Scottie Scheffler drops the Louisville joke, sings, makes picks on College GameDay appearance
Pat McAfee and Scottie Scheffler on College GameDay.
ESPN
Texas is back. That means Scottie too. On College GameDay, that is.
Scheffler, who grew up in Dallas and attended UT, joined the set of ESPN’s popular pregame show as a guest selector before the No. 1 Texas Longhorns’ SEC matchup with No. 5 Georgia on Saturday. That meant he sat down with Kirk Herbstreit, Pat McAfee, Nick Saban, Rece Davis and Desmond Howard to make his selection ahead of Saturday’s slate.
Here are five takeaways from Scottie Scheffler’s College GameDay appearance.
No. 1 chose Number 1
I spent a few minutes trying to find the last time a golfer was ranked World No. 1 when his alma mater was No. 1 in football, too. I think we can pretty much agree on Justin Thomas, who wasn’t technically number 1 in time football season — but when it peaked in May 2018, Alabama was a few months removed from the national championship and a few months from starting the next season at No. 1. Good enough.
Saturday marks a good day for the Longhorns, though. While Texas has started its season 6-0, it has yet to reach Scheffler’s 2024 win total (seven on the PGA Tour, plus Olympic gold) and will face Georgia on Saturday night.
It was no surprise what Scheffler chose.
“Texas only gave up three touchdowns all year,” Scheffler said. “I think Texas is the No. 1 team in the country and I think they’re proving that tonight.”
Scottie played the Louisville pick well
Scheffler would definitely be asked to choose between the University of Miami and Louisville. Scheffler, as you may recall, was arrested by Louisville Metropolitan Police in May in a bizarre incident on his way to Valhalla before the second round of the PGA Championship. While the charges were eventually dropped, Scheffler has a connection to Louisville that he will never forget. So how do you play pick? Scheffler did what he does best: a deadpan, understated, subtle grin.
“Not to bring anything personal to this about Louisville, a great city, love the people … but Miami will smoke them,” Scheffler said.
As for his memories from the incarceration?
“Actually, prison was boring because you’re always staring at the wall,” he told the team.
Scottie didn’t get any awards this time
The last time Scheffler was on the show was September 2022; he was coming off a career year that included a Masters victory and a Jack Nicklaus Award. His college coach, John Fields, made a surprise delivery to Scheffler on set.
This year? Scheffler won the Masters and became the dominant World No. 1. The Player of the Year award has yet to be announced, but we like Scheffler’s chances. Still, maybe his selectors decided he didn’t need more praise.
Nevertheless, he broke off the green jacket
“Scottie Scheffler, nice coat friend,” McAfee said. Really nice coat. As the reigning Masters champion, Scheffler is allowed to wear his green jacket in public — though not without restrictions.
Jon Rahm, who won the 2023 Masters, spoke last year about the rules surrounding the jacket. Augusta National, he said, doesn’t like the expected public exposure, so it’s been confirmed that Scheffler has given the club a heads up about continuing with GameDay.
“There’s a dress code that goes with it,” Rahm said. “You learn about this quickly when you have to sign papers and things you do. Obviously, we all know the rules surrounding Augusta National, right? And they tell you that you represent Augusta National and the jacket is Augusta National. “
And while jacket wearers usually wear a matching tie, Scheffler’s white button-down look was clearly within Augusta’s dress code.
“They don’t like to be surprised, so they have to give permission for everything. I can’t be photographed with a jacket and alcohol. It goes on and on,” explained Rahm.
And you know the words
McAfee delivered a soulful rendition of “The Eyes of Texas,” much to the delight of the UT faithful behind him. But after a few opening lines he conceded:
“I don’t know the letters.”
But Scheffler does, so he took over there. Singing, joking, picking sports — there’s not much this guy can’t do.
Oh, and he was right about Miami.
Source link
