The national spotlight will be on the University of Utah on Saturday, Oct. 28, when it hosts ESPN College GameDay in Presidents Circle, leading into Utah Football’s MUSS Appreciation game against Oregon at 1:30 p.m. MT on FOX.
The show is returning to Salt Lake City for the fifth time in school history (2004 vs. BYU, 2010 vs. TCU, 2015 vs. California, 2016 vs. Washington) and is set to showcase a top-25 matchup with the Utes and the Ducks battling it out in what is set to be the 81st straight sellout in Rice-Eccles Stadium.
The basics
The ESPN College GameDay set will be planted in the heart of campus, located on Presidents Circle off University St. with the show going live from 7-10 a.m. MT. The stage will be located on the lawn facing east, while Utah fans will gather behind the set with the Park Building in the background with admission to the set on Friday and Saturday being free.
Friday lineup
On Friday, Oct. 27, fans will have the opportunity to welcome the College GameDay crew to Salt Lake City with ESPN airing shows live from Presidents Circle. Fans can watch SportsCenter, The Pat McAfee Show and College Football Live.
Saturday lineup
ESPN will air multiple segments on Saturday, Oct. 28, starting at 5:45 a.m. MT on SportsCenter, then going live for ESPN College GameDay at 7 a.m. MT. The first 500 students will receive first access to The Pit based on queuing order, starting at 5 a.m. MT.
Calling all students
Starting at 6 p.m. MT on Friday, Oct. 27, students can begin lining up at Presidents Circle to start the queuing process. Only University of Utah students will be allowed to camp at Presidents Circle on Friday evening, and all tents and equipment need to be cleaned up by 4:30 a.m. MT Saturday, in advance of the entry process to The Pit. There will be no alcohol allowed in the camping area.
The pit
Fans can start queuing in The Pit for the show early Saturday morning at 5 a.m. Items prohibited in the pit included bags of any kind, food, drinks, pens, pencils, markers or dry erase boards or any signs on sticks.
One of the most beloved traditions with College GameDay is the making of signs. Fans are asked to keep signs appropriate with no vulgar language. For fans entering the pit, signs can’t be on poles or oversized. All signs brought in to Saturday’s taping will be inspected before entry and must abide by the sign policies that ESPN has put in place.
Follow along
Fans can follow along with the action and get updates on the Utah ESPN GameDay Central Page on UtahUtes.com.
More details on the potential impacts of GameDay on the campus and surrounding community are here.