ESPN College GameDay announces destination for Week 9

ESPN College GameDay‘s destination for Week 9 has been revealed. The show is heading to Nashville for Vanderbilt vs. Missouri, sources tell On3.

College GameDay was in Athens for the Week 8 showdown between Georgia and Ole Miss. The show also had an exclusive interview with James Franklin – his first since his firing from Penn State earlier in the week amid a three-game losing streak.

This past week’s show also included country music star Jelly Roll as the celebrity guest picker, as well as guest appearances from Kirby Smart, Lane Kiffin and Vanderbilt quarterback Diego Pavia. The country music flare continued as Bailey Zimmerman and Luke Combs performed live on the program.

It’s been a huge year for College GameDay, which has seen a viewership surge through 2025. Entering Week 8, ratings are up 20% from 2024, and this year has six of the top regular-season shows ever. The Week 7 broadcast from Eugene ahead of Indiana at Oregon averaged 2.7 million viewers, which made it the fourth-most watched regular season show in its history.

That game between IU and Oregon proved to be one of the most notable results of the season so far. The Hoosiers and Ducks went back and forth, but Curt Cignetti’s group came away with the victory. Fernando Mendoza threw the go-ahead touchdown with 6:21 to go when he connected with Elijah Sarratt, and Nicolas Radicic’s field goal all but sealed the 30-20 win in the Top-10 showdown. Only Pat McAfee picked Indiana to win.

Week 8’s program marked the 11th time College GameDay was in Athens. Georgia entered with an 8-2 record with the show in attendance, including last year’s Week 2 game between the Bulldogs and Tennessee. UGA came away with the resounding 31-17 victory to stay in the hunt in 2024 and eventually win the SEC Championship.

Of course, Kirk Herbstreit also had to leave the show early because he was due to call the Red River Rivalry game between Oklahoma and Texas. He continued to chime in from the car on the way to the airport and made his picks from the plane to Dallas. Herbstreit made it to the Cotton Bowl in time to call the game, though Andre Ware was the backup if he was unable to be there.

Last week’s schedule was much easier, though. Herbstreit was on the call for Ole Miss at Georgia alongside Chris Fowler, which looked to serve up another TV ratings victory for ABC.