All eyes were on the University of Texas at Austin back in 2019 when The Tonight Show host Jimmy Fallon brought his show to the UT campus. The host even prepared a special tribute to the school — and the state of Texas as a whole — with his unique spin on John Denver's "Thank God I'm a Country Boy."
The Nov. 7, 2019 episode of The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon opened with the host decked out in UT burnt orange and visiting Austin's Hole in the Wall. There he's met with a room full of UT Austin students. Being from New York, Fallon has to prove his cred and belief that "Texas is more than just a word on a shirt that I bought at the airport 20 minutes ago." Beyond sharing his love for the Austin-filmed Friday Night Lights, Fallon prepared an epic ode to all things Texas, including brisket, Bevo, Sixth Street, giant belt buckles, boots, tacos and drinking Lone Star beer. Fallon even included a tribute to the unofficial Lone Star State ambassador, actor Matthew McConaughey, with an "alright, alright, alright" reference.
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Of course, no trip to Texas is complete without a visit from McConaughey. Following a "script to screen" class with Professor Matthew McConaughey at the UT campus.
Fallon's visit marked the first time the NBC late night talk show taped on a college campus.
KXAN Austin reports that 3,000 people attended the show's taping at Bass Concert Hall.
This article was originally published in November of 2019.
