ESPN is bringing back The Greatest Story Ever Played campaign that debuted ahead of the 2022 college football season. In collaboration with Arts & Letters Creative Co., the creative – launching today (Aug. 21) on ESPN platforms – evolves on the story that keeps getting greater.
At a high level, college football is a story that takes place every fall Saturday in front of hundreds of thousands of fans. Sometimes in “The Swamp” or in the desert…and even on top of mountains. College football is a sport rich in tradition, and the fan experiences among these atmospheres is what makes the sport so popular and unique.
At a closer level, as fans experience each exciting chapter of the college football season, answers become clearer. Can Georgia pull off a three-peat? Is Alabama ready for its revenge tour? Will Michigan, Ohio State, and Texas Christian University (TCU) make a return to the College Football Playoff?
These are only a few of the storylines that have been building throughout the spring and summer following Georgia’s second-straight national championship.
“This year is set to be a historic chapter of college football, we don’t have to look far to find compelling storylines for each fan across the sport,” said Curtis Friends, ESPN Senior Director of Marketing. “We’re excited to set the stage for it all with our latest installment of ‘The Greatest Story Ever Played’ platform.”
In all, more than 30 different FBS and FCS college football programs were represented within the creative among fans, students, mascots, and more. Appearances include, head coaches Deion Sanders (Colorado), Nick Saban (Alabama), Dabo Swinney (Clemson) and Kirby Smart (Georgia); school mascots, Bevo (Texas), Horned Frog (TCU), Uga (Georgia), The Oregon Duck (Oregon), and fan bases from both coasts of the United States, among many others.
Chris Kim, Creative at Arts & Letters, said “In our second year of ‘The Greatest Story Ever Played’ we wanted to highlight the importance of the nuances of college football that make these stories some of the most powerful in the sporting world. From the places, to the rivalries, to the players, even down to the motorcycle riding ducks, we want every college football fan to feel the passion and heart of the sport coming through in the work.”
The 2023-24 college football season kicks off on Saturday, Aug. 26, with four Week 0 games on ESPN platforms. ESPN’s industry-leading college football presentation will feature several marquee matchups throughout the season, including nearly 60 games slated for Week 1 alone. The opening week will start with Florida at Utah (Aug. 31, 8 p.m. ET on ESPN), followed by the ‘Battle of the Carolinas’ with South Carolina taking on North Carolina (Sept. 2, 7:30 p.m. ET on ABC) along with the Camping World Kickoff as LSU and Florida State face off on Labor Day Sunday (Sept. 3, 7:30 p.m. ET on ABC).
Additional early season can’t-miss matchups include Week 2’s Texas and Alabama primetime showdown (Sept. 9, 7 p.m. ET on ESPN) and Week 3’s airing of the ‘Backyard Brawl’ between West Virginia and Pitt (Sept. 16, 7:30 p.m. ET on ABC), among others.
