Undefeated so far, Curt Cignetti’s Indiana Hoosiers are taking on the defending Big 10 champion at Eugene. College GameDay is present at the Autzen Stadium, with Pat McAfee riling up the crowds with his fiery comments. His victor’s pick? “Indiana gets a win today. Change its trajectory, of all of college sports.” For a moment, you might wonder why McAfee, long an Oregon fan, is advocating for Indiana. The reason? His wife, Samantha, is from Indiana and has been rooting for the Hoosiers all along.

Showering Lanning’s roster with compliments,  he began, “You would think that would scare this year’s Cignetti’s team. You think that because Autzen so damn hard to win it, and they don’t smoke cigs around here, they smoke trees around here,” said a fiery McAfee, surrounded by an energized crowd. “Fernando Mendoza has no chance to come in here.” He added. “I love Oregon. I love Dan Lanning. I was shirtless with that man this morning….But my wife is a Hoosier through and true, and so am I , baby,” he yells, followed by the chants of Hoosier, filling the air. A devoted husband first, a lifelong fan second.

Samantha is an animal activist, the CEO of Fur the Brand, hailing from Greenwood, Indiana (per her Facebook profile), and attending the University of Southern Indiana. It was in 2016 that she made her relationship public by sharing a photo on Instagram. After dating for four years, and being engaged for another year, the couple walked down the aisle in 2020.

“My wife is the best & an absolute rocketship,” he wrote on X the following evening. “I’m the luckiest man to ever grace this here planet, I appreciate you all more than you could fathom 4 following along.” Samantha gave birth to their daughter, Mackenzie Lynn McAfee, in 2023.

She constantly supports him in his media career, following his NFL retirement. “He works all the time, even the hours you’re suppose to be resting,” she captioned an Instagram photo of Pat ahead of Mackenzie’s birth. “His brain is always thinking of how to make the show better, how to make his team better, how to be a better human, friend, husband and soon to be father.”

On Saturday, it was the first time the Mountaineers alum picked against the home team this season, with him being the only panelist to root for the Hoosiers. Kirk Herbstreit, Desmond Howard, Nick Saban, and Sabrina Lonescu all nodded their heads towards the 2024 Big 10 champion. Presently, as per FanDuel, Eugene is the 7.5 favorite to emerge victorious.

McAfee ditches Dan Lanning

Earlier, Dan Lanning was present on the College GameDay. Nick Saban challenged the head coach to fire up the crowd. Pat McAfee, known for his fiery personality, and Lanning accepted the challenge. They stood up, hopped onto the chair. pulled off their hoodies and shirts, facing an electric crowd. That’s what McAfee is referring to in his statement above, rooting for Dan Lanning.

Later, before he announced his Indiana pick, he fired up the crowd as he built on the Oregon momentum. “Whenever you think about Curt Cignetti’s team from JMU and IUP and stuff like that, his teams, they don’t get a chance to win these types of games,” he said. “Indiana last year was certainly a good fairy tale story, but whenever they ran into Ohio State, they (bleep) the bed. And whenever they played Notre Dame, same damn thing – couldn’t get a stop.” The crowd was almost sold out on his picking Oregon. But in the last moment, the analyst picked his wife’s alma mater, and the internet had a jaw-dropping reaction.

Well, this wasn’t the first time McAfee has performed stints like that. Remember, when Lee Corso retired from ESPN,  passing down his legendary seat to Pat? The analyst pulled off a similar stunt at the University of Miami. He ran towards the pool, stripping down to his speedo, and jumped into the pool, yelling, “I think U is back.” The internet had mixed reactions to that, but if you want an adrenaline-packed crowd, you can count on Pat to deliver that. It’s his highly energetic personality and theatrics that keep him trending on the Internet.