Here’s to the Unexpected

Season 2 of Y-Option & Big Ten Football Takes Off

It’s funny how life works.

So many unexpected things come from moments you never saw coming. On this final Sunday before college football truly gets rolling I’m sure you can reflect on a few of those in your life. How you met your partner, how you ended up in your profession and even how you found yourself reading our emails each week.

As the season approaches I find myself doing the same. Without walking on at Pitt I’d never coach at USC under Pete Carroll. If I didn’t coach I’d never work for the Pac-12 Network. If I didn't work for the Pac-12 Network I would have never met my wife on a plane. If the Pac-12 didn’t change form I would never be calling Big Ten games each weekend and would have unlikely started this endeavor.

So here we are.

And here we go—Season 2 of Y-Option and Big Ten Football coming at you full force. College football, thoughtful conversations, powerful insights.

Last night, something hit me.

I was leaving dinner, carrying my five-year-old son—he had just fallen asleep in my arms. Our ten-year-old was running ahead when a man named Greg walked up to me.

“Hey Yogi… thank you. The content you’re putting out—especially Life in a Walk—has impacted my life.”

We paused. He spoke with a gravity that instantly transported me back to that 200-mile journey, where every day I unearthed a different decade of my father’s life—and in doing so, learned about him… and about myself.

I walked away from that conversation with a tear in my eye. My five-year-old still asleep in my arms, our ten-year-old playing in the foreground.

Didn’t see that one coming either.

But maybe that’s the red thread through all of this—we show up, live our lives, tell stories, and connection happens. That’s also sports. We show up, compete, grow community, and celebrate the game we all love.

And this season at Y-Option, I’m feeling that more than ever.

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What’s Ahead in Season 2:

🎙 Over 30 Episodes — Coaches, players, ADs, icons, learners, leaders. Every guest curious, competitive, and on their own path. Jim Thornby and I are proud to share their stories.

🔍 The Process — A six-part limited series exploring a phrase we all know… but rarely unpack. It’s about football. But also about life. Co-hosted with Rhett Lewis, one of the most talented humans I know.

✈️ Empty the Call Sheet — My weekly reflections written from the sky. Honest. Unfiltered. Straight off a plane from wherever football takes us. And always fueled by a latte or two.

🏆 Weekly Awards, Presented by 76 — Keeping you on the Go Go Go so you never miss a beat.

✨ A Few Surprises — You’ll just have to stay tuned for those.

A week and a half ago, flying home from our family trip to Denmark, Norway, and Sweden, I was knee-deep in research for Big Ten Media Days.

About seven hours in, I turned to my wife and said,
“Amy… I love this stuff. Like, I LOVE this stuff.”

Learning new teams.
Discovering a coach’s story.
Hearing about a player’s path for the first time.

This week marks my 25th year in major college football. And yet, every season still feels brand new—like media day at Pitt back in 2001 was just yesterday.

Because it is. Because amid all of the radical changes in our sport, the game still shows up.

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So here’s to the unexpected.
To Saturdays that still move us.
To the stories ahead—and the people who show up to hear them.

Thanks for being here. Thanks for listening. Thanks for reading this note.

Because of you, I know I’m not flying solo.

Much love to everyone in this community. Let’s all continue to embrace the unexpected and as always, stay steady.

Yogi