Who the guest picker on College Gameday should be in Bloomington for Indiana vs. Washington this week
Unless your name is Curt Cignetti, the biggest surprise of the College Football season has been the Indiana Hoosiers. They remain undefeated with a 7-0 record and are coming off their most impressive win of the season, blowing out the Nebraska Cornhuskers by a score of 56 to 7. Last week, the hype around the Indiana football […]
Unless your name is Curt Cignetti, the biggest surprise of the College Football season has been the Indiana Hoosiers.
They remain undefeated with a 7-0 record and are coming off their most impressive win of the season, blowing out the Nebraska Cornhuskers by a score of 56 to 7.
Last week, the hype around the Indiana football program landed them the Big Noon Kickoff crew from Fox coming to record their live show on campus. And this week, ESPN's College Gameday crew is making the trip to Bloomington.
Who will be the guest picker for College Gameday at IU?
With Gameday coming to Bloomington, people have been discussing all the possible people who could be selected as the special guest pickers to represent Indiana University. There are multiple intriguing options, but I have three people who seem the most likely.
Joe Buck
First, I will predict who will be the guest picker, which is ESPN broadcaster Joe Buck. The legendary broadcaster attended Indiana University in 1989, though he didn't graduate as he left to pursue a professional career as a broadcaster, which I'd say worked out pretty well for him. Buck is now the play-by-play analyst for ESPN's Monday Night Football broadcast with NFL Hall of Famer Troy Aikman. While Buck didn't graduate from Indiana, he was awarded an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree in 2016. He is already an employee of ESPN and would have plenty of time to travel from Bloomington on Saturday to Pittsburgh for his Week 8 Monday Night Football broadcast. And who knows, maybe he can bring Aikman, who has jokingly said he is an even bigger Indiana football fan than Buck.
Mark Cuban
One of the most well-known Indiana graduates in the world is Billionaire Mark Cuban. Cuban is best known for his role on the hit T.V. show "Shark Tank" as well as being the long-time majority owner of the Dallas Mavericks. While he is no longer the majority owner of the Mavericks he still is a major part of the franchise. Cuban transferred to Indiana University ahead of his sophomore year and went on to graduate from the Kelley School of Business in 1981 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Management. As one of the universities' most successful alums, having Cuban on Gameday could be a wise decision in the current college world where NIL is king.
Isiah Thomas
If College Gameday wants to bring a former Indiana University athlete on to highlight their storied history, the best option might be former Hoosier basketball star Isiah Thomas. Thomas started his college career in 1979 under legendary head coach Bob Knight. He went on to play two seasons with the Hoosiers. He played in and started 63 games, averaging 15.4 points, 5.7 assists, and 2.2 steals per game. Having Thomas as the guest picker would allow Indiana to highlight their impressive football program in 2024 and the basketball program that has been their focal point for most of their long history. While he left early for the NBA, Thomas made a point to finish his education and graduated from Indiana University in 1987.
Why it most likely won't be Trayce Jackson Davis
The obvious choice to be the guest picker is Indiana basketball legend and current Golden State Warriors player Trayce Jackson-Davis. He is a graduate of the University and was a star on their basketball team. His brother, Tayven Jackson, is set to be the Hoosiers' starting quarterback this week, with star quarterback Kurtis Rourke already ruled out with a thumb injury.
It would be awesome to have Jackson-Davis back in Bloomington on the College Gameday stage, but the NBA regular season kicks off this week. The Warriors have games on Friday and Sunday in Utah and California. And Jackson-Davis is a regular member of the team's rotation, which essentially takes him out of the running.
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