Theo Von…you're up! The comedian has been chosen as the College GameDay guest picker for the Alabama game against Vanderbilt on Saturday, Oct. 4.
While Von doesn't have any known ties to Alabama and has a well-known relationship with Vanderbilt — the comedian lives in ex-Vanderbilt coach Derek Mason's house, according to Sports Illustrated, and has a budding friendship with Vanderbilt Commodores quarterback Diego Pavia — Alabama fans were not pleased to say the least with the pick.
“A Vanderbilt fan for Alabama’s College Gameday…was Roll Tide Willie not available?” one fan asked.
“But why? What does he have to do with Alabama or even Vandy? Nothing against Theo. But shouldn’t the guest picker me more than just a famous dude?” another fan asked.
One fan argued, “Y'all realize there are WAY more people tied to Alabama than just Joe Namath, right?” referencing the former Alabama and NFL star.
Rece Davis defends his College GameDay pick
Despite the backlash Von is receiving online for being chosen for Saturday's game, ESPN broadcaster Rece Davis is not backing down from his choice. Davis marveled at the comedian's eight million Instagram followers as one of the reasons why he believes Von is a good choice.
“Have you checked out his social media following?” Davis said via the Tuscaloosa News. “Do you know how many people follow him?”
“He’s hilarious, he’s been on the show before,” Davis continued. “I mean, I understand that schools like to have their legends. And we do that a lot. We’ve had Joe Namath here. If memory serves, we’ve invited Ozzie Newsome here… When you have someone who sort of transcends the game and kind of expands your reach, and he’s also awesome like Theo Von, I mean, Theo Von’s like an easy yes.”
Von was previously a guest picker for the 2023 SEC Championship Game, incorrectly picking Georgia over Alabama. The comedian has not spoken out amid the backlash at the time of this writing.
Alabama takes on Vanderbilt at 3:30 ET.
