• 25th Season of Road Shows Begins at Site of Florida State vs. Alabama
• Maria Taylor Joins the Seven Time Emmy-Winning Program
• Coach Corso to Make Headgear Selection No. 300 This Season

College GameDay Built by The Home Depot will bookend the college football season in Atlanta, starting with the three-hour premier college football pregame show (9 a.m. – noon ET) airing from International Plaza outside Mercedes-Benz Stadium on Saturday, Sept. 2, in advance of the 2017 Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game between Florida State and Alabama. Then, in early 2018, College GameDay will return to the new, state-of-the-art stadium prior to ESPN’s airing of the College Football Playoff National Championship on Monday, January 8.

College GameDay Embarks on 25th Year of Road Shows; Part of Mercedes-Benz Stadium Grand Opening
The first full Saturday of college football will commence College GameDay’s 25th year originating from college campuses and marquee games. Road show number 328 will also be the show’s 11th edition from Atlanta, having aired from the Georgia Dome eight times and Georgia Tech twice.

College GameDay is familiar with the Crimson Tide and Seminoles, having already been at the game site of the two traditional powers a combined total of 72 times. However, September 2, will be a new scene for College GameDay and the two teams, as the anticipated top 5 showdown will be the first college football game held in the new stadium. The must-see matchup will air on ABC’s Saturday Night Football (8 p.m.).

Atlanta’s Maria Taylor Added to Cast of Fan Favorites
College football fans will start their Saturday mornings with many familiar faces as Rece Davis returns as host and Lee Corso, Desmond Howard, Kirk Herbstreit and David Pollack all return as analysts. The College GameDay veterans welcome Atlanta native Maria Taylor, who joins the show as a reporter this season, replacing Sam Ponder who has a new role with ESPN. Taylor spent Saturdays last season hosting SEC Nation.

College GameDay will once again provide fans a little bit of everything on Saturday mornings, including storytelling by Jen Lada, Tom Rinaldi and Gene Wojciechowski. Chris ‘The Bear’ Fallica will continue to chime in with his knowledgeable nuggets and explore the game behind the game.

College GameDay Recognized in the Offseason
At this year’s Sports Emmy Awards in May, College GameDay won its fourth consecutive Emmy for Outstanding Studio Show Weekly and its seventh overall in the category. Additionally, Corso, Howard, and Wojciechowski signed new contracts.

Coach Corso to Make His 300th Headgear Selection This Season
Coach Corso will once again don a mascot head to conclude each show, as he looks to add to his impressive .656 winning percentage. Corso, who enters the season with a headgear record of 193-101, will make headgear selection No. 300 on Saturday, Oct. 7.  Additional Coach Corso headgear facts:

• Corso has selected Alabama the most times of any school, achieving a 17-9 record in the 26 games he has picked them.
• Corso has picked FSU 19 times, the third most of any school and holds a 13-6 record when he does
• Corso is 6-2 in his last eight week 1 picks

-30-

Media contact: Derek Volner at 860-384-9986; [email protected] and @DerekVolner