Video Captures Alabama Softball Coach Personally Calling Fan After 'College GameDay' Shoutout

Another Saturday of ESPN’s College GameDay just means another mention of softball on the broadcast.

The College GameDay crew spent the day in Atlanta for football's SEC Championship between Georgia and Alabama. During Pat McAfee’s popular kicking contest segment, where he chooses either a student or fan to attempt a 33-yard field goal for a large cash prize, a Bulldog fan and his Crimson Tide fan wife, Ashlie, were the lucky picks.

McAfee bantered with the two newlyweds about having a split household, and asked Ashlie how long she’d been an Alabama for. Her answer was all in favor of the softball team and head coach Patrick Murphy successes over the last 28 years.

“Alabama dominates most of the time,” she said. “(I’ve been a fan) since I was in high school. I always wanted to play softball for Patrick Murphy.”

Bama fans!

Can you help me find Miss Ashley? I want to thank her for the shoutout. #RTR https://t.co/UcDNywLkyI
— Patrick Murphy (@UACoachMurphy) December 8, 2025

With a 2012 National Championship under his belt, 2025 marked Alabama’s NCAA-best 19th trip to the Super Regionals and the 24th time the Crimson Tide has reached the 40-win mark. And that’s just a few highlights from Murphy’s tenure.

“Pat Murphy can coach the hell out of softball, " McAfee replied in agreement. “Back in the day, Pat Murphy did it.”

The College GameDay segment went viral on social media, and early Monday morning, Murphy was on the hunt to find Ashlie and thank her for the live shoutout, but also initiate an apology for missing her during recruitment.

Crimson Tide fans worked their magic online to find her, and Murphy actually ended up making a personal phone call to Ashlie.

“I just have to say thank you so much for the shoutout because you would not believe how much my phone has blown up since then,” Murphy said in the call. "I apologize, I didn’t recruit you. I wish you would have worn Crimson and White.”

He found Ashlie!@UACoachMurphy @CollegeGameDay pic.twitter.com/Map9HiXgM2
— Ryan Iamurri (@RyanIamurri32) December 8, 2025

Laughing, Ashlie revealed it was a dream of hers and would have loved to represent Alabama on the field.

Murphy then encouraged Ashlie to come out and watch the Crimson Tide in 2026. He made sure she knew that he was calling from his personal cell and that she should reach when she wanted tickets.

After making significant offensive improvements, the program hopes to keep the winning momentum going into the spring. They return 13 players from last season, while also adding six freshmen and two substantial transfer additions.

The future of Murphy’s program looks only to get brighter, and it’s not something fans should miss viewing.

It’s not the first time Alabama softball was a topic of conversation among McAfee and other ESPN analysts this college football season.

In November, Nick Saban, the retired Alabama football coach and current ESPN analyst, revealed that he actually assisted Alabama head softball coach Patrick Murphy in getting ace NiJaree Canady to Tuscaloosa.

Oregon’s head coach, Melyssa Lombardi, premiered on College GameDay when the crew headed to Eugene, and analyst Kirk Herbstreit even made an appearance at fall practice.

Great to have @KirkHerbstreit and Peter 🐶 out at The Jane!#GoDucks | #Version8 pic.twitter.com/hXHIUkvanR
— Oregon Softball (@OregonSB) October 10, 2025

Oregon fans got in on the fun once more when the crew returned to Eugene for the Ducks vs. USC Trojans game, mocking USC for not having a softball team.

Softball has grown immensely over the last few years, especially at the collegiate level, and it’s exciting to see all the conversations brought into such a widely watched broadcast.

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