Lee Corso, the legendary ESPN broadcaster and former coach who has entertained fans for 38 college football seasons, will make his final headgear pick on College GameDay Built by The Home Depot on Saturday, Aug. 30 – Week 1 of the 2025 college football season – at a destination to be announced later this spring. ESPN will also present special programming celebrating Corso in the days leading up to Aug. 30 (date/time TBD).
Corso, who turns 90 in August, has been a part of college football’s premier pregame show since it debuted in 1987. His very first headgear pick was October 5, 1996, when he donned Ohio State’s Brutus Buckeye mascot head in Columbus, Ohio. Corso’s weekly end-of-show pick during GameDay’s Saturday Selections has become a college football tradition, surprising and delighting fans for nearly three decades. Entering his final broadcast in August, Corso has made 430 headgear picks all-time, including the Buckeyes a record 45 times.
“My family and I will be forever indebted for the opportunity to be part of ESPN and College GameDay for nearly 40 years,” said Corso. “I have a treasure of many friends, fond memories and some unusual experiences to take with me into retirement.”
Corso added: “ESPN has been exceptionally generous to me, especially these past few years. They accommodated me and supported me, as did my colleagues in the early days of College GameDay. Special thanks to Kirk Herbstreit for his friendship and encouragement. And lest I forget, the fans…truly a blessing to share this with them. ESPN gave me this wonderful opportunity and provided me the support to ensure success. I am genuinely grateful.”
“Lee Corso has developed a special connection to generations of fans through his entertaining style and iconic headgear picks,” said ESPN Chairman Jimmy Pitaro. “Lee is one of the most influential and beloved figures in the history of college football and our ESPN team will celebrate his legendary career during his final College GameDay appearance this August.”
Corso joined ESPN in 1987, following a 28-year coaching career at the college and professional levels – including 17 seasons as a head coach at Louisville (1969-72), Indiana (1973-82), Northern Illinois (1984) and with the USFL’s Orlando Renegades (1985). He is the only original College GameDay personality still with the show. (He was a contributor in 1987-88 and joined as an analyst in 1989). During his tenure, College GameDay has earned nine Sports Emmy Awards in the Most Outstanding Studio Show – Weekly category and is nominated again this year.
Alongside host Chris Fowler and Craig James, Corso was part of College GameDay’s first-ever road show on November 13, 1993 as No. 2 Notre Dame hosted No. 1 Florida State in the ‘Game of the Century’. In front of a packed crowd inside the Joyce Center in South Bend, Ind., Corso – a Florida State alum and a former star defensive back for the Seminoles in the 1950s, knew exactly how to stir the crowd, placing an FSU cap on his head as he offered his game prediction.
“It has been among the greatest joys and privileges of my life to work with, laugh with, and learn from Lee Corso for more than 35 incredible years,” said Fowler, who hosted College GameDay and worked side-by-side with Corso from 1990-2014. “His courage and resilience have inspired millions. Through his groundbreaking work on College GameDay, Lee has been an indelible force in the growth of college football’s popularity. He’s a born entertainer and singular television talent. But at his heart he’ll always be a coach, with an abiding love and respect for the game and the people who play it.”
Corso, who turns 90 in August, has been a part of college football’s premier pregame show since it debuted in 1987. His very first headgear pick was October 5, 1996, when he donned Ohio State’s Brutus Buckeye mascot head in Columbus, Ohio. Corso’s weekly end-of-show pick during GameDay’s Saturday Selections has become a college football tradition, surprising and delighting fans for nearly three decades. Entering his final broadcast in August, Corso has made 430 headgear picks all-time, including the Buckeyes a record 45 times.
“My family and I will be forever indebted for the opportunity to be part of ESPN and College GameDay for nearly 40 years,” said Corso. “I have a treasure of many friends, fond memories and some unusual experiences to take with me into retirement.”
Corso added: “ESPN has been exceptionally generous to me, especially these past few years. They accommodated me and supported me, as did my colleagues in the early days of College GameDay. Special thanks to Kirk Herbstreit for his friendship and encouragement. And lest I forget, the fans…truly a blessing to share this with them. ESPN gave me this wonderful opportunity and provided me the support to ensure success. I am genuinely grateful.”
“Lee Corso has developed a special connection to generations of fans through his entertaining style and iconic headgear picks,” said ESPN Chairman Jimmy Pitaro. “Lee is one of the most influential and beloved figures in the history of college football and our ESPN team will celebrate his legendary career during his final College GameDay appearance this August.”
Corso joined ESPN in 1987, following a 28-year coaching career at the college and professional levels – including 17 seasons as a head coach at Louisville (1969-72), Indiana (1973-82), Northern Illinois (1984) and with the USFL’s Orlando Renegades (1985). He is the only original College GameDay personality still with the show. (He was a contributor in 1987-88 and joined as an analyst in 1989). During his tenure, College GameDay has earned nine Sports Emmy Awards in the Most Outstanding Studio Show – Weekly category and is nominated again this year.
Alongside host Chris Fowler and Craig James, Corso was part of College GameDay’s first-ever road show on November 13, 1993 as No. 2 Notre Dame hosted No. 1 Florida State in the ‘Game of the Century’. In front of a packed crowd inside the Joyce Center in South Bend, Ind., Corso – a Florida State alum and a former star defensive back for the Seminoles in the 1950s, knew exactly how to stir the crowd, placing an FSU cap on his head as he offered his game prediction.
“It has been among the greatest joys and privileges of my life to work with, laugh with, and learn from Lee Corso for more than 35 incredible years,” said Fowler, who hosted College GameDay and worked side-by-side with Corso from 1990-2014. “His courage and resilience have inspired millions. Through his groundbreaking work on College GameDay, Lee has been an indelible force in the growth of college football’s popularity. He’s a born entertainer and singular television talent. But at his heart he’ll always be a coach, with an abiding love and respect for the game and the people who play it.”
