ESPN College GameDay tabs Baker Mayfield as celebrity guest picker for Red River Rivalry
ESPN’s College GameDay is heading back to the Red River Rivalry this week as Oklahoma and Texas square off in their annual matchup at the Cotton Bowl. Sooners fans will see one of their most recent stars on the set, as well.
Baker Mayfield is set to serve as College GameDay’s celebrity guest picker, he announced on Instagram. Mayfield is currently playing for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and their bye week lines up with the Oklahoma-Texas game and opens the door for him to be on set as the guest picker on College GameDay.
Mayfield played in three Red River games against Texas during his career at Oklahoma, winning two of those matchups. His biggest showing was in 2016 when he threw for 390 yards and three touchdowns while adding a rushing touchdown to help the Sooners to a thrilling 45-40 victory.
Mayfield is having an impressive start to the season with the Buccaneers after signing a one-year contract prior to this season. Through four games, he has 882 yards and seven touchdowns to help Tampa Bay to a 3-1 start in the first year after the Tom Brady era came to a close — officially, this time.
It’s been an interesting NFL journey for Mayfield, the former No. 1 overall pick of the Cleveland Browns. He spent four years in Cleveland before the franchise signed Deshaun Watson, which is when Mayfield requested a trade. The Browns sent him to the Carolina Panthers, but they released him mid-year, which is when he headed to the Los Angeles Rams.
Mayfield threw for more than 3,000 yards in each of his first four NFL seasons before the trade. This year is off to an impressive start as he looks to get back to that mark and help the Bucs in a suddenly crowded NFC South.
Oklahoma and Texas both enter Saturday’s game with undefeated records for the first time since 2011. The Sooners are in the midst of a bounce-back season in Year 2 under Brent Venables, winning their first five games to come one victory away from last year’s total.
As for the Longhorns, they’re squarely in the mix for the College Football Playoff with a 5-0 record and a notable victory over Alabama. Quinn Ewers is generating both Heisman Trophy and NFL Draft buzz through the first half of the season, and he’ll have an opportunity to make a big statement Saturday against Oklahoma.