The Pat McAfee Show draws a huge crowd to the WVU campus

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — WVU students and fans turned out in large numbers at WVU at the Life Sciences Building on WVU’s downtown campus for Friday’s live broadcast of “The Pat McAfee Show” the day before WVU opens the 2024 football season against Penn states

McAfee, a Pittsburgh native and former Mountaineer player, expressed earlier in the week that he hoped some people would show up, and they did.

WVU professor Crystal Smith arrived as the gates opened at 9 a.m. for what she called “an important part of campus culture.”

“I think it’s so important for everyone to come out this weekend for the first home football game of the season and support a great Mountaineer like Pat McAfee,” Smith said. “There are few things more important than a Friday morning lecture.

Members of the WVU Swim team participated in the broadcast wearing gear to bring more attention to the sport and hopefully attract fans to their events.

“We thought it would be good for publicity for the swim team because swimming is not well known on campus,” Braden Osborn said. “We ran it by our coaches, and the coaches gave us the green light, so now we’re here.”

Kara Blount is a junior majoring in early elementary education. She came with a group that made signs with the goal of winning a spot on the national show.

“This one says, ‘We love Pat McAfee,’ and the other one says, ‘Country roads brought home Pat Times 2,'” Blount said. “We want to be on TV! Fingers crossed we want to be on TV!”

WVU quarterback Grant Gatewood said the performance gave him just the right boost to get him ready for Saturday.

“I needed this; we need this for a long time! We haven’t had a home game like this since the 1980s and it seems like everyone is here for it,” Gatewood said. “This is what we want. This is what we need. This is Big 12 football and WVU is on top.”

Fox’s Big Noon Kickoff Show will bring pizza, drinks and sign-making supplies to the WVU Mountainlair on Friday before the national broadcast tomorrow. Students will make signs to display during the performance. The winning sign will receive $500.

The Pat McAfee Show is a top-rated three-hour sports show that airs on ESPN.