A Notre Dame fan let a life-changing amount slip out of his hands during Pat McAfee’s kicking contest on Friday night.
Ahead of the playoff game between the Fighting Irish and the Indiana Hoosiers, McAfee hosted College GameDay in Notre Dame with Kirk Herbstreit and comedian Shane Gillis.
During the pregame program, a Fighting Irish fan named Chris participated in McAfee’s kicking challenge, with his first attempt worth $750,000. Unfortunately, the slippery surface got the best of him as he stepped up for the kick.
After the hosts repeatedly instructed ‘Don’t slip,’ Chris took heavy strides back, measuring how to hit the ball between the goalpost.
However, upon planting his left foot, the momentum of his swinging right leg carried Chris into falling on the ground as the ball failed to gain an upward trajectory and flew straight into the open.
Not one to back down, he quickly gestured for one more try, which McAfee and Co. were happy to give.
A fan slipped while trying to win $1million during Pat McAfee’s kicking challenge on Friday
For his second shot, the stakes went higher as it was now worth $1million. The hosts and the crowd of fans cheered on while Chris lined up for his second attempt.
Although he still slipped, the eager participant caught himself on his way down and the ball went up and forward several feet before curving away from the target. Chris then planted his face on the slippery turf after getting so close to the seven-figure prize.
‘Chris, wonderful attempt, bud, I’m proud of ya’ McAfee said as he shook his hand.
‘This was not as expensive as it could have been,’ the ESPN host exclaimed in relief after turning toward the crowd. ‘The second attempt [was] much better than the first.’
‘Ultimately, the slick conditions will get ya,’ he concluded.
No 7 Notre Dame is hosting No 10-ranked Indiana in the first round of the College Football Playoffs. Both enter the game with an 11-1 record with the winner facing No 2 Georgia in the Allstate Sugar Bowl on New Year’s Day.