ESPN's College GameDay Pulls Double Duty With Back-to-Back Shows at Auburn on Saturday, South Carolina on Sunday Two teams will be deployed to cover must-see men's and women's games 300 miles apart By Kristian Hern ndez, Senior Editor Friday, February 14, 2025 - 2:43 pm
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ESPN's College GameDay, the broadcaster's marquee college-basketball studio show, is accustomed to traveling around the nation to different campuses throughout the season. This weekend, though, will be an entirely new experience: the show will not only highlight must-see matchups in both the men's - No. 1 Auburn vs. No. 2 Alabama - and the women's - No. 7 UConn vs. No. 4 South Carolina - game but do it back-to-back on Saturday and Sunday.
For as many times as College GameDay has been to the University of Alabama for college football, last year was the first visit to Alabama for basketball in the 20-year run of College GameDay going on the road, says Judi Weiss, manager, remote operations, ESPN. Both [men's and women's basketball] shows will broadcast from their [respective] basketball arena.
Writing a Plan: Preseason Talks Bring Vendors, Resources on Board for the Road Ahead Prior to tipoff of the first game, ESPN's remote-operations and production teams formulate a thorough plan for the entire regular season. The planning process typically begins in late October, and an initial conference call or email will notify the crew in early January what the first destination will be. The bulk of this phase is handled by two managers from remote operations and an operations specialist, who sift through the onsite surveys and oversee execution of the plan. In total, they work alongside a team of 39, including an operations producer and the vendor partners. Keeping the production crew on the same page requires constant sharing of ideas, and a back-and-forth dialogue is essential.
The 2025 College GameDay schedule tipped off on the Auburn campus on Jan. 25.
Communication with production colleagues is crucial for synergy heading into the season and throughout, says Weiss. Initially, we'll have biweekly calls with our core team, including crewing, network traffic, IT, finance, production, and operations. As the season gets closer, these meetings transition to a weekly cadence and expand to include sales, marketing, legal, security, safety, PR, and school representatives. This structured approach ensures that everyone has a clear blueprint for how each week's show will come together.
One of the key pieces to the puzzle to get locked down is the mobile units, camera equipment, and other technological needs. In addition, available freelance production and operations staff must be found. With College GameDay starting in late January and the expanded College Football Playoff putting the National Championship on Jan. 20, a tight turnaround made crewing a challenge.
Securing vendors and facilities for the season is a time-intensive process, notes Weiss. Studio events present unique and unpredictable challenges. Executing production's creative vision requires adaptability, creativity, and a full-time commitment. Changes can be made, and last-minute production requests are not an exception but the norm.
Luckily, the necessary gear and infrastructure were secured. Coverage of the men's games relies on Game Creek Video GameDay mobile unit; Illumination Dynamics for lighting; West River Light and Sound for the staging/PA mix; CP Communications for RF audio; the JayBird Jibs jib camera; a Bristol, CT-based Steadicam operation; and a new 7- by 13-ft. Versa Screen by Go Vision for talent talkbacks, deeper analysis, and breakdowns. The women's shows have been using a Live Media Group HD21 Lucie mobile unit, which is the same truck used for SEC Nation during the college-football season; True Grip staging, lighting, and PA mix; Faction Media Steadicam and operator; CP Communications RF audio; and JayBird Jibs jib camera. This week, a new workflow will be introduced: a live interview during the show will deploy a Proto Luma Hologram system.
Two Crews: One for the Men's Game in Tuscaloosa; the Other for the Women's in Columbia As the college-basketball season got underway, ESPN was prepared for seven shows for the men's side and five for the women's side. All things were going as planned, until unexpected winter weather in the Southeast disrupted the scheduled game between LSU and the University of South Carolina in late January.
ESPN announcer Rece Davis (right) speaks with reporter Alyssa Lang on the new 7- by 13-ft. Versa Screen by Go Vision.
The season's first weekend for both shows was not the usual back-to-back, with the women's show from the University of South Carolina in Columbia scheduled for Thursday, Jan. 23 and the men's show from Auburn University on Saturday, Jan. 25, says Weiss. Due to weather in New Orleans, LSU was unable to travel to South Carolina, and College GameDay [was canceled]. Despite the setback, the operations team, vendors, and crew - who were already in the middle of preseason truck setup and inventory - were able to conduct a full facility check and dress rehearsal in preparation for our return show on Saturday.
This weekend's show will be separated by more than 300 miles, requiring the broadcaster to roll with two crews. With the end of the college-football season, the basketball version of College GameDay has received a helping hand from staffers who worked on the college-football version. In addition, the mobile units powering the college-football shows will be dedicated to college basketball for the rest of the season.
The advantage of using the college-football trucks is that they are set up in August to accommodate most of our remote studio broadc
