College GameDay took heat for picking Miami-Florida over Illinois-Indiana this weekend. Fans couldn\u2019t understand why ESPN would choose a game with a 1-2 Florida team that just threw five interceptions over two undefeated, ranked programs meeting in primetime.<\/p>\n
Rece Davis did his best to address the backlash<\/a> during an appearance on Stugotz and Company, offering a detailed look at how these weekly destination decisions actually get made. He laid out the factors that go into GameDay selections, starting with the obvious one that critics focused on.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n The process starts with finding compelling storylines, Davis said, but it\u2019s not as simple as picking the highest-ranked matchup.<\/p>\n \u201cWe want to find the best storyline of the week,\u201d Davis explained. \u201cNow, a lot of times, people look at that and say that always has to be the game between two teams that have the highest ranking, if you have a ranked versus ranked game. But, it\u2019s a little bit more than that. You can look for storylines, what\u2019s compelling. Where you have been factors into it, also, because had we not been to Oklahoma for Michigan-Oklahoma, then certainly Jackson Arnold returning there would\u2019ve been compelling.\u201d<\/p>\n Miami presented multiple angles beyond just its 3-0 record. Davis still has the Hurricanes ranked third on his personal ballot and said he considered moving them to No. 1 after seeing how they\u2019ve matched up against the likes of Notre Dame and USF. And speaking of, there\u2019s the Florida disaster<\/a> unfolding in real time, too.<\/p>\n \u201cI think (Miami) is the place to be this week\u2026They\u2019ve looked really, really good,\u201d he said. \u201cYou\u2019ve got that aspect of it. And then the last two games that Florida has played have been really disastrous. First, from a self-inflicted wound(s) to the penalty standpoint in the loss to USF. And then the multitude of turnovers they had against LSU. So, that\u2019s a little storyline, too. We sort of find ourselves back in the same place with Billy Napier. Yet, it\u2019s a really talented Florida team that I don\u2019t think will be a pushover Saturday night.\u201d<\/p>\n Atmosphere matters too. Davis pointed to Miami\u2019s 2017 GameDay experience as evidence that the Hurricanes know how to put on a show.<\/p>\n \u201cI think it\u2019s the right place to be. Those types of things go into it,\u201d Davis added. \u201cWhat\u2019s the biggest game? What\u2019s the best storyline? And also, what\u2019s the best atmosphere? And the last time we were at Miami, on campus in 2017, that was a tremendous atmosphere, and the folks there tell me it\u2019s going to be even better this week. I can\u2019t wait to get there.\u201d<\/p>\n Davis brought up last year\u2019s Cal selection when asked about times he\u2019s disagreed with GameDay destinations. His entire crew initially opposed going to Berkeley, but Davis had a different perspective, having taken the basketball version of the GameDay show there years earlier.<\/p>\n \u201cOne that I did not vehemently disagree with, but virtually everyone else on my set did, was last year when we went to Cal,\u201d he said. \u201cFull transparency here: I would\u2019ve disagreed with it, had I not had a basketball experience with Cal, I think in 2008 or \u201909. We took the basketball show there. And I was just like my football guys when we took the basketball show there. For basketball, \u2018It\u2019s gonna be seven o\u2019clock in the morning, they don\u2019t care about sports at Cal. Nobody\u2019s gonna go. Why are we taking the show there?\u2019 The whole thing\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n