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A look back at past guest voters for ESPN’s “College GameDay” shows in Eugene
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A look back at past guest voters for ESPN’s “College GameDay” shows in Eugene

The University of Oregon will take center stage in the college football world on Saturday.

The No. 3 Oregon Ducks host No. 2 Ohio State in one of the biggest games of the college football season, and a case can be made that it is the biggest game in Autzen Stadium history.

An indication of the magnitude of the game is that ESPN’s “College GameDay” has descended on the university and will air from campus Saturday morning. On Thursday, the broadcast announced the day’s guest selector: actress Kaitlin Olson, a 1997 University of Oregon graduate best known for her roles in “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia” and “High Potential.”

Olson is not the first guest voter with ties to the university. Here’s a look at a few others who appeared at the show in Eugene.

Sabrina Ionescu

The New York Liberty star, who is currently playing in the WNBA Finals, is the former Ducks star and appeared on the GameDay on October 10, 2022. Ionescu chose Oregon to beat UCLA as one of her ten predictions. The Ducks defeated No. 9 UCLA with a 45-30 win and Ionescu posted a 6-4 record for her predictions.

Braden Pape

The big Oregon fan burst onto the scene when he sang the entire song “Comin’ to Your Citay” at GameDay in 2011 as a four-year-old.

He returned to GameDay a year later and was the main selector on November 17, 2012. Pape picked No. 1 Oregon to beat Stanford, but his beloved Ducks were stunned 17-14 by the No. 14 Cardinal.

Tim Matheson

The actor is best known for his role as Eric “Otter” Stratton in the 1978 hit film “National Lampoon’s Animal House,” which was shot primarily on the Oregon campus. Matheson appeared on the show on September 22, 2018 and predicted the Ducks would beat Stanford, the Cardinal won the game 38-31. Matheson finished the day with an overall record of 11-5 for his picks.

Phil Knight

The Nike founder and generous contributor to the Oregon athletic program made a rare appearance on television on October 31, 2009, prior to the Oregon-USC game. Not surprisingly, Knight predicted an Oregon victory and the Ducks rolled up 613 yards of offense as they cruised to a 47-20 win.

Ashton Eaton

The former Oregon star, two-time decathlon winner at the 2012 and 2016 Olympics and two-time world champion, appeared on the show on October 26, 2013. Eaton picked No. 2 Oregon to beat No. 12 UCLA and the Ducks rolled 42-14 . The Ducks’ win was just one of four correct picks for Eaton, missing five others.

The Duck mascot

The push-up-loving mascot appeared on the show on September 6, 2014, before the No. 3 Ducks hosted number 10 Michigan State. The mascot presented Lee Corso with his own mascot head as the Ducks’ cheerleaders flooded the stage. The Ducks blew out the Spartans 46-27.