Josh Pate reacts to reported Dave Portnoy ban from Ohio Stadium for season opener

After Front Office Sports’ Ryan Glasspiegel reported Ohio State banned Dave Portnoy from Ohio Stadium for Saturday’s season opener, the reaction was swift. Buckeyes AD Ross Bjorkpushed back, though, saying it was a FOX’s decision.

Josh Pate also weighed in on the situation. He noted the risk FOX took by bringing Portnoy – a vocal Michigan fan – onto Big Noon Kickoff, but also the entertainment value that came with the decision.

Portnoy’s hire was widely viewed as a response to ESPN’s success with Pat McAfee on College GameDay, and it came as FOX struck a deal with Barstool Sports for programming. GameDay has seen a popularity surge since McAfee came aboard, which is why Pate argued FOX used a “chess move” to respond. However, Portnoy and McAfee have different receptions among the league.

“The problem is Dave Portnoy is not looked at nearly as fondly across the Big Ten, maybe, as Pat McAfee would be looked at across the SEC because there’s no allegiance that Pat has to any SEC program,” Pate said on Josh Pate’s College Football Show. “And there is definite, unapologetic, cut-your-chest-open-with-a-machete-and-bleed-Maize-and-Blue-type allegiance that Dave has with Michigan.

“This is not the football business – this is the entertainment business. This is what you banked on, if you’re FOX. FOX knew pulling this string, they were about to piss off most of the Big Ten. But they did it anyway. They did it anyway. And you know what the worst thing to do now would be, to back off of it. Now, you made your decision. You ride with it.”

Portnoy has trolled Ryan Day multiple times the last few years as Ohio State lost to Michigan in The Game. He has referred to the Buckeyes coach as “Cryin’ Day,” and Pate said he understands why Day might not be in favor of FOX’s decision to bring Portnoy into The Horseshoe.

That said, he pushed back against those who argued Ohio State was “soft” for reportedly banning Portnoy from the stadium. He wondered what would happen if those people were in the same position.

“I don’t think it’s soft,” Pate said. “A lot of people said, ‘Oh, this is soft. This is such a soft move.’ You’d do the same thing if you were them. If you listened to a guy trash you, if you listened to a guy call you, ‘Cryin’ Day,’ over and over again and found out, ‘Oh, our media partner hired him for their pregame show, huh?’ You think you’d just sit back and say, ‘Oh, well?’ I think you pretend like you’d say that. You wouldn’t say that. You’d be just as petty and small as they are. I don’t even know that I’d call it small.

“So I think both of the trade-offs here, both sides of it are fair. FOX wants to roll the dice. FOX wants to show a new side of themselves and put Portnoy on air. That’s a gamble. It’s a risk. It’s edgy for a reason. You don’t get to make those high-risk decisions without any risk. Part of the risk is you’re going to make some people mad and they’re gonna try and pull stuff like this. So if I’m okay with you making the hire, I’m okay with the counter to that. It’s all entertainment. It’s all the entertainment business.”

Josh Pate: ‘This is the trade-off’

College GameDay has seen growth the last few years after bringing on both Pat McAfee and Nick Saban – who have built a unique relationship on-air. Josh Pate argued FOX needed to respond to that increased interest, which is why Dave Portnoy could help increase the popularity. If that happens, that creates more revenue.

So if more dollars start flowing in, Pate wondered whether Portoy’s hire could work out in FOX’s favor. After all, it’s about entertainment, and Portnoy won’t be playing in Saturday’s game.

“If I were Ryan Day, as much as I may hate this – as much as it may really, really aggravate me that this is even a thing that’s on my radar, that I have to worry about or that I am worried about – I’m making $10-plus million dollars a year because I’m in the entertainment business,” Pate said. “I am making $10-plus million a year because of the attention that this stuff gets. And trust me, it’s not always your zone-blocking scheme that attracts the eyeballs.

“It’s the spectacle of it all. It’s the tradition, it’s the pageantry, it’s the storylines. Maybe some stuff that you could do with or without, but I guarantee you when you look at that check you cash – when Ross Bjork, when any AD out there, when any administrative type, when any assistant coach – when you look at those checks you cash, those extra few zeros? I’m not saying it’s because Dave Portnoy brought him to the table. But because of that culture, because of the fact that it exists, because of that entire ecosystem, you get to live the life you live. This is the trade-off. So he trashes Ohio State, they put him on TV, you don’t want him anywhere near you. That’s all fair to me. That was my takeaway. It’s all fair to me.”