Pat McAfee goes scorched earth on NCAA in support of James Madison football program

Pat McAfee is a multi-talented individual. Apart from enjoying a successful NFL career as a Pro Bowl punter and leveraging his on-field success into post-career stardom as a sports media personality, McAfee has also dipped his toes into the world of sports entertainment with the WWE. While McAfee seamlessly merges his work for ESPN with his endeavours in the WWE, he has never before delivered a monologue that resembled a top-tier wrestling promo as much as he did today in Harrisonburg, Virginia in front of hundreds, if not thousands, of fans of the James Madison football program. The ‘What!’ chants even echoed, evoking memories of vintage Stone Cold Steve Austin.

This place is AWESOME #PMSLive pic.twitter.com/cbRt2F0mhY

— Pat McAfee (@PatMcAfeeShow) November 17, 2023

Now, I’ll be the first to admit that I’ve never been the biggest Pat McAfee fan, but anyone who fearlessly and unapologetically takes on the NCAA, as McAfee just did (live on ESPN, no less), earns big points in my book. This segment was a masterclass in showcasing both the broken nature of the NCAA and the sheer joy of college sports.

McAfee is absolutely right: the fact that the James Madison football team, currently undefeated, is ineligible to participate in a bowl game purely because they are in their second year in the FBS is utterly ludicrous. It doesn’t matter that James Madison is ranked 18th in the country, holds a substantial point differential, and has already defeated teams in the ACC, Mountain West, and Conference USA over the last two seasons. Regardless, the NCAA has already rejected James Madison’s request to compete in a bowl game this year.

(Feel free to start those chants again)

The energy from the crowd was exceptional. It brought back memories of my time as a junior at Florida Gulf Coast University during the ‘Dunk City’ Sweet Sixteen run in 2013. It gave you that feeling like your school was at the pinnacle of the sports world.

At present, the James Madison football team is…whether the NCAA allows it or not.