For years, one of ESPN’s most popular original shows has been “College GameDay.” The show, which features some of college football’s biggest personalities traveling to different campuses across the country, has been a fan favorite for more than three decades. One of the best parts of “GameDay” is that students and fans crowd into a small area of campus to express themselves and cheer on their team, and one way they’ve done that since the program started was to bring in handmade signs. A sign is seen at ESPN College GameDay before the Ole Miss-LSU game at The Grove in Oxford, Mississippi, Saturday, Sept. 19, 2026. (USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect) They’ve featured everything from clever jokes to insults to rival mascots, but last weekend in Tuscaloosa, “GameDay” executives took a stand and introduced a “no religious signs” ban ahead of the Crimson Tide’s top-ten showdown with Georgia. This took almost everyone by surprise, including 40 Days For Life CEO Shawn Carney. CHRISTIAN WOMAN PLEADS NOT GUILTY TO NEW ‘ORWELLIAN’ CHARGES FOR STAYING AND PRAYING IN SILENCE Carney’s company focuses on holding peaceful vigils outside abortion centers, offering pregnant women alternatives as well as a last chance to “choose life.” Shawn Carney is a father of eight and president and CEO of 40 Days for Life, a pro-life organization. (Courtesy of 40 Days for Life) To say that faith is something near and dear to his heart is an understatement, and when he first heard the news about the ban on religious signs, he was stumped. “We’ve done this and it doesn’t work,” Carney said of the ban. “It’s called 2020 and every company that decided to go in that direction just failed. It’s so stupid.” Carney reveals that he is a big fan of “College GameDay” and a die-hard Texas A&M Aggie, and for ESPN to try to muzzle what he calls its biggest demographic of fans doesn’t make sense in his eyes. THE NFL IS THE MOST GOD-CENTERED PROFESSIONAL SPORTS LEAGUE IN THE UNITED STATES SUNDAY GAMES CONTINUE TO PROVE IT “Football is religion in the South,” he explains. “If you look at the SEC and you can include the Big 10, these are religious people who follow college football. That’s a huge market that is college football.” And it’s not just the fans, either. Both coaches and players are very faith-based and credit Christianity with helping them get through tough times. Nick Saban is on stage at ESPN College GameDay before the college football game between the University of Oklahoma and Michigan in Norman, Oklahoma, on September 6, 2025. (IMAGN) It’s a clear case of Disney and ESPN not understanding who they are appealing to with these decisions. Of all places, it was even more surprising to Carney. CLICK HERE FOR MORE SPORTS COVERAGE “It’s shocking that (Alabama) is the place,” he admits. “He’s unapologetically the heart of the Bible Belt, and Nick Saban definitely had a theme of his faith and his faith in God when he was a coach.” “Bear Bryant is definitely rolling in his grave.” Make no mistake about it, the rule may have said “no religious signs,” but as Carney points out, the only religion that matters to ESPN – or any major corporation – is Christianity. DOWNLOAD YOUR DAILY PODCAST NOW! “They’re not going after Muslims, they’re not going after Hindus… It’s a dumb American company that does what it usually does all the time, which is decide it only wants to ban one group, and they’re almost always Christians.” A fan shows his thumbs down during ESPN’s College GameDay at Pennsylvania State University in University Park, Pennsylvania, on Sept. 27, 2025. (Getty Images) However, the amount of backlash Disney and ESPN have received in the wake of their decision is a sign that things are headed in the right direction. SUBSCRIBE TO OUTKICK’S DAILY NEWSLETTER “No one is for this. No one likes it,” Carney says. “Do you think atheists who watch “GameDay” are offended because someone has a sign that says John 3:16?” It’s embarrassing.” Austin Perry is a writer for OutKick.
