Tom Rinaldi is one of the best, if not the best, in this funny little business at telling stories that are simultaneously absolutely gutting and remarkably uplifting. I think I am not out of line to speak for many other folks in this business in saying that doing what Rinaldi does is really hard, and it’s a testament to his ability as a storyteller and as someone who is capable of digging beneath the surface level of things that he’s able to do this week after week.
Rinaldi has been a stalwart for ESPN since 2003, with his most prominent work coming in a weekly segment on College GameDay where he tells someone’s story in the world of college football. But in a major piece of media news that dropped last month, Rinaldi is going to leave the Worldwide Leader and join Fox Sports.
Before he leaves, though, Rinaldi had one last episode of GameDay to get through on Saturday morning. And in a fun twist, Rinaldi turned the subject of his usual work inward, opting to look back on his tenure on the show.
Tom Rinaldi pens a thank you note after all of his years on College GameDay.
We’ll miss you, Tom ❤️ pic.twitter.com/DOL08XYHRP
— College GameDay (@CollegeGameDay) January 1, 2021
Rinaldi really has done a ton of wonderful work for the show — I am personally a sucker for his piece on the Iowa wave — and hopefully it carries over to his new gig. Still, for those of us who tune into GameDay every week, it’ll take a while to get used to not having his presence on the show.
