In a painful twist of fate, an Indiana University fan named Jake missed out on a potential $100,000 prize after tearing his ACL while warming up for Pat McAfee’s kicking contest on ESPN’s “College GameDay” in Bloomington on Saturday morning.
Jake, a passionate IU fan, had been gearing up to take center stage when the unfortunate incident unfolded. McAfee explained to viewers, “The first kicker, Jake, tore his ACL warming up behind the stage.”
Before he had a chance to attempt the field goal, Jake’s enthusiasm got the best of him as he practiced an imaginary kick behind the Home Depot stage, ultimately losing his footing and landing awkwardly, which caused his ugly knee injury.
He was subsequently taken to the hospital, McAfee confirmed.
The contest, part of McAfee’s weekly segment on “College GameDay,” is open to fans chosen randomly from the crowd in “the Pit.”
Contestants, however, face a set of strict rules: they cannot be current or former college athletes and only get a single attempt at a 33-yard field goal. (However, McAfee often awards second chances as long as he feels its deserved.)
Contest organizers select “alternates” to step in, as Jake’s situation demonstrated.
Jeram Salles, the alternate selected after Jake’s injury, suddenly found himself in the spotlight with McAfee on the sidelines, offering a blend of encouragement and humor.
“The first kicker, Jake, tore his ACL warming up behind the stage,” McAfee explained to Salles. “You’re the second pick, if you make this kick both you and Jake will make $100,000.”
“So, it’s not just for you, it’s for a knee that was blown out earlier,” he added before stepping aside as Kirk Herbstreit held the ball for Salles’ kick attempt.
Salles, a finance major and freshman at Indiana, took a deep breath and stepped up to the task, yet his attempt went wide left, missing the goal entirely and landing among the crowd of Hoosier fans.
Sure enough, McAfee gave Salles a second shot at the field goal, this time raising the stakes.
“For $150,000 for you and for Jake with the blown-out knee, and for the entire world to know that Hoo Hoo Hoosiers show up in the big moment,” McAfee said.
Despite the added motivation, Salles again missed the kick wide left. McAfee, never one to hold back his reactions, shouted, “Oh, this guy stinks!”
As Salles walked off, McAfee gave him an unexpected pep talk: “Alright Jeram you can go on to great things, but you suck at kicking. And that’s a beautiful thing!”
Getting back to Jake, his unexpected injury was obviously a sad and unfortunate development. Hopefully his recovery goes as smooth as Indiana’s season currently is.
