The old school Rutgers football helmet from the 1980s made an appearance Saturday on ESPN’s College GameDay .
The iconic helmet appeared on the bookcase behind Chris Fallica, a personality on the program who plays the everyman role blended with a healthy dose of analysis, stats, numbers and trends. His expanding role with GameDay has really added a fun dimension to the broadcast.
Fallica has ties to the area, growing up in Westhampton Suffolk County in Long Island) where he reportedly was a fan of the New York Jets and Penn State football. He went to Miami so maybe Rutgers head coach Greg Schiano’s ties to the Hurricanes program where he was the defensive coordinator might lend some affection here (although the two did not overlap in Coral Gables).
Perhaps Rutgers will need to get Anthony Fucilli on the case here. The sidelines reporter for Rutgers football radio broadcasts, Fucilli is a noted advocate for all things Long Island.
College football is back! I see you @CollegeGameDay with the @RFootball love! @KirkHerbstreit @DesmondHoward @davidpollack47 pic.twitter.com/2aZ94oKk6I
— Mike Teel (@MTeel14) August 27, 2022
Kudos to former Rutgers football quarterback Mike Teel for spotting the throwback helmet. Ironically, Teel never wore that helmet during his time at Rutgers.
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For a history of Rutgers football helmets, check out this fun and historical piece from Kyle Fisher.
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Anyway, it was neat to see the helmet prominently on display during ESPN’s prominent show. Perhaps Fallica will ‘CHOP’ his way and predict a Rutgers win next weekend at Boston College?
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