Lee Corso on ESPN’s College GameDay
Lee Corso blurted out an expletive starting with the letter ‘F’ during the final ESPN’s College GameDay late Saturday morning.
In the show’s final segment, after guest picker, nine-time Olympic gold medalist and Houston alum Carl Lewis picked the Cougars, Corso picked up a large SMU megaphone, indicating he was leaning toward picking the Mustangs to upset an undefeated Houston team that is ranked No. 10 in the USA TODAY coaches poll.
After about five seconds of screaming into the megaphone, Corso clearly said “Ah —- it,” while tossing it aside before putting on the headgear for Shasta, the Houston mascot, indicating he was picking the Houston to beat their Conference USA rival.
The incident left Lewis and Corso’s Gameday colleagues Chris Fowler and Kirk Herbstreit laughing and making jokes.
“Glad there’s a delay” – Lewis said.
“Shasta, shame on you” – Fowler came back and said. “Wash that mouth out.”
Here’s a link to Corso’s F-bomb via our friends at SportsGrid.com. Those who wish to watch the video, proceed with caution as it contains language and content some audiences won’t find acceptable.
Later, during a break in the action of ESPN’s coverage of Michigan’s win over Nebraska in Ann Arbor, Mich., the network aired Corso reading a statement of apology for uttering the expletive.
“Earlier today on College Game Day, I used an expletive I shouldn’t have” – Corso said. “I apologize and promise it won’t happen again.”
Lee Corso.
Lee Corso has sailed through ESPN College GameDay shows in traditional college football hotbeds like Tuscaloosa, Gainesville, South Bend and Baton Rouge. But the excitement of the Coogs House proved to be a little too much for the veteran analyst.
The 76-year-old Corso found himself losing it as he made his pick for the SMU-Houston game. Traditionally the highlight of GameDay, Corso dons the headwear of the mascot of the team he’s going with — to the loud cheers or jeers of the crowd, depending on the choice. Only in Houston, Corso added a few choice words to the routine.
Corso feigned like he was going to pick SMU to upset 11th-ranked Houston, picking up a Mustangs megaphone. But he tossed that aside with a “Ah, fuck it” — pulling on UH’s Shasta cougar mascot head instead.
Corso’s F-bomb could clearly be heard on air — and it carried across Cullen Circle where hordes of Cougar fans watched the show live from the grass. The bit of spontaneity caused one of Corso’s GameDay co-hosts to almost fall out of his chair on the stage (Kirk Herbstreit) and another to look like he wanted to disappear into the table (Chris Fowler). Celebrity guest picker Carl Lewis started clapping.
“You brought out the Cougar in Corso” – Fowler said on air.
“That’s Corso” – Lewis said later. “He’s crazy.”
Fowler also playfully rebuked “Shasta” for his potty mouth before College GameDay went off the air, but soon ESPN had Corso back on during its broadcast of the Nebraska-Michigan game, reading an apology. “Earlier today on College GameDay while picking the SMU-Houston game I got a bit excited and used an expletive that I shouldn’t have used” – Corso said to the camera. “I apologize and can promise it won’t happen again”
Hey, at least Corso turned out to be right. Houston ended up winning 37-7 to go to 11-0, moving two wins from a BCS bowl berth.
Soon the network was in full damage control, telling reporters it would have no further comment.
Whose House? Coogs House!
Corso is the type of announcer who lets you know exactly what he’s thinking, and he lets his emotions get the best of him – that’s what makes him fun to watch, and it’s why he has a job.
Unfortunately Corso went too far today, and we now see what happens when you don’t control your emotions to some degree.
Corso was right in making this apology, and while I’m sure that he is definitely sorry that this happened, this will not be his last apology.
Corso still has to be the crazy announcer for College Gameday, and he has to let his emotions run wild. If he doesn’t he will surely lose his job, so he must act the same way.
While I obviously don’t condone his behavior, Corso cannot change. This will lead to him cursing at least one more time and having to give another apology.
This is just the type of guy who Corso is. He lets everything hang out and that can lead to some ill-advised language at times.
Corso simply made a mistake, and while his is very costly because so many people were watching. We all make mistakes.
Social media won’t let him forget this, however, as Twitter blew up mere seconds after this happened. Then videos were posted online, and his mistake will live forever.
While he will certainly face some form of punishment, Corso will not be forced to change his persona, as it is exactly what ESPN needs. Instead he will stay the same, and we will see another apology in the coming years.