Irish Breakdown

Lee Corso Turns 90: Celebrating a True College Football Ambassador

Say what you want, but there is no better ambassador for college football than Lee Corso
Nick Shepkowski|
Jul 16, 2025; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Lee Corso on the red carpet before the ESPYS at The Dolby Theatre.
Jul 16, 2025; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Lee Corso on the red carpet before the ESPYS at The Dolby Theatre. | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

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Notre Dame Fighting Irish

Happy birthday wishes go out to Lee Corso as the Sunshine Scooter turns 90 years old on Thursday.

Corso, who coached college football for over 25 years following a playing career at Florida State,, has been the main attraction on ESPN's College GameDay for more than three decades.

Corso announced earlier this year that he is retiring from the post, with his final broadcast coming on August 30 when the show is in Columbus, Ohio for the highly anticipated Ohio State vs. Texas game.

Lee Corso: All-Time College Football Ambassador

Say what you want about College GameDay and what it has become as the conferences and ESPN become more tangled, but nobody has done more in the last 30 years to sell the great game that is college football than Corso.

His headgear picks are legendary and are as much a part of Saturday morning traditions each fall as kegs and eggs and trash-talking opposing fans.

The environment college football offers is like nothing any other American sport has. Not the NFL, not Major League Baseball, and certainly not the NHL or NBA.

Corso playing into the crowd and selling the feel of the campus each fall Saturday for the last three decades did more to sell to unique pageantry of college football than anyone else.

Lee Corso's History with Picking Notre Dame

As most people know, Corso and College GameDay's first trip to an on-site location was to Notre Dame in 1993, ahead of the epic No. 1 Florida State vs. No. 2 Notre Dame showdown.

Not long after, the show would begin going on the road regularly, and throughout the years, Notre Dame has frequently been part of the featured game.

If Notre Dame plays host to College Gameday in 2025 remains to be seen, but 34 times since Corso started making headgear picks, Notre Dame has been in the featured game.

So how has Coroso fared when picking Notre Dame games?

Corso is 24-10 overall in picking Notre Dame games when the Irish play in the featured matchup.

He has picked Notre Dame to win 16 of those games, going 11-5 with those, and is 13-5 when picking against the Fighting Irish.

Very happy birthday wishes indeed to Corso, as we're just weeks away from his final College Gameday show. Regardless of how ESPN and the show have changed in recent years, Corso's energy and true love for college football will certainly be missed as he retires.

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Nick Shepkowski
NICK SHEPKOWSKI

Managing Editor for Notre Dame On SI. Started covering Chicago sports teams for WSCR the Score, and over the years worked with CBS Radio, Audacy, NBC Sports, and FOX Sports as a contributor before running the Notre Dame wire site for USA TODAY.

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