Overview
- ESPN will broadcast live from Acrisure Stadium on Pittsburgh’s North Shore from 9 a.m. to noon ET Saturday, marking the show’s first Saturday stop in the city in 20 years and its first visit since 2022.
- Rece Davis will anchor with analysts Kirk Herbstreit, Desmond Howard, Pat McAfee and Nick Saban, joined by Pete Thamel, Jen Lada, Jess Sims and “Stanford Steve” Coughlin.
- Kickoff is set for 12 p.m. ET on ABC for the CFP Top-25 matchup, with Pittsburgh entering on a five-game rise and Notre Dame on a seven-game streak after an 0-2 start.
- Game festivities will include the retirement of Aaron Donald’s No. 97 at halftime and a tribute marking 50 years since Tony Dorsett’s 303-yard performance against Notre Dame.
- The selection drew mixed reaction online, with excitement over McAfee’s hometown return and criticism for bypassing smaller-college ‘Battle of the Ravine’ and SEC showdowns such as Texas–Georgia and Oklahoma–Alabama.