The Aporia · Pat McAfee apologizes to Caitlin Clark after going shirtless in front of her on ‘College GameDay’

Pat McAfee apologizes to Caitlin Clark after going shirtless in front of her on ‘College GameDay’

Read the original at New York Post ↗

Cite

APA MLA Chicago

Staszewski, J. (2026, October 3). Pat McAfee apologizes to Caitlin Clark after going shirtless in front of her on ‘College GameDay’. New York Post. https://nypost.com/2026/10/03/sports/pat-mcafee-apologizes-to-caitlin-clark-after-going-shirtless-in-front-of-her-on-college-gameday/

Dated when The Aporia collected the article, usually within hours of publication. Check the original for its exact date and byline.

Quick Summary

Pat McAfee apologized to Caitlin Clark after removing his shirt while she was a guest picker on ESPN's "College GameDay" at the University of Iowa. Clark, who had just missed the WNBA playoffs with her team, the Indiana Fever, was picking for the University of Iowa against Ohio State. McAfee’s shirtless act caused some difficulty as his blazer cuffs got stuck but he proceeded to make a prediction and then promised to put his shirt back on before watching the game at Kinnick Stadium.

Written by AI on 2026-10-03, from this article's own text only (the story summary below draws on all the coverage).

AI analysis

Story summary

Pat McAfee apologized to WNBA star Caitlin Clark after removing his shirt while she was a guest on ESPN’s "College GameDay" at the University of Iowa. Clark, who had skipped exit interviews with her team, the Indiana Fever, to appear on the show, remained unfazed by McAfee's antics. The incident occurred before Saturday's college basketball game between No. 14 Iowa Hawkeyes and No. 2 Ohio State. Prior to this event, Clark’s team lost their playoff series against the Aces with a final score of 94-83 in Game 3 on Thursday night.

Written for “Pat McAfee Apology” on 2026-11-04, grounded in this article and the 0 other(s) covering the same event.

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sentences that state something as happening or true

Uncertain

0 of 19 hedged ("reportedly", "may", "according to")

Leaning

not political

takes no side on a contested political question

Publisher signals

66/100

New York Post's corrections and hedging, across everything collected from it. Not a measure of accuracy.

Outlets on this story

Sports

Same framing elsewhere

articles that frame the event the way this one does

Who wrote this

Joseph Staszewski

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All 31 articles by Joseph Staszewski →

Claims (19 extracted, 0 hedged)

Pat McAfee wasn’t shy around Caitlin Clark but did apologize for his actions to the Indiana Fever star. asserted

McAfee → apologize → star

Clark was the guest picker on ESPN’s “College GameDay” at the University of Iowa, where she played her college ball, before the No. 14 Hawkeyes took on No. 2 Ohio State on Saturday. asserted

Hawkeyes → play → Saturday

The WNBA star, fresh off seeing her Fever fall to the Aces in the WNBA playoffs in three games, was actually booed while picking rival Iowa State to beat West Virginia. asserted

Fever → see → Virginia

She more than made up for it by selecting Iowa to upset Ohio State. asserted

She → make → State

“You guys know who I’m picking,” Clark said. asserted

Clark → know → who

“We’re gonna have Julian Sayin rattled today. asserted

Sayin → go → ?

Stadium’s gonna go crazy, everyone better be loud. asserted

everyone → go → ?

I’m going Hawkeyes.” asserted

I → go → Hawkeyes

Then it was McAfee’s turn to make a selection, and the former Colts punter and current ESPN megastar did not disappoint. asserted

punter → make → selection

He took off his blue blazer, ripped off his shirt to go bare-chested in front of Clark. asserted

He → take → Clark

It was a bit of a struggle as McAfee’s cuffs got stuck on his wrist, forcing him to take a little more time to finish the job. asserted

cuffs → stick → job

“Caitlin, I apologize to be like this in front of you,” he said. asserted

he → apologize → you

“But when it calls, it calls. asserted

it → call → ?

The football Gods have called for me to get shirtless in front of these fantastic people.” asserted

me → call → people

He then went on to pick Ohio State to win the day’s marquee contest, asserted

He → go → contest

“And I’m gonna put my shirt back on, walk over to Kinnick, and watch the Ohio State Buckeyes get a huge win,” McAfee said. asserted

McAfee → go → win

“There’s no way the Buckeyes lose two games in the first five weeks, I love Iowa, I still think there’s a road to the playoffs… but today it’s O-H-I-O! asserted

it → ’ → O

I love you Caitlin, you’re the best.” asserted

you → love → you

Clark, who skipped Fever exit interviews to do the show, took the whole ordeal in stride, not seeming to mind McAfee’s antics much. The Fever season ended with a 94-83 loss to the Aces on Thursday night. asserted

season → skip → night

Pat McAfee apologizes to Caitlin Clark after going shirtless in front of her on ‘College GameDay’

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Claims (19 extracted, 0 hedged)