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Fortnite OG Sponsoring the Opening CFP Kickoff Led to Countless Jokes From Fans

Tom Dierberger

ESPN
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The 12-team era of the College Football Playoff officially kicked off Friday night with a rather out-of-the-box sponsor leading the broadcast on ESPN and ABC.

As play-by-play broadcaster Sean McDonough and analyst Greg McElroy began to preview the first-round game between No. 7 Notre Dame and No. 10 Indiana, it was revealed that OG Fortnite—the online video game—sponsored the opening kickoff.

"You're watching the Fortnite OG kickoff," McDonough said as the broadcast transitioned to a commercial break. "We're dropping in on the head coaches and the sideline reporters ... and the opening kickoff in a moment."

It's not unusual to have a sponsor for the kickoff before a big game—anything flies these days in the corporate television broadcasting world. But a video game paying big bucks to sponsor a pivotal kickoff in college football history—the first of the 12-team tournament—was certainly unexpected.

College football fans had some fun with the moment:

The game got off to an electric start, with Notre Dame and Indiana exchanging interceptions before Fighting Irish running back Jeremiyah Love scored a 98-yard touchdown to put the first points on the scoreboard.

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Tom Dierberger
TOM DIERBERGER

Tom Dierberger is a staff writer and editor on the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated. He joined SI in November 2023 after stints at FOX Sports, Bally Sports and NBC Sports. Dierberger has a bachelor's in communication from St. John's University. In his spare time, he can be seen throwing out his arm while playing fetch with his dog, Walter B. Boy.

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