The flag that never misses

ESPN College Gameday saluted WSU and Cougar Nation with a surprise inaugural honor Saturday.

The network's College GameDay hosts Nick Saban, Desmond Howard and Pat McAfee showered Ol' Crimson in confetti during the Saturday morning national broadcast, as the iconic WSU flag was inaugurated as the first member of the show's new Hall of Fan, an honor created to recognize the critical role of fervent fans to college football and the show itself.

Welcome to the Hall of Fan, Ol' Crimson

No better way to celebrate 500 shows on the road pic.twitter.com/4F6DRe7RsC

- College GameDay (@CollegeGameDay) September 5, 2026

Saturday's pregame broadcast from Baton Rogue, Louisiana was the 338th consecutive appearance of Ol' Crimson at College GameDay broadcast sites. It's a streak that requires a passionate team of Cougar supporters from around the country, ensuring the flag is shipped wherever College GameDay goes and that Cougs are there to wave it with fervor. The hosts said it's college football fans that are the heart of the show, and saw fit to honor the dedication of WSU fans with Ol' Crimson being the inaugural member member of the Hall of Fan.

"It's amazing to see a whole new category created by ESPN for Ol' Crimson," said WSU President Betsy Cantwell, who last year became the first WSU president to wave the flag at a College Gameday broadcast site. "I had the opportunity to see first-hand how big their impact is during ESPN GameDay and this is so well-deserved for Tom Pounds, CJ McCoy and all of our Washington State University alumni who show up week after week to fly our flag."

The preeminent Saturday morning kickoff show, College GameDay first hit the road in 1993. Ol' Crimson made its first appearance on the show a decade later in Austin, Texas, hoisted by Tom Pounds, a member of the WSU Class of 1981.

It was a coincidence that Pounds was in Austin, so he made up a flag and braved the crowd to wave Ol' Crimson for the first time during the event. A few weeks later, Brent Schwartz, then a seminary student in Minneapolis, got in touch to ask if Pounds could ship the flag so he could drive 300 miles to get it on the show in Madison, Wisconsin.

"And then it just started rolling from there," Pounds recalled. "And even at some point in that season, the rest of that season, I probably couldn't have stopped it. Although it did take effort to keep it going for the first few years. And we finally built up to, I think when C.J. took over in 2010, I think I gave him 500 people and he's turned into thousands now around the country."

In the years that followed, a legion of die-hard Cougs worked to ensure that Ol' Crimson appears each Saturday morning on the show. In spite of inclement weather that forced the crew inside for a time, that was again the case this weekend, with Ol' Crimson Booster Club member Will Johnson being this weekend's chief flag waver. He received a gold helmet and commemorative football from the College GameDay crew during Saturday's broadcast ahead of the LSU vs. Clemson matchup.

The tradition of bringing Ol' Crimson to College GameDay isn't just about the flag or getting the show to Pullman, according to C.J. McCoy, who serves as the Ol' Crimson Booster Club coordinator.

"It's about what it means to be a Coug and never letting anybody forget that. And that's why we go every weekend. And that's why we do this every year, year in and year out. We've got to respect the streak. And so, we just keep going."

ESPN made the trip out to Pullman in 2018, drawing more than 30,000 fans to the broadcast location near Gesa Field. WSU's football team rose to the occasion, triumphing over the University of Oregon Ducks 34-20.

"Ol' Crimson is a mainstay for signaling the start of a college football Saturday," said Jon Haarlow, vice president and director of athletics. "I'm grateful for Tom, CJ, and the entire Ol' Crimson crew for their dedication and commitment to amplifying WSU's national brand. There is no more passionate group in the country, as acknowledged by this incredible honor."