Shane Gillis brought the heat on ESPN’s College GameDay, roasts Nick Saban for outfit and paying players at Alabama

ESPN pulled a wild card ahead of the Notre Dame-Indiana College Football Playoff game in South Bend, Indiana, bringing comedian Shane Gillis onto their “GameDay” set. And if their goal was to stir the pot, Gillis delivered in spades. But before we get into that, let me get something off my chest about the Beautiful Dog Shane Gillis.

Let me clear, Shane Gillis is my favorite comedian. The guy is hilarious and the Matt & Shane Secret Podcast is always a good listen. He also hails from the Keystone State and is a die-hard Philly sports fan, which checks a ton of boxes, obviously.

But then there’s the more sinister side of Shane Gillis. Nobody is perfect but being a scumbag Notre Dame fan is hard to look over.

The Fighting Irish are firmly cemented on my “worst teams in sports history” list and having these non-conference dorks in the College Football Playoff, playing absolutely nobody in the regular season while getting a cupcake matchup against Indiana in the first round—absolutely grinds my gears.

Of course, Gillis is obviously Irish (I mean, just look at him), so rooting for Notre Dame feels inevitable but it’s like Cowboys fans who don’t live anywhere near Dallas: an infestation that’s baffling and infuriating.

I digress.

Back to Friday night. Gillis showed up wearing Notre Dame gear and wasted no time poking fun at NIL deals and how they’ve leveled the playing field. “Now that everybody can pay their players, Notre Dame has a shot. It’s not just the SEC, it’s not Coach Saban,” Gillis joked, clearly enjoying himself.

Shane Gillis joking about SEC / Nick Saban playing players before NIL

“Now that everybody can pay their players Notre Dame has a shot. Not just the SEC and Coach Saban.” – Shane Gillis on Gameday 😂😂 pic.twitter.com/vPwu2Khunn

— Karter Baughan (@karterb8) December 21, 2024

Nick Saban definitely mad at Shane Gillis for the hat comments…lol

Seeing how mad Shane Gillis just made Nick Saban — while Nick was wearing that hat — is the peak of comedy pic.twitter.com/UUNugCHyAm

— Josh Graham (@JoshGrahamShow) December 21, 2024

We were just getting started. With a little instigation from Pat McAfee, Gillis went right after Nick Saban, calling him “Alabama Jones” because of his hat that looked like something straight out of Indiana Jones. Saban, unsurprisingly, didn’t find it amusing, but the fans loved it.

Social media lit up with people praising Gillis for rattling the usually unflappable coach.

Nick Saban listening to Shane Gillis pic.twitter.com/Zq7A7HEZlf

— Bustin Thomas (@bustin_thomas) December 21, 2024

Nick Saban the next time he sees Shane Gillis pic.twitter.com/BAA2UwDP4a

— Holland Beck (@hollaa_backk) December 21, 2024

tell me WHY Shane Gillis just called saban "Alabama Jones" 💀💀💀💀 pic.twitter.com/Uhitgke7qr

— ditka (@GDitka) December 21, 2024

As much as I despise Notre Dame, I have to admit—this was great television. Gillis was sharp, hilarious, and exactly the kind of wildcard ESPN needed to spice things up. And shoutout to Nick Saban for rolling with the punches, even if he didn’t love the attention.

Again, I can’t stand Notre Dame, but I love me some Shane Gillis. Seeing him light up College GameDay was refreshing, especially ahead of an otherwise boring matchup with two teams that had no business playing in the playoffs to begin with.

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