ESPN’s popular college pregame show, College GameDay, is headed to Pittsburgh this week in honor of the No. 23 Panthers’ upcoming clash against No. 9 Notre Dame. It’s the first time in decades GameDay has come to the Pitt campus for a Saturday game—and in honor of the occasion they’re bringing back a Panthers legend to be the guest picker.
College GameDay guest picker for Week 12
On Thursday, ESPN revealed Aaron Donald would be the College GameDay guest picker for Week 12. Donald played all four of his college seasons for Pitt, winning ACC Defensive Player of the Year as a senior in addition to unanimous All-American honors.
More: Predicting Where ESPN's 'College GameDay' Will Head After Week 12 at Pitt
Coincidentally, Donald’s jersey retirement ceremony was planned for this week. He’ll be on the ESPN set before his No. 97 is hung in the rafters.
Aaron Donald is returning to Pitt to be this week's guest picker and have his jersey retired 😤@AaronDonald97 pic.twitter.com/8nljMlE60y
— College GameDay (@CollegeGameDay) November 13, 2025
Donald is one of the most famous Pitt football alums alongside Larry Fitzgerald and was even better in the NFL than he was in the NCAA. Donald enjoyed a Hall of Fame-caliber career after getting drafted by the Rams in 2013 once his time at Pitt was done, winning multiple DPOY awards and cementing his legacy as one of the most dominant interior defensive linemen ever.
Donald hung up the cleats in 2024 after 10 seasons in the NFL. He’ll now be the latest in a long line of notable guest pickers for ESPN’s flagship college football show this season.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as ESPN’s ‘College GameDay’ Brings Back Pitt Football Legend As Guest Picker.
