Pat McAfee’s feud with Ryan Day is over almost as quickly as it began.
One day after the popular ESPN personality and “College GameDay” star took aim at the Ohio State football coach over a perceived slight, McAfee said on an Aug. 27 episode of his eponymous ESPN sports talk show that he and Day have connected off-air and cleared up any confusion about Day’s feelings about McAfee and his show.
Day had appeared on McAfee’s show on Aug. 27, with ESPN analyst and former Ohio State quarterback Kirk Herbstreit serving as a guest host while McAfee was completing a two-week vacation.
McAfee made his return to the show later in the episode and made reference to Day’s interview, noting he had previously struggled to get the Buckeyes‘ coach on the show, including after Ohio State’s national championship victory at the end of last season. Following the Buckeyes’ win against Notre Dame in the College Football Playoff title game, Day, as many newly crowned champions do, went on a wide-ranging media tour, but didn’t make it on to McAfee’s program.
Herbstreit attempted to explain that Day simply might not have received the requests and noted that Day had previously gone on McAfee’s show in the past. McAfee, however, dismissed those claims and theorized Day was holding a grudge because one of McAfee’s producers, while doing an impression of Lou Holtz, jumped into a joint interview with Day and Notre Dame coach Marcus Freeman on McAfee’s show ahead of last season’s national championship game.
“I’m not saying nasty things,” McAfee said. “I’m just letting him know that I don’t like him.”
Unlike the previous interview requests, word of McAfee’s comments evidently got to Day, who McAfee said he spoke with Wednesday morning. As Herbstreit and fellow former Buckeye A.J. Hawk tried telling McAfee, it was indeed a misunderstanding, with Day saying he was never made aware of the invitation to appear on McAfee’s show after the national championship win.
The 38-year-old McAfee, a former Pro Bowl punter with the Indianapolis Colts, added that his comments the previous day came while he was in a feisty mood following a 20-hour flight from Australia back to the United States.
“I thought he hated us, so that means, by default, I have to hate you,” McAfee said. “That is just how I am. That is how I operate. Turns out, he doesn’t hate us at all. Complete opposite.”
Day and McAfee are likely to cross paths again soon, with “College GameDay” making the trip to Columbus on Aug. 30 for No. 2 Ohio State’s highly anticipated season opener against No. 1 Texas.
