Golden State Today

Thousands of fans gathered at UC Berkeley's Memorial Glade on Saturday for ESPN's College GameDay, marking the first time in its 37-year history that the popular college football pregame show was hosted at the university. The event saw students and fans bring energy and humor to the broadcast, which started at 6 a.m. PT.

The day featured several memorable moments despite Cal's narrow loss to the University of Miami with a score of 39-38. Celebrity guest picker Marshawn Lynch, who played for Cal from 2004 to 2006, made an appearance. In a nod to his famous 2006 moment when he drove a medical golf cart onto the field after a win, Lynch drove ESPN host Jess Sims through a field goal set while she tossed Skittles to the crowd.

One of the most thrilling moments came when UC Berkeley sophomore Daniel Villaseñor successfully kicked a 33-yard field goal. His successful attempt earned him $100,000 and secured a $600,000 donation for hurricane relief from host Pat McAfee. Villaseñor, who majors in civil engineering and plays soccer, had limited experience kicking field goals before this event. After missing his first try, McAfee increased the prize offer from $75,000 for a successful second attempt, which Villaseñor completed amid loud cheers.

ESPN's Rece Davis praised Cal's enthusiasm by saying: "I’ve been doing this show for a decade, and people ask me all the time, ‘Where’s the best place to go?’ And after today, I’m going to tell them the best place in the whole damn world is in Bear Territory.”