Clemson Football: Danny Ford should be the Guest Picker for a Tiger GameDay
By John Chancey
![Nov 11, 2017; Clemson, SC, USA; Former Clemson Tigers head coach Danny Ford poses with the AFCA Coaches Trophy presented by Amway, outside Clemson Memorial Stadium before the game between the Clemson Tigers and the Florida State Seminoles. Mandatory Credit: Joshua S. Kelly-USA TODAY Sports Nov 11, 2017; Clemson, SC, USA; Former Clemson Tigers head coach Danny Ford poses with the AFCA Coaches Trophy presented by Amway, outside Clemson Memorial Stadium before the game between the Clemson Tigers and the Florida State Seminoles. Mandatory Credit: Joshua S. Kelly-USA TODAY Sports](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_fill,w_720,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/shape/cover/sport/0dd37aece90fc90715423d81fe3b6791aa6b49b278525fefebd0c28f51797b80.jpg)
Danny Ford would be the perfect choice for Clemson Football as Guest Picker on ESPN College GameDay
Dabo Swinney won the last two national championships, but Danny Ford won the first one.
Ideally for ESPN, the Guest Picker has a connection to the home crowd and is popular with their fan base, but they are also nationally known to a wider audience.
Ford would be a popular choice among the Tiger fanbase for certain, but he is also a national championship winning head coach. He was the youngest head coach to win a national championship at the age of 33, a record he still owns. He won five ACC championships as well. After his time at Clemson, he was also a head coach in the SEC at Arkansas.
He might not have been in the public eye for several years, but he has the cache to be recognized nationally if he were to be on GameDay. Not to mention that if there are any worries about his national appeal, ESPN needs to remember one thing: they owe Clemson for some terrible Guest Picker choices in the past.
The only catch for ESPN? They usually like to feature their Guest Picker flying into town on their ‘Wheels Up’ segment. Ford lives in Pendleton, so no flying into town is necessary, but this brings the best opportunity for ESPN ever.
For one Saturday, ‘Wheels Up’ becomes ‘Wheels Down’. Instead of showing the Guest Picker land at the airport, they show Ford riding his tractor to campus. It would be epic and probably draw fans along the road as a miniature parade.