Pittsburgh offensive tackle Ryan Baer went viral online after a not-so-flattering angle of his head got caught by ESPN cameras during Thursday’s game against Toledo.
The GameAbove Sports Bowl between the aforementioned teams featured six overtimes, but Baer’s hairline was probably the most talked-about part, with some top personalities from the sports world joining the gab.
Barstool Sports president Dave Portnoy was one of them, taking to X to suggest that the offensive lineman was probably way too old to still be in college.
“This 6OT game just blessed us with this hairline,” he wrote as the caption to a photo of the player’s very noticeable bald spot. “How old are college kids again?”
Baer, actually a redshirt sophomore, had a one-word response to Portnoy’s quip, simply stating “damn.”
Dave Portnoy’s Joke Brought The Bald Sports Reporters Out
Male baldness is a universal issue and affects a lot of men, including some of the most prominent names in sports journalism. ESPN’s Scott Van Pelt is one of the most notable and had some comforting words for the Pitt OT.
“Dude, it’s fine. Fine,” he tweeted.
“Ryan you look tremendous,” CBS Sports podcast host Kyle Long added.
“It’s alright brother, bad camera angles happen to the best of us,” Gojo and Golic’s Mike Golic chimed in.
Dave Portnoy replied to Ryan Bear, suggesting the player could make the most of his baldness and get himself a job at Barstool.
Meanwhile, Baer did not have the best outing, with Toledo beating Pittsburgh 48-46 in the six-overtime thriller. The game set the record for the most overtimes in a bowl game, but the player wasn’t able to leave with a win for his trouble.
Still, he got some words of encouragement from some of the biggest names in sports media.