With College GameDay setting up shop in Boise for the clash between No. 24 Boise State and Oregon State, Pat McAfee had a challenge up his sleeve. His latest target? Wake Forest head coach Jake Dickert. The task sounded simple enough, but when Dickert stepped up to take his shot, things didn’t go quite as planned.
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The Demon Deacons are at Gerald J. Ford Stadium in Dallas, Texas, where they will take on the SMU Mustangs. Ahead of the game, Pat McAfee threw a challenge at head coach Jake Dickert, “$100,000 donation to a charity of your choosing coach if you’re able to hit that crossbar.”
The challenge was simple: hit the crossbar and win $100,000 for charity. Dickert stepped up for his first attempt and took his shot, but the ball fell short. However, McAfee wasn’t going to let the coach walk away without a second chance, of course.
Kirk Herbstreit stepped in to demand one more attempt for the head coach, saying, “One more. Let’s give it one more chance here. Let’s give it one more chance.” McAfee was more than happy to oblige, but this time, he raised the stakes, increasing the reward to $150,000.
Dickert was visibly fired up by the opportunity and stepped up for another attempt. He unleashed a near-perfect throw that sailed straight through the uprights, only to fall short of hitting the crossbar.
Another miss, but McAfee wasn’t about to let the food bank walk away empty-handed. Despite the failed challenge, he had a heartwarming surprise for the coach, saying, “We will still donate Pal going into the holiday. We appreciate you so much. Great work, Coach. Good luck the rest of the way.”
So far this season, Pat McAfee has spent more than $16 million through his challenges, with the crossbar challenge generating some impressive charity donations. Before Dickert, Oregon head coach Dan Lanning nailed the crossbar on his third attempt, earning a $500,000 donation from McAfee.
Interestingly, Lanning added another $50,000 of his own to the charity of his choice. Then came University of Tennessee head coach Josh Heupel, who needed just one attempt from 25 yards to secure another $100,000 donation from McAfee to charity.
The Boise State edition of College GameDay turned into a spectacle, entertaining fans both inside the stadium and those watching live on television. As the show went on air ahead of the Broncos’ clash against Oregon State, Pat McAfee made a grand entrance, riding onto the Boise State campus on horseback and instantly grabbing everyone’s attention.
Host Rece Davis had already set the stage by telling viewers that McAfee was dealing with travel trouble. However, moments later, the analyst’s voice came through, putting those concerns to rest.
“Rece Davis, can you hear me? I got you,” McAfee said. “Don’t you worry about an airplane. Don’t you worry about an automobile.”
“That horse’s name was Rodeo, and I will say to Rodeo, thank you for not bucking my a** off,” McAfee said. “I’ve never ridden a horse before. I certainly lied to them to let that happen.”
Back to the donations, the $150,000 pledge was far from the only big-money moment for McAfee this week. While in Idaho, he brought out Boise State legend Leighton Vander Esch, the Broncos’ former star and a first-round pick in the 2018 NFL Draft, for a challenge of his own.
Representing his alma mater, Vander Esch stepped up with a chance to win $1 million for charity by making a kick.
His first attempt fell short, but McAfee wasn’t ready to call it quits. He gave the former linebacker another shot, and this time, Vander Esch delivered, sending the kick through and leaving McAfee with a $1 million charity donation to make.