Just three names below Andrew Luck on the Indianapolis Colts’ roster is Pat McAfee, the punter. Most consider Luck to be the face of the franchise while McAfee is the face of “The Indianapolis Star’s” digital show.
The local newspaper, looking to expand beyond print and into the digital realm, created “The Pat McAfee Show” with Andy Mohr automotive, the show’s second sponsor. The show airs live from Kilroy’s at 7 p.m. on Tuesday nights. The show is scheduled for 16 weeks, with the first eight being filmed in Broad Ripple and the last eight will be filmed at the downtown location of Kilroy’s.
Much like a monologue done by Jay Leno or Jimmy Fallon during their late night television shows, McAfee opens the show talking about recent news in a comedic fashion. For the October 1 show, his opening included an introduction to Brian, the breast cancer awareness unicorn. He emphasized the significance of breast cancer awareness by saying, “Big or small, save ‘em all. We’re all on team boobies.”
The bar atmosphere fits well with McAfee’s personality and provides the audience with a lively environment especially because of the location of the stage to the crowd. Before the show, McAfee instructed the audience to “have fun, get drunk and don’t go swimming,” referencing his arrest after swimming in the canal.
The show continued to a segment with “Indianapolis Star” columnist Bob Kravitz and Colts beat reporter Stephen Holder. Breaking down the previous Sunday’s performance seemed dull following McAfee’s opening. It is during this time that McAfee answers questions either from fans in attendance or on Twitter.
Following the appearance of Kravitz and Holder, McAfee introduced a guest star and teammate. Jerrell Freeman, an inside linebacker, joined McAfee and discussed his journey to the Colts from a small Division III college including time spent playing in the Canadian Football League.
Freeman also answered questions fan questions and was surprised to hear that he was being drafted in certain types of fantasy football leagues. McAfee and Freeman also played a game including two audience members. The game Fair Catch Phrases is what McAfee calls “a knock-off of catch phrase, taboo, Million Dollar Password and all those things.” The winner of the game then gets placed in a drawing for $1,000 at the end of the season.
McAfee closed the show thanking the audience, Freeman, Kravitz, Holder, “The Indianapolis Star,” Andy Mohr automotive, host Jeffrey Gorman and the men and women of the military. He also encouraged viewers to explore indystar.com and mentioned donating to his foundation.
His closing line was “Let’s Go Pirates,” as the show ended just before the Pittsburgh Pirates, his hometown team, played in the National League Wild Card game against the Cincinnati Reds.