Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
GameDay coming to Magic Kingdom
ESPN show to kick off season ahead of Miami-Florida game
ESPN’s College GameDay will kick off the 2019 season at Disney World’s Magic Kingdom ahead of the UF versus Miami game Aug. 24 at Orlando’s Camping World Stadium.
The Gators and Hurricanes matchup — their first since 2013 — will assume centerstage as the first highprofile game during the 150th season of college football.
Fans will need to have a valid theme park admission to watch the long-running show as it is staged on the elevated train station on Main Street, U.S.A. Walt Disney World Resort Property Rules prohibit flags, banners, signs, horns, whistles, large megaphones and artificial noise makers that have long been a staple of Gameday broadcasts.
Florida will be making its 39th appearance — third behind Alabama (46) and Ohio State — on the pregame show that has become a staple of college football viewing since 1993. The Gators are 24-14 during those games.
The Aug. 24 show will air live from 9 a.m. to noon. Rece Davis will host and be joined by fan favorites Lee Corso and Kirk Herbstreit. David Pollack, Desmond Howard and Maria Taylor also will be on hand to offer insight, analysis and predictions.
Ranked No. 8 in the preseason coaches poll, the Gators look to build on a 10-3 finish in coach Dan Mullen’s first season as UF head coach. Miami enters its first season under firsttime head coach Manny Diaz, a former Mullen assistant twice at Mississippi State (2010, 2015).
SEC Nation also will broadcast from Orlando, airing live on the SEC Network from 5 to 7 p.m. The show’s set will be placed on the sideline of Camping World Stadium.
Host and UF graduate Laura Rutledge will be joined by Gator legend Tim Tebow, along with Marcus Speaks and Paul Finebaum.