Leaf took offense to the “College GameDay” analyst’s comments about his alma mater, Washington State.
ESPN analysts Kirk Herbstreit and Ryan Leaf engaged in a verbal scuffle on X, formerly known as Twitter, on Sunday, a day after College GameDay’s Lee Corso made a pointed comment about the Oregon State–Washington State matchup.
Leaf played at Washington State from 1995-97, and he seemed to take offense when Corso called the OSU-WSU game the “No One Watches Us Bowl.” Corso likely was referencing the fact that the Beavers and Cougars don’t have a conference to call home after this season, but the comment also is open to interpretation.
Leaf, the No. 2 pick in the 1998 NFL draft, reposted a viral video of Washington State coach Jake Dickert’s postgame press conference in which he called out ESPN for Corso’s comments and added his own thoughts to the situation.
“And @CollegeGameDay is supposed to be a celebration of #CFB,” Leaf wrote. “Instead, they choose to make it a big joke, and everyone on the panel enables it. Just a bunch of wind socks. #CougsvsEverybody”
And @CollegeGameDay is supposed to be a celebration of #CFB. Instead, they choose to make it a big joke, and everyone on the panel enables it. Just a bunch of wind socks. #CougsvsEverybody https://t.co/pp8XtZCUoy
— Ryan D Leaf (@RyanDLeaf) September 24, 2023
Herbstreit, who sat right next to Corso as he made the comment, responded to Leaf to defend his longtime colleague.
“Huh? Is this a real tweet??? You must have been hacked Ryan,” Herbstreit wrote. “Lee’s point OBVIOUSLY was-it is 2 teams that have been left out-that haven’t found a home yet-NOT the ‘no one watches Bowl’. Know you’re excited your boys won but DAMN!”
Huh?
— Kirk Herbstreit (@KirkHerbstreit) September 24, 2023
Is this a real tweet???
You must have been hacked Ryan.
Lee’s point OBVIOUSLY was-it is 2 teams that have been left out-that haven’t found a home yet-NOT the “no one watches Bowl”. Know you’re excited your boys won but DAMN! https://t.co/hfMIBt9YX8
Leaf didn’t seem too pleased with Herbstreit’s response, as he replied, “Looks like the wind is blowing again. Attitude reflects leadership, captain.”
Herbstreit then capped the tense exchange with a disarming final message to Leaf.
“Gotcha. All the best bro,” Herbstreit wrote.
Gotcha. All the best bro https://t.co/R7ecm6H3Kx
— Kirk Herbstreit (@KirkHerbstreit) September 24, 2023
To Leaf’s joy, Washington State moved to 4–0 with a 38–35 win over Oregon State, and the Cougars moved up five spots to No. 16 in the latest AP Top 25 poll.
