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ESPN's 'College GameDay' Faces Backlash After Major Week 6 Decision

The pageantry of ESPN's college football showcase has taken a hit in Week 6.
Joe Cox|
College GameDay has an unusual Week 6 situation.... and is taking some heat for the decisions surrounding this week's show.
College GameDay has an unusual Week 6 situation.... and is taking some heat for the decisions surrounding this week's show. | USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect

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Georgia BulldogsAlabama Crimson Tide

The gameplan for ESPN's College GameDay is pretty well-known: take one of the best (if not the best) games of the weekend, travel there, have a show highlighting the camraderie and celebration of college football with lots of rowdy fans and fun pre-game antics. But Hurricane Isaias called an audible.

The Move Inside

College GameDay moved their show indoors-- to Alabama's Coleman Coliseum-- instead of hosting the show in the outdoor area around Bryant-Denney Stadium. While the reasoning may be sound, the reactions are less than thrilled.

Given the massive importance of this week's Georgia/Alabama battle, CGD was ready to be on scene in Tuscaloosa. But with horrific weather ripping through, the potential for having a show with a bunch of drenched fans and consistently trying to dodge getting expensive production equipment wet necessitated a change of plans.

Rumors midweek suggested that CGD could move to a different site that was not as likely to catch the brunt of Hurricane Isaias's wrath. Of course, given the extensive planning and organizaiton surrounding the show, ESPN was understandably reluctant to make that type of move. Instead, staying in Tuscaloosa but moving indoors was the choice. While the basketball version of CGD is always indoors, football reactions to the shift inside were not positive.

The Negative Reactions

Some Support the Move

Of course, all the reaction wasn't negative. A few people have jumped on board as fans of the indoor CGD atmosphere.

History on Late CGD Moves

In any case, there are worse situations that could have befallen this week's CGD broadcast. Notably, earlier this season, the broadcast at LSU starrted outdoors.... but had to move inside almost immediately due to severe lightning in the area. On3 sports reported that the entire-outside to inside shift at LSU was apparently accomplished in 12 minutes. But given the potential stress of a repeat situation, ESPN decided that moving inside seemed less awkward than moving literally mid-show.

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Joe Cox
JOE COX

Joe is a journalist and writer who covers college and professional sports. He has written or co-written over a dozen sports books, including several regional best sellers. His last book, A Fine Team Man, is about Jackie Robinson and the lives he changed. Joe has been a guest on MLB Network, the Paul Finebaum show and numerous other television and radio shows. He has been inside MLB dugouts, covered bowl games and conference tournaments with Saturday Down South and still loves telling the stories of sports past and present.

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