“So Yogi, what are you going to do now?”
Since the Pac-12 splintered last August, I’ve been asked that in every Pac-12 city, stadium and on social media hundreds, if not thousands, of times. And each time I would engage in conversation and lean on what my longtime partner Ted Robinson and I agreed to last football season—“let’s compete to not miss a moment.” And we didn’t. For the entirety of the 2023 season and every subsequent spring game in 2024, myself and my colleagues connected to each moment in a beautiful fashion.
But yes, under the surface the waters were turbulent.
Trying to figure out one’s future while having a family is a stress I had yet to truly feel. The Pac-12 was home, and I was ok if that was home for the rest of my career. Yet when USC and UCLA left for the Big Ten Conference, I too sensed that life was going to shift for me and my family. So I did what you’d expect—I began to have conversations that led to subsequent interviews.
During that process I also began to re-read every single note I’d taken in 17 years broadcasting major college football games. From David Shaw, Chris Petersen, Mike Leach, Mike Riley, Lincoln Riley, Chip Kelly, Mark Helfrich, Rich Rodriguez, Lane Kiffin, Steve Sarkisian, Jim Mora, Rick Neuheisel, Jedd Fisch, Kalen DeBoer, Brent Brennan, Kyle Whittingham and dozens of others — one thing became clear from every head coach, coordinator or elite athlete—the most successful Chased What Mattered. They had tremendous clarity in what mattered most, were truly confident in that statement and attacked it with a discipline unknown to them beforehand.
I had to ask myself those same questions. What mattered most to me? It took all of 12 seconds while watching our oldest son play in the backyard.
What mattered most was calling games, standing at the 50 yard line each Saturday and doing the two things that are at the bottom of my call sheet.
1) Celebrate the game.
2) Coach the viewer.
When I was 9 years old, I vividly recall our backyard and calling my own games while shooting jumpers in Northeastern Pennsylvania. There was no way I was going to give that up. Thankfully, I won’t have to as I’ll be on your TV screens again this fall.
While finding that clarity, I was also on a mission of sorts. Each weekend last fall I would meet with athletic directors, coaches, players, parents and fans and what was abundantly clear was that each school was going to have to adjust how they told their story, how they shared their story and most importantly—answer the question of who was going to tell it?
One afternoon on the campus of Stanford, I met with trusted friend Carter Henderson and our 90-minute jam session sparked an idea that had been brewing for years. College football had yet to be told successfully thru the lens of the West Coast and if it were to be told I was the ideal person for that role. He reminded me what we all know but may have been hesitate to accept—the West Coast has historically been underserving its sports fans, the majority of college football narratives have come from the east coast, midwest and more recently the southeastern part of the USA.
Bluntly, as Carter shared, it was time for the West Coast to have a larger voice in college football and he reminded me of the trust that I’ve hopefully earned over 20 years on West Coast campuses, locker rooms and living rooms. From that November day until today, July 8th, I’ve been ideating, having conversations and building. Much like as a walk on at Pitt, I was doing the “Lonely Work”.
A lot of my internal conversations and journal entries centered around the simple idea that I didn’t want to stop talking about teams that were now competing in the B1G, ACC, Big-12 and of course Oregon State and Washington State competing for their future in the re-imagined Pac-12. Most importantly, I didn’t want to stop communicating with you, the fans and supporters of those schools. Being a part of something bigger than oneself was always my favorite part of being in the Pac-12, and that concept is still a driver in my daily life. So it was like this decision was made for me in airports, coffee shops and stadiums across the country—I just had to let it breathe a bit.
Thankfully, I haven’t had to do it alone. With each conversation, like a wave in Venice Beach, the inertia grew. After every phone call with an AD or coach, their support solidified this concept. Once close friend and longtime sports producer Jim Thornby agreed to join forces, the workload didn’t seem insurmountable. It seemed like it could actually happen! And after an email from Substack asking if I was interested in their platform, it was born.
Best Coast Media: a media company founded on thoughtful dialogue in sports.
Our first offering: Y-Option—college football thru the lens of the West Coast. A podcast and a newsletter, multiple times per week within the Substack App, on YouTube, downloadable wherever you love podcasts and of course, built for social media consumption.
So, what makes it interesting? Why should you listen or subscribe? And why the name?!
If you seek thoughtful dialogue in sports, specifically college football, this is the place for you.
We will have in-depth interviews, timely conversations and dialed-in analysis. We will bring in voices you trust and voices who will earn your trust. And we will have a blast. After all, if you’re starting something from the ground up and not having a blast then one might be doing it all wrong.
Also, I’m over the Embrace Debate culture in media, especially sports media. After watching the recent ESPN documentary titled Up For Debate I left it with a great appreciation for debate and what it has done to sports media, such as creating new jobs, larger platforms and more voices. But at the same time it seems to promote screaming at every turn of the channel. And bluntly—I’ve tuned it out. If you have too, this is the place for you.
Y-Option won’t be through rose colored glasses, it will be based on the foundation that Pete Carroll challenged me on 18 years ago when I left coaching. He asked, “So Yogi, who are you going to be as a broadcaster?”
I replied, “Well, I’ll be like Kirk Herbstreit.” He was the first broadcaster I met at 20 years old and the lone broadcaster who I model my craft after today. Coach Carroll’s response was as you might predict.
“If you’re going to be a version of Herbie, what will happen to Yogi Roth?”
That summer, a Hall of Fame coach challenged me to define my style, vision, theme and philosophy as a player turned coach turned broadcaster. And the work I did in the summer of 2009 has never left my headset.
Style: thoughtful, energetic and honest. Everything based on fact first, opinion second.
Vision: call the Rose Bowl and the Olympic Games.
Theme: Be a part of something bigger than myself while being in a relentless pursuit of a competitive edge.
Philosophy: Seek and Uncover the Humanity in Sport around the Globe
I’ve tweaked a few words over the years but it’s basically the same thing I emailed to him back in the day.
And that is what you’ll get here. And on Saturday’s I’ll be a part of a network calling games across the country, as well as contributing on-air during the week. I’m so honored to be on a broadcast team and get to live out a childhood dream each weekend. More on that in a few weeks!
Oh yea, where did the title Y-Option come from? It’s an offensive play concept that is a cornerstone of the West Coast offense with the Tight End or ‘Y’ position running a go route and having the option to run straight, hook it up, break in or break out. An option if you will. Furthermore, each of the Pac-12 fan bases is seeking new options from a content standpoint and I had to find or create a few options as well. So I hope you like the name and the meaning behind it all.
Lastly, this past off-season I came across a study that shared that the foundational elements of mental health are Agency and Gratitude. Agency, meaning one truly believe they are making choices that reflect our own values and desires, or as I interpreted it—not acting as the victims of other people’s choices. And Gratitude, truly being grateful for what has happened and what will happen in the future. Those two words helped me navigate the mental hurdles and chaotic tide of the past year amid Pac-12 turmoil. With that clarity, I’m so proud to launch Y-Option, the podcast and newsletter and grateful that you’ll consider being along for the ride.
Thank you for the patience as I’ve dodged many of your questions over the last year about my future but am so honored to share some of it with you today.
Much love,
Yogi
Welcome to Y-Option