I met Mark Sanchez in the fall of 2005. It was my first season at USC and our team was regarded as the best in the history of the game. Mark was a rising star in Southern California as a freshman quarterback with a rocket arm and an infectious personality. I was a 22-year-old transplant from Pennsylvania who fell in love with the Pacific, the USC football vibe and everything LA had to offer.
As a young coach you are often seeking to find your way, and that way is usually through the lens of those mentoring you. At USC in 2005 those mentors included Pete Carroll, Steve Sarkisian, Lane Kiffin and others. And in the QB room, it was a Who's Who of college football. Matt Leinart was coming off a Heisman campaign, John David Booty was his heir apparent with Mark Sanchez waiting in the wings.
He and I became close friends as we both found our footing at USC. From two different coasts it was clear from Day 1 that we had the same goals – compete to do things better than they had ever been done before, master this unique offense and begin the path to mastery around quarterback play.
We both learned quickly that one is never a master at this position, but both of us became obsessed with that craft.
As the NFL Combine approaches, Mark Sanchez is our guest on this week's Y-Option podcast, fueled by our founding partner 76. We dove into the nuances of the position, what matters most for a QB to find success in the NFL and took a deep dive into the Las Vegas Raiders as Mark is the ONLY quarterback to start for both a Pete Carroll (USC) AND Chip Kelly (Eagles) led team.
And yes, we also went down memory lane while talking in depth about one of his favorite plays, Y-Option.
Have a great weekend and thank you for the support - none of this is possible without our community and love pouring into it while getting to know the new subscribers along the way.
Much love and stay steady,
Yogi
P.S. I just spent a few days in Tuscaloosa and those stories plus an in-depth interview with Kalen DeBoer will be coming next week. Stay turned to @YOptionFB & @YOptionCFB on social media for all things college football through the lens of the West Coast.
This episode was executive produced by Jim Thornby and edited by Victor Ren
This podcast is a Best Coast Media production
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