SEATTLE — Hundreds of fans woke up before the sun early Saturday morning for ESPN's "College GameDay," which visited the University of Washington before the big rivalry game between the Huskies and the Oregon Ducks.
It was an early wakeup call because the hunt is on. ESPN’s "College GameDay" made its third visit to the University of Washington on Oct. 14.
"It's so crazy, I knew it was going to be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. And I was so excited to be here. It's my last year! It's just incredible, incredible, it's all so fun," said one UW fan.
Although UW's main rivalry remains (for now) the annual Apple Cup against Washington State University, Oregon and Washington have developed a contentious relationship over years of being two of the best football programs in the Pacific-12 Conference.
Washington leads the overall series between the schools 61-48-5, but Oregon has won three of the past four matchups. A season ago, UW went down to Autzen Stadium and stunned the No. 6-ranked Ducks 37-34.
It's the first time the iconic pregame show is back at UW since 2016, and nearly 10 years to the day since its first visit back on Oct. 12, 2013, when the Huskies were also taking on Pac-12 rivals, the Oregon Ducks.
Fans began filling Red Square around 3 a.m. and didn't let the drizzle dampen any spirits.
“We’ve got pretty much all of Husky Nation here, really, really early, and the energies high it’s really good,” said one UW fan.
The Huskies won 36-33 against Oregon on Saturday in another wild chapter to their heated rivalry.