Clemson Brings A Show To “GameDay.”

Everyone knows ESPN’s College GameDay is a huge hit.  “Well Duh,” you may say.   Where I’m going with this is that I don’t think any college football program has leveraged the scope of “Gameday” like Clemson.

First of all, some years ago the boys of “Gameday” proclaimed that Clemson produced the biggest backdrop crowd in the history of the show.   Before the UGA game a few weeks ago, in my opinion, Clemson pulled off a piece of marketing genius.  They purposely and (almost) perfectly leveraged the power of the show with the drama of their pre-game ritual.  Helicopters, motorcycles, number of cameras, etc.  The whole bit was a made for hype and drama.  Word is they preformed a dry run whereas ESPN had to work around the challenges of miles of wires and whatnot on a Friday (a school day).  Check it.

I’ve heard on the street Clemson “is working on something” for this weeks “GameDay” visit.   I think they may try and break the record for loudest stadium ever, taking it from the NFL’s Kansas City Chief’s home crowd.  We’ll see if this all happens, but they’re billing it as “Clemson Loud.”   Of course, #3 Clemson hosts #5 Florida State on Saturday in what has become the All-Time ACC Super Bowl.

“GameDay” is not only a TV hit, but also a game changer.  When the show chooses a city, it instantly helps the home team.   The production seems to pump extra life into the air of the host city, even the day before game day.  Further, since it’s a night game, it guarantees a crazier and rowdier crowd (more time to drink).  It’s just a theory, but “GameDay” probably had a little bit to do with USC whomping UGA by 30ish points last year.  UGA got jumped big time by a buildup of excitement (not just Clowney, haha).  It was an awesome weekend in Columbia, to be sure.

Getting back to the point, it’ll be interesting to see what Clemson comes up with this Saturday.   Oregon leads the pack in terms of uniform creativity, which is the kind of thing that speaks to high school seniors.  That said, Clemson may be the benchmark in terms of leveraging ESPN’s national pre-game show.  In doing so, they’re not only recruiting football players, but painting a pretty cool visual for all college applicants.

FJ