'Fire Matt Canada' sign pops up at College GameDay in Tuscaloosa

Poor Matt Canada. There’s a lull in the Steelers schedule and the embattled offensive coordinator still is taking strays in the most unlikely of places.

Try Tuscaloosa.

Rowdy fans of Alabama and LSU gathered early Saturday to start their partying on the set of ESPN’s College Football GameDay. It’s tradition that fans bring homemade signs in hopes of attracting some glory if the cameras put them on screen.

This particular sign had nothing to do with Nick Saban or Brian Kelly or any other coordinator or player of either college football team. Rather the banner said “Fire Matt Canada.” And the deep down south was from Canada (the country, not the coordinator’s family).

Can you spot the sign over Saban’s right shoulder? We’re not sure if Pat McAfee, the noted Steeler fan who grew up in Pittsburgh, saw the sign. A college football fan shared a screen shot on X, writing “Even the GOAT wants Matt Canada Gone!”

Even The GOAT wants Matt Canada Gone! @PatMcAfeeShow @CollegeGameDay @Steelersdepot pic.twitter.com/EMXtirvozG

— Alex (@Steel_dlc24) November 4, 2023

As Steelers Depot noted, this isn’t the first time a Fire Matt Canada sign has popped up in random spots not normally associated with Pittsburgh games. One showed up before the Ohio State-Penn State game. But you can see a fan of the Nittany Lions having dual loyalty to both the Steelers and Penn State.

Then there was also a Matt Canada sign during a taping of the Pat McAfee Show, which went live from Utah for some Utes-Oregon pre-game coverage.

It is safe to say that Canada isn’t the most popular person in Pittsburgh. The Steelers are 5-3. But the offense isn’t setting the NFL on fire. In fact, Pittsburgh averages 278 yards per game, which ranks 28th in total offense in the NFL, ahead of the Bengals, Jets, Raiders and Giants. All those teams have had injury issues at quarterback. For context, the Dolphins top the league at 453 yards per contest.

The Steelers also are averaging only 16.6 points a game. That ranks 29th.

Pittsburgh beat the Titans, Thursday night, 20-16. And Matt Canada made a change. He didn’t call the game from the coaches box. Rather, he stayed on the sideline and close to quarterback Kenny Pickett. He seemed to work, at least at the first of the game. The Steelers scored a touchdown on their opening drive for the first time this season.

But Pittsburgh also matched a dubious record. The Steelers have been outgained in each of their first eight games. According to the Elias Sports Bureau via ESPN Stats & Info, Pittsburgh is the 34th team to pull off this odd statistical feat in NFL history. But they’re also the first team to do so and post a winning record. Of course, the Steelers did the same to open last season. Yes, Matt Canada was the OC.