Barstool Sports founder Dave Portnoy, who has been a part of Fox Sports’ “Big Noon Kickoff” show this season, came out firing against ESPN on Saturday.
Portnoy headed out to X and shared a post along with an image of an ESPN report. The data showed that the BYU Cougars, who will play in the Big 12 Championship Game against the Texas Tech Red Raiders on Saturday at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, have a 99.9% chance of reaching the College Football Playoff with a win.
What Were Fans Saying About Dave Portnoy’s Post?
But the Cougars’ chances of making the College Football Playoff with a loss drop to 0.8%. The image also shows an ESPN reporter commenting in her segment. Portnoy wrote on X, “How happy is ESPN to openly report this crime? Look at the glee on her face!”
After Portnoy put out his post, college football fans were chiming in with their own opinions. One fan wrote on X, “stool president: ‘espn’s glee reporting byu’s 99.9% cfp chances’ – the hate for the cougars is so obvious it’s funny”.
stool president: “espn’s glee reporting byu’s 99.9% cfp chances” – the hate for the cougars is so obvious it’s funny
— Rei (@KyoMemes) December 6, 2025
Another fan chimed in and wrote, “I think the 99.9% is more disrespectful than the 0.8%. It’s 100% with a win.” This fan also took a shot at ESPN and wrote, “ESPN has lost the last of their credibility. And they know it. That’s why they were trotting out their hosts to do damage control.”
As for this college football fan, the person kept this comment short and sweet: “ESPN is garbage”. This fan suggested that ESPN wants a big-name conference to go away and wrote, “ESPN wants the Big 12 to dissolve”.
The Cougars entered the Big 12 Championship Game with an 11-1 record and a No. 11 ranking in the most recent College Football Playoff Rankings, released last Tuesday night on ESPN. Texas Tech, also 11-1 for the season, sits No. 4 in the College Football Playoff Rankings.
According to the PFSN CFB Offense Impact metrics, the Cougars have an 83.6 impact score and grade out to a B. BYU has also had to overcome chatter about head coach Kalani Sitake potentially leaving for another job. But BYU backers came through with some additional financial support, so Sitake isn’t going anywhere.
BYU, with a victory in the Big 12 title game, may gain more respect from ESPN going forward.
