Of all the things Pittsburgh sports fans expected to hear on a crisp November morning, the Pittsburgh Pirates being name-dropped by Pat McAfee on a college football Saturday on ESPN probably ranked somewhere between “Penguins trade Crosby for draft picks” and “the Steelers just hired Matt Canada again.”
The fact that the Pirates — a team that usually disappears into hibernation the moment the MLB season ends — became a central talking point during the opening monologue of ESPN’s College GameDay is, in itself, remarkable. Pittsburgh sports dominate fall coverage with the Steelers, Pitt football, and Penguins hockey… but the Pirates?