Keegan-Michael Key Returns to Penn State as Guest Picker on ESPN College GameDay

How the actor, writer, producer and James Franklin doppelgänger became a Penn State football fan.

Keegan-Michael Key rings the victory bell after the conclusion of the 2018 Penn State Blue-White spring game at Beaver Stadium. / Matthew O'Haren-Imagn Images

Keegan-Michael Key, the actor, producer, writer and James Franklin doppelgäanger who was a guest coach for Penn State's spring football game six years ago, returns to Happy Valley on Saturday as the guest picker for ESPN College GameDay. Key, who has master's in fine arts from Penn State, will make his fourth appearance on GameDay and first since the Penn State-Ohio State game of 2018.

Key will be part of GameDay's broadcast outside the Bryce Jordan Center before Saturday's Penn State-Ohio State game. The first top-5 matchup at Beaver Stadium in 25 years also is hosting the two major college football pregame shows for the first time on campus. FOX's Big Noon Kickoff will air outside 10-11:30 a.m. ET from Gate B of the Bryce Jordan Center before moving to Beaver Stadium for the final half hour. ESPN College GameDay will air at Gate C from 9-11:30 a.m. before moving to Beaver Stadium as well.

ESPN College GameDay will broadcast from a Penn State-Ohio State game for a record 13th time. Penn State is hosting GameDay for the first time since 2021.

So how did Key, known for creating college football's favorite 12th-year senior Hingle McCringleberry on Key & Peele, become such a Penn State football fan? He told the story after a 2018 visit to Penn State for the Blue-White Game, during which he served as a guest coach with Franklin.

Born in Detroit, Key followed Penn State football through family friends who lived in Pennsylvania and pursed a master's degree at Penn State. During that time, Key befriended some football players, whom he taught in acting classes. Key served as the grand marshal of Penn State's 2015 Homecoming parade, where someone mentioned, "You look a little like the head coach." From there, Franklin and Key forged a friendship, and Key has made multiple public appearances doing his best Franklin impressions.

Key has visited the Penn State football team several times, attended team meetings (in costume) and made a previous ESPN College GameDay appearance as Franklin.

Before the 2018 Penn State Blue-White Game, Key took a photo with Franklin's family that Franklin joked would become a family Christmas card. When Key's then-fiance suggested padding Key's midsection with a pillow to improve the resemblance, Franklin blushed. "Obviously I need to get on the treadmill," Franklin said then.

Asked about becoming involved with Penn State football, Key said this in 2018.

"A part of my journey that is interesting is my parents’ best friends were Pennsylvanians, so as a small child I watched Penn State football. When I had the opportunity to do my graduate studies here, it ended up being one of my top choices for nostalgia reasons. I am glad it all played out that way because I ended up going to a high-level university for what I was studying.

"I taught acting for non-majors here and so I had constant and personal contacts with the football team. I already had a sense of liking football and Penn State football so having that personal connection with the players meant a lot to me and resonated with me, so it has been a big part of my life. When James came in, he really infused this new energy, and we have started a friendship because we are in like minds on what a student-athlete is. I get very excited when I see him
get excited about how well his students do. I get very excited when his students get privileges for having better GPAs.

"It’s lovely that academics are as important to him, so that is where some of the love comes from. When I was here to be the Grand Marshal for Homecoming it was really interesting because someone said to me, 'You look a little like the new head coach,' and the rest is history. I’ll take it. If our genes are similar in some way, shape, or form, is one more thing that brings me back to the program and gives me a sheer love for the program, so be it."

Penn State hosts Ohio State at noon ET Saturday on FOX.

More Penn State Football

Penn State vs. Ohio State preview, predictions

Penn State fans aren't happy with another Big Noon kickoff

Is the Ohio State game a must-win for the Nittany Lions?