Bringing out all the stars for College GameDay. This past weekend, it was announced that ESPN would be bringing College GameDay to Music City for only the second time ever, and the first since 2008 when then-19 ranked Vanderbilt took on the #13 Auburn Tigers. It’s a big deal for GameDay to be coming back to Nashville, considering that Vanderbilt has basically been the punching bag of the SEC for longer than I’ve been alive. Aside from a few 4th-place finishes in the SEC East that led to appearances in such prestigious bowl games as the Music City Bowl and the BBVA Compass Bowl, you’d have to go all the way back to 1923 (no, that’s not a typo) to find the last time the Commodores were a legitimate contender for an SEC title. But coach Clark Lea and quarterback Diego Pavia, along with the addition of Jerry Kill as an advisor and analyst, have the Commodores positioned as one of the best stories of the 2025 season. Vandy shocked the world last year when they took down then-top ranked Alabama in Nashville before also beating Auburn en route to a 7-6 record. And let’s be honest, a 7-6 record is pretty good for Vanderbilt in and of itself, but the win over the Crimson Tide made it an unforgettable season no matter what the record ended up. This year though, the Commodores came out of the gate with wins on the road at Virginia Tech and South Carolina, along with dominant performances against Georgia State and Utah State, to start the season 5-0 before falling at Alabama. But this past weekend, with LSU visiting Nashville, the ‘Dores proved that they’re the real deal by knocking off the top-20 Tigers and cementing themselves as legitimate contenders in a wide-open SEC. As of right now, only Texas A&M and Alabama remain unbeaten in the conference, while Georgia’s win over Ole Miss means that Vanderbilt is one of six teams with only one loss in the SEC. Translation: Vandy has a real shot at making the SEC championship game this year. One of those other teams with only one conference loss so far is the Missouri Tigers, who head to Nashville this coming weekend for a huge matchup that will have major SEC implications. (Who would have ever thought that a Vandy vs. Mizzou game would actually matter when it came to the SEC championship?) Naturally, GameDay will have a big country music flare this weekend when they roll into Nashville. But earlier today, it was announced that the celebrity guest picker won’t be a country artist, but would instead be comedian and Vandy fan Nate Bargatze. This is gonna be good Excited to have comedian and Vanderbilt fan @natebargatze return as our guest picker this week pic.twitter.com/NY95l1n6mz — College GameDay (@CollegeGameDay) October 23, 2025 That doesn’t mean that there won’t be plenty of country artists around for the show though. It was also announced today that both Kenny Chesney and Dierks Bentley would be performing on the show this Saturday, with the show kicking off live at 8 a.m. on Vanderbilt’s Wyatt Lawn. Vandy also announced earlier this week that the game at FirstBank Stadium is officially sold out, so excitement surrounding the matchup is sky-high here in Nashville. And if I had to guess, Dierks and Kenny won’t be the only country artists making appearances on the show – so if you’re in the area, you’re probably going to want to be at Vandy on Saturday. Saturday, @CollegeGameDay heads to @VanderbiltU for the 2nd time ever ahead of a top-15 @SEC clash Live performances from Nashville musical forces @KennyChesney & @dierksbentley Guest picker: @natebargatze @PatMcAfeeShow Kicking Contest https://t.co/WeKNy4dClP pic.twitter.com/ng6jRs44mj — ESPN PR (@ESPNPR) October 23, 2025 The post Kenny Chesney & Dierks Bentley To Perform At ‘College GameDay’ In Nashville first appeared on Whiskey Riff.