Well before the first signs of dawn, Moises Ramirez turned to the burly man standing next to him on the packed University of Oregon Memorial Quad and asked a question.

“Hey man, you think you can squat 175 pounds?”

Riley Duncan, who had never met Ramirez before, said sure. So, he put Ramirez, who already stood out in a white rain jacket and ski goggles, on his shoulders and lifted him above the throng of heads in hopes that his homemade sign would make an appearance on television.

Neither Ramirez nor Duncan attends Oregon. Ramirez grew up a Ducks fan but said he’s “secretly” an Oregon State student. Duncan lives in Eugene.

But both were drawn to Oregon’s campus before 5 a.m. by College GameDay, the famous ESPN pregame show that broadcast from the quad Saturday morning in advance of No. 10 Oregon’s showdown with No. 9 UCLA.

Conditions weren’t exactly ripe for a big turnout. The broadcast went on air at 6 a.m. local time. Temperatures were below 50 degrees and rain occasionally poured onto the crowd.

RELATED: Full photo gallery from the College GameDay broadcast Saturday morning on campus

Yet a line started to form before 4 a.m. By 4:45, the “pit” area behind the show’s main set was packed full. And at 5:30, still seven hours before kickoff of the football game, a boisterous crowd filled all the grass on the quad, with onlookers even packing onto the steps leading to Chapman and Condon Halls in an effort to get a view of the set. A DJ turned the wait for the 6 a.m. start time into an impromptu concert, and the ruckus could be heard from several blocks away.

When former football coach turned TV personality Lee Corso made his first appearance on the set around 5:40 a.m. and kissed an Oregon helmet, a cheer erupted that would rival a touchdown celebration at Autzen Stadium.

The on-air personalities gushed about the turnout, especially considering the conditions.