tennis player who’s open to any tips on how to play defense in EA Sports College Football.