ESPN College GameDay announces Vince Vaughn as celebrity guest picker for Notre Dame vs. Ohio State

Notre Dame fans will see one of their own on the College GameDay set Saturday morning. Actor Vince Vaughn will serve as the celebrity guest picker, ESPN announced Thursday night.

Vaughn is one of the most notable Notre Dame fans in the country, but also starred in arguably the most famous movie about the Fighting Irish. He played quarterback Jamie O’Hara in Rudy as one of his first Hollywood roles.

Now, he’ll be on the set of College GameDay as he picks a loaded weekend slate of games.

Noted Notre Dame fan and one-time Fighting Irish football player (Jamie O’Hara in ‘Rudy,’ 1993) Vince Vaughn is this week’s celebrity guest picker on @CollegeGameDay on Saturday in South Bend. pic.twitter.com/zscTu2A29O

— Tyler Horka (@tbhorka) September 21, 2023

This will be Vaughn’s third time serving as the guest picker for College GameDay. He previously did so during a remote broadcast in 2020 and was on set in 2012 when Notre Dame took on Stanford.

The hype has been building for Saturday’s prime time showdown for some time, and it’s finally here. Both Notre Dame and Ohio State are ranked in the top 10 of the AP Top 25 and an intriguing quarterback matchup awaits.

For the Fighting Irish, Sam Hartman has been quite the revelation after transferring from Wake Forest. Through four games, he leads the country with 13 passing touchdowns while averaging 265.3 passing yards per game to lead Notre Dame to a perfect 4-0 record.

On the Ohio State side, Kyle McCord is officially the starter after beating out Devin Brown during the Buckeyes’ quarterback competition. He got his first reps as the full-time starter last week against Western Kentucky, throwing for 318 yards and three touchdowns on an efficient 19 of 23 passing.

It’ll take more than quarterback play for either team to win, though. Marvin Harrison Jr. is seen as the best wide receiver in the country and looks like he could be a top pick in the NFL Draft. He’ll present plenty of challenges for the Notre Dame defense, as will Emeka Egbuka, who’s proving to be one of the best No. 2 receivers in the country.

The Buckeyes defense will have its hands full, though, with Audric Estime in the Fighting Irish backfield. His 130.25 rushing yards per game rank second in the nation, and keeping him at bay will be essential for Ohio State if it wants to leave South Bend with a victory.

It’s shaping up to be a massive Saturday night at Notre Dame Stadium with College Football Playoff implications on the line. The two teams will kick off Saturday at 7:30 p.m. ET on NBC.