Nick Saban overtook Stanford Steve on College GameDay

You can say whatever you want College game day's cast and crew, but ESPN's traveling pregame roadshow has always known how to play to the crowd. Whether Pat McAfee joins in the chants and traditions or takes his shirt off completely, Matchday listens when the crowd asks for something.

And while the Cal faithful at Berkeley didn't exactly ask to be mocked by Stanford Steve, that's part of it. You can't come to Cal and not expect the Cardinal to be mentioned, especially given the history rooted in the two programs that goes beyond conference realignment.

Stanford Steve (Steve Coughlin) played tight end at Stanford from 1996 to 2000 and never lost to the Golden Bears. He also made sure to spread the word to the unruly crowd at Berkeley, unsettling and mocking the faithful before upsetting them about their college choice.

“Didn’t lose to Cal in four years; 2-0 in this stadium at the top,” he says. “I'm biased when it comes to Cal fans because every time I've played in this stadium it's been sold out – they do a great job. But I also wonder how many of them [Cal students] are here because they didn’t make it to Stanford.”

Nick Saban made sure Stanford Steve didn't have the last word.

“I have a question for you: If it was so great at Stanford, why did you have a girlfriend here at Cal?” he asked.

“But I also wonder how many of them [Cal students] are here because they didn’t make it to Stanford.” – Stanford Steve

“If it was so great at Stanford, why did you have a girlfriend here at Cal?” – Nick Saban pic.twitter.com/CETo3nl1yW

– Awful Announcement (@awfulanncreasing) October 5, 2024

Ouch.

“There’s a saying: Nine out of ten girls in California are beautiful,” Stanford Steve quipped. “One in 10 goes to Stanford.”

“Stanford Steve’s comments do not necessarily reflect the opinions and evaluations of all of us here College GameDay set,” Rece Davis said. “We sincerely apologize to all the lovely women who have graced The Farm here at Stanford.”

This seemed like a good time to hand it over to Pete Thamel for an update.

“According to my sources, Nick Saban didn't question Stanford Steve's love life today,” the ESPN CFB insider joked.

“According to my sources today, Nick Saban Stanford has not questioned Steve's love life.” @PeteThamel I was joking before diving into the latest college football news 😅 pic.twitter.com/j4L3QHWfNn

– College GameDay (@CollegeGameDay) October 5, 2024

Indeed College game day Fashion, while the banter was fun, it's hard to beat Saban coming here for Stanford Steve.

While Matchday'While Saban, despite throwing the first punch with his Stanford-Cal jabs, the betting analyst made sure he didn't get away unscathed. At the end of the day, that's something Matchday is all about the rivalries, the laughs and a little friendly fire.

And when even Saban gets in on the jokes, you know this Cal crowd is special.

[College GameDay]