Fox is attempting to mimic its big-name NFL and MLB studio-show success by loading up with marquee hires to make a potential run at ESPN’s “College GameDay,” The Post has learned.
Fox has signed what it feels, as one source put it, is a “Mount Rushmore of college football over the last 15 years,” for its new, yet-to-be-named Saturday morning pregame show that will air on network TV.
Sources say Fox has hired former Ohio State coach Urban Meyer and one of the greatest running backs in the college game’s history, Reggie Bush, for its new team.
Meyer and Bush will join Bush’s former USC teammate and fellow Heisman winner Matt Leinart, ex-Notre Dame quarterback Brady Quinn and host Rob Stone for the show that will air at 11 a.m. Saturdays on Fox, beginning in the fall.
Leinart and Stone were on FS1’s pregame, while Quinn is moving from games to the studio.
In making the big-name moves, Fox is trying to recreate the success it has had with its top NFL Sunday show, which features four Hall of Famers, and its MLB pregame that has found success in recent years with Alex Rodriguez, David Ortiz and Frank Thomas as the lead analysts.
Fox feels with Meyer, Bush, Leinart and Quinn, it has put together a similar team of college football legends and hopes they can develop a fun chemistry.
Meyer, a three-time national champion, is considered one of the great coaches in the game’s history. He announced his retirement from coaching in December, citing health issues.
Meyer, 54, began last season suspended for three games after Ohio State investigated his conduct regarding allegations of domestic violence against former assistant coach Zach Smith.
Meyer worked as an analyst for ESPN between his jobs at Florida and Ohio State. The Sporting News reported in January that Meyer and Fox were close to a deal.
Bush, 34, won the 2005 Heisman Trophy, but later had to forfeit it after an NCAA investigation into his family’s dealings with an agent. Bush works for NFL Network. He is considered one of the most dynamic college players ever.
Quinn, 34, is moving from games to studio, while Leinart, who won the Heisman in 2004, has been an FS1 studio analyst. Stone has been a Fox mainstay on its coverage of college football, soccer and bowling.
By putting its college football show on Fox, it is giving it a strong platform to compete against “GameDay,” which has a decades-long head start.
“GameDay” is considered one of the great pregame shows of all time and is famous for its on-campus experiences.
Initially, Fox’s show will mostly emanate from its Los Angeles studios, but it will take its program on the road for a handful of games that will be showcased on Fox.
Over the years, ESPN’s “GameDay” has largely gone unchallenged, as other networks have passed on trying to follow the NFL Sunday pregame model.
Unlike the NFL, in which ESPN, Fox, CBS, NFL Network and NBC all have pregame shows, ESPN has been able to dominate without true competition on the college level.
Robert Smith, who was on FS1’s studio show with Stone and Leinart last season, will remain at the network, likely as a game analyst, while another FS1 college studio analyst, Dave Wannstedt, will continue on “Fox NFL Kickoff,” which precedes “Fox NFL Sunday.” He will also continue with the Big Ten Network.