Lee Corso. Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

How ESPN plans to honor Lee Corso before final 'College GameDay'

By Andrew Kulha | Last updated Aug 7, 2025 2:50 PM ET

Lee Corso is a college football legend, and his legacy on ESPN's "College GameDay" is rich and hard to top.

Corso has been one of the premier college football analysts in the nation for nearly 40 years. He's been one of the "talking heads" on ESPN's "College GameDay" for 38 years, but his impact on college football is even deeper than that.

Corso's last broadcast will be on Saturday, Aug. 30, from Columbus, Ohio, as "GameDay" prepares for the season-opening clash between Texas and Ohio State.

Corso, 90, will be doing his final "headgear pick," which has become an iconic part of Saturday mornings for generations of college football fans. He'll then be signing off and saying goodbye to the show he's been a part of since 1987.

On Thursday, ESPN announced that on the Friday evening before Corso's last show, it will air a one-hour special dedicated to Corso called "Not So Fast, My Friend: A Lee Corso Special."

That will air on Friday, Aug. 22, at 9:00 p.m. ET on ESPN, and it will re-air on ESPN2 on Saturday morning.

"Not so fast, my friend!"

Before @CollegeGameDay analyst Lee Corso selects his final headgear, ESPN presents a 1-hr special honoring the legend

'Not So Fast, My Friend: A Lee Corso Special'
Aug. 22 | 9p ET | ESPN, streaming afterward on ESPN+

https://t.co/yZ8E7bEyrU pic.twitter.com/PnGB1qnA8L
— ESPN PR (@ESPNPR) August 7, 2025

"The primetime special will highlight Corso’s extraordinary life, his larger-than-life personality and the immeasurable impact he has had on college football as a player, coach and broadcaster," the press release stated.

There will be many appearances in the special from notable names who have worked alongside Corso during his legendary career. That list includes Rece Davis, Chris Fowler, Kirk Herbstreit, Desmond Howard, Pat McAfee, Nick Saban, Tim Brando, Chris Fallica and Maria Taylor, but there will also be appearances from notable college football coaches like Lane Kiffin, Steve Sarkisian, Kirby Smart and Dabo Swinney.

Corso may be best known for his time on "GameDay," but he impacted college football in many ways outside of being a broadcaster. He was a cornerback at Florida State from 1953 to 1957, and he at one time held the school record for most career interceptions with 14.

Corso was then a college head coach for nearly three decades with stops at Louisville, Indiana and Northern Illinois.

He's made a massive mark on the sport and will be irreplaceable in the eyes of many college football fans for years to come.

Andrew Kulha

Andrew Kulha is probably the only sports writer you know who also doubles as a mortician. Spooky! @KulhaSports

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