The City of Pullman got quite a surprise last Saturday night when ESPN’s “College GameDay” announced it was going to take up temporary residence in Week 8 for the Oregon-Washington State game.
Kirk Herbstreit made the announcement, which was significant because the show has never visited Pullman before in its history.
IT’S OFFICIAL!!!!!@CollegeGameDay is FINALLY headed to Pullman!! HERE WE COME WAZZU!!! pic.twitter.com/H9bVYSh5yR
— Kirk Herbstreit (@KirkHerbstreit) October 14, 2018
It’s a really big deal.
It also presents some significant logistical issues for Pullman, which has since declared an emergency to help deal with it all.
According to Evan Ellis of Pullman Radio, the Pullman City Council approved the emergency on Tuesday night. It allows Pullman Transit buses to help move fans around campus on Saturday.
“WSU officials asked the city for some buses after being unable to find private bus services to accommodate the massive crowd. Longtime Gameday producer and program ‘historian’ Chris ‘The Bear’ Fallica says causing an emergency declaration is a first for the show.”
It should be a blast. Washington State fans have been clamoring for ESPN to make a stop in Pullman for years, and the atmosphere should be electric come Saturday.
Oh, and the game should be great, too. Both teams have just one loss to their credit, and feature high-octane offenses with some of the best quarterbacks in college football.