Y-Option: College Football with Yogi Roth

Two years ago, the Pac-12 had two members and a whole lot of doubt.

Teresa Gould had something else. She had conviction and a vision.

In two short years, Commissioner Gould built back a team of 30 who raised their hands and stayed while navigating a rebuild that nobody had a roadmap for. And she did it while trusting her team and leaning on her 36 years of experience in college athletics.

Now the historic league is back. Nine schools. A new logo. A new season on the horizon. And we are celebrating that with a new series titled THE DAWN, presented by the Pac-12 and Y-Option.

Ten episodes. Eight head football coaches. One commissioner. And a never-before-seen short film from behind the scenes of the rebuild. All of it candid, all of it in-depth where we cover culture, leadership, expectations, and the vision driving the next chapter of Pac-12 football.

For those of you who have been with us at Y-Option: College Football with Yogi Roth from the jump, this series is for you. We are grateful for your support, the community we’ve created here at Y-Option and the love for college football that we all share.

For those just joining this newsletter, we hope to bring you thoughtful insight into college football and THE DAWN seems like a great place to start. Hope you enjoy Commissioner Teresa Gould as she opens up on resilience, reinvention and what it took to bring the Pac-12 back.

After all, who doesn’t love a comeback story?

Much love and stay steady,

Yogi

Y-Option: College Football with Yogi Roth is a reader-supported publication. Be sure to join our community on YouTube.

THE DAWN will debut today across the Pac-12’s YouTube and Pac-12 Insider, the league’s 24/7 FAST channel. The series culminates with a finale featuring never-before-seen behind-the-scenes content from the building of this new league. It drops in August, right before the season kicks off.

Some quarterbacks earn their scars. Some have them handed to them. Either way, they’re part of the path.

This week’s episode of Y-Option: College Football with Yogi Roth is with a QB who knows that better than most - Demond Williams Jr of the Washington Huskies.

Demond heads into year three at UW with a chance to be one of the most dynamic players in America and in my eyes, is the most challenging quarterback to prepare for in the nation.

As always, each episode of Y-Option is fueled by our founding sponsor, 76, keeping you on the GO GO GO so you never miss a beat.

Demond and I sat down at the Elite 11 Finals, where he was pouring into the next generation of quarterbacks as a counselor. It was a full circle moment as Demond was a camper there himself. When he showed up in high school I shared the same note with him as we shared with every QB each summer: the only guarantee is that your path will not go as you envision it.’

That’s the thing about playing QB, the path never goes as planned.

This past off-season tested Demond in a way most people will never experience, but all have an opinion on. For the UW star, what came on the other side of a hectic 48 hours wasn’t bitterness. Rather, it was growth.

He and I talked about leaning on his faith. His family. His support system. About having to go back and rebuild relationships, brick by brick, and how that work shaped the leader he’s become. Not a quieter version of himself. A more outspoken one with an edge.

And the difference shows up in the small moments. Where he used to stay after practice throwing extra routes, now he’s just as likely to be hanging with his teammates. One might say they are building the culture from the inside out. That’s not an accident. That’s a veteran understanding what actually wins football games.

His bond with Jedd Fisch is 4 years deep now. Built on trust. Built on what they call PCP in their offense: play caller purpose. Knowing exactly what’s being asked, then making it happen.

Washington has a loaded schedule this fall. The Apple Cup to open on NBC. A trip to USC. Penn State at home. Indiana at home. Finish in Eugene. Overall, a real chance to make noise in the Big Ten and push toward the Playoff conversation.

And I can’t wait to get there to see it in person week 1 as the season is right around the corner.

Much love and stay steady,

Yogi

Y-Option: College Football with Yogi Roth is a reader-supported publication. Be sure to subscribe to our newsletter and YouTube page.

Byrum Brown carries himself like someone who’s been tested and chose to come back better.

The Auburn quarterback sat down with us at the Elite 11 Finals in LA, and what you notice first is the presence. Not the stats. Not the ranking. The presence.

That presence joined today’s episode of Y-Option: College Football with Yogi Roth, fueled by our founding sponsor 76, keeping you on the GO GO GO so you never miss a beat.

He talked about the injury that stopped everything. The redshirt season that had him flying, then the fracture that brought him all the way back to the most basic question an athlete can ask: Am I going to be the same?

He answered it. And the answer is on the field. And this fall it will be at Auburn.

But what stayed with me is what he said when I asked what he wants people to know about who he actually is, beyond the arm talent and the production. No hesitation.

Just this: a guy who loves his family, loves his teammates, loves soaking everything out of every single day.

That’s not a recruit pitch. That’s a foundation.

Byrum Brown is one to watch. Not just because of where he’s going. But because of how he’s going there.

Also, if you missed the first episode of our QB Conversations, be sure to watch Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele.

Thanks for the support and if you’re not, be sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel as we continue to compete to bring insightful conversations to college football.

Much love and stay steady,

Yogi

Y-Option: College Football with Yogi Roth is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele grew up on the shores of Ewa Beach, Hawaii.

He was a three star recruit who showed up at the Elite 11 and became a legend in the 28 year history of the premiere QB event in football.

At every turn JSK took the opportunity he was given and never looked back.

He shared many of those in today’s conversation, fueled by our founding sponsor 76, keeping you on the GO GO GO so you never miss a beat.

Two years ago at the Elite 11 finals, he went throw for throw with Dillon Gabriel - a counselor that year, as well as a former state record holder in Hawaii and a QB Jaron-Keawe had watched since middle school. They could have gone throw for throw all night. Trust me, I was front and center. In the end, Gabriel graciously stepped aside and Jaron-Keawe won the rail shot challenge.

It was clear watching it - something shifted in that moment.

Looking back, in that moment a three-star kid from Hawaii had just introduced himself to the country.

When I asked Jaron about that moment, he was direct. He came in with the mindset that he was going to win it. No asterisk. No footnote. Just belief, out loud.

Last year he started as a true freshman, taking over for Fernando Mendoza, who ended up winning the Heisman Trophy and being drafted #1 overall. We spoke about that journey, and what it was like to have his head coach, Tosh Lupoi sleep outside his home the night he was named Cal's head coach.

This conversation will inspire the quarterback who isn’t getting the attention he deserves - and nudge the highly recruited ones to keep working, because the craft is never complete.

Hope you enjoy it. And be sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel for more conversations at the heart of college football.

Much love and stay steady

Yogi

Y-Option: College Football with Yogi Roth is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

It’s been a big day in college football with the Brendan Sorsby eligibility conversation so Todd Blackledge and I had to go LIVE on YouTube to have a thoughtful conversation around his case.

We also dive into the Big Ten vs. SEC debate — and what the Big Ten gets wrongfully dinged for — Elite 11 takeaways and what stood out most this year during the QB camp. We also analyze Bryce Underwood's development and explore the Big Ten quarterback tiers keeping defensive coordinators up at night.

Y-Option: College Football with Yogi Roth is fueled by 76, keeping you on the GO GO GO so you never miss a beat.

🎧 Tune in to hear:

* Brendan Sorsby eligibility case

* The “there’s no easy place to win” argument, and inside the reality of Big Ten stadiums.

* Elite 11 takeaways, and what stood out most this year

* The scariest quarterbacks in the league, and why they keep defensive coordinators up at night

* Who would have been the Elite 11 MVP in the famed QB class that Todd was a part of?

Bret Bielema has been in the room 18 times as a head coach in the two biggest conferences in the game.

This year, the room was Big Ten spring meetings in Southern California.

Head coaches, athletic directors, commissioners, all in the same space, hashing out the future of the game. And what came out of Terranea this year was one the entire sport was anticipating — a playoff expansion debate that isn’t slowing down, a new punt rule nobody practiced for, and a conference room full of some of the best coaches in the sport figuring out what comes next.

Todd Blackledge and I brought Illinois head coach Bret Bielema on this weeks episode of Y-Option: College Football with Yogi Roth to break it all down, fueled by our founding sponsor 76, keeping you on the GO GO GO so you never miss a beat

Here’s what stood out:

* Coach Bielema wants 24 teams in the playoff — And he has receipts. He was leading a 12-1 Wisconsin team in the BCS era that got left out and that experience never left him. His argument now, is that the sport has changed too much — NIL, revenue share, roster management — for only 12 teams to have a chance at winning it all.

* The punt rule landed wrong — Not because it’s necessarily a bad rule, but because it showed up after spring ball, with zero preparation time. In 18 years as a head coach, Coach Bielema has never seen something this consequential arrive so late and so unannounced.

* The Big Ten room itself is different — He described it with real affection. P.J. Fleck to his right, Matt Rhule to his left, Dan Lanning and Curt Cignetti in the mix. Coaches who are who they are, every single day. And above all, Tony Petitti — a commissioner who communicates before the meeting, not during it. Nobody walks in cold. Nobody gets defensive. That, Coach Bielema says, is what separates this conference right now.

Then we turned to Champaign — and what’s being built inside that building.

48% of his roster is new and for this program to meet its expectations and recent standards they must develop a true connection with one another and that is the focus of this off-season. The way Coach Bielema guides that is what will stand out.

On the field, he’s as excited about his wide receiver room as he’s ever been, his safeties could be among the best in the conference and quarterback Katin Houser heads into fall camp as the guy.

But the line that stuck with me didn’t come from the coach. It came from Houser himself, during our spring visit.

“Around here, the hallways are warm.”

Hope you enjoy today’s conversation and we are so appreciative of the support as we continue to grow Y-Option. Please be sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel so you never miss a beat.

Much love and stay steady,

Yogi

Y-Option: College Football Coast to Coast is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support our work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

College football has changed forever.

Not just because athletes can now earn money, but because 18, 19 and 20-year-olds are suddenly being asked to make decisions that most adults still struggle to navigate.

That’s why this conversation hit different.

Welcome to the latest episode of Y-Option: College Football with Yogi Roth, fueled by our founding sponsor 76, keeping you on the GO GO GO so you never miss a beat.

In advance of the Elite 11 Finals, I sat down with Ohio State offensive lineman Luke Montgomery, Georgia quarterback Ryan Montgomery, and Dane Burkholder — a partner at Roseville Wealth, where he and his team manage over 2.1 Billion dollars every year. Dane also coined the phrase and founded the company The Financial Athlete.

Today’s guests unpack the new reality in college football: The Rise of the Financial Athlete, and the way an All-American offensive lineman in Columbus and his quarterback brother in Athens navigate it all.

For those seeking to surround themselves with athletic minds who are succeeding in the Financial Athlete world of college football — look no further than these two, and Dane, for role models.

To be blunt: athletes and parents need to listen to this.

The Montgomery brothers didn’t just talk about contracts or NIL deals — they talked about patience. Discipline. Delayed gratification. Building a trusted circle. Protecting their future. And understanding that money can either become a blessing…or a distraction.

In other words, they used football analogies and applied them to their business life. As they should.

Luke opened up about what it’s really like navigating the NIL era at a powerhouse like Ohio State — and how head coach Ryan Day embraces his responsibility to impact his team off the field when it comes to balancing football, expectations, leadership and real financial accountability at an incredibly young age.

Ryan shared why development mattered more than chasing the biggest payday when he chose Kirby Smart’s Georgia Bulldogs, and how keeping the bigger picture in focus has shaped every decision he’s made since arriving in Athens.

What stood out most to me was their perspective.

Throughout our conversation, I kept thinking about what all of us who love sports so often preach — that the skills that allow you to find success on the field will always transition into life.

And that is exactly where Dane Burkholder and his education around being a Financial Athlete meets the moment. Dane’s team and their content continues to impact this generation of athletes, parents and coaches in ways that are helping athletes on countless levels.

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As our conversation wound down, I was struck by how consistently Luke and Ryan kept thinking 20, 30, even 40 years ahead.

About setting up their future families.

About investing instead of reacting emotionally.

About understanding that football won’t last forever.

And maybe most importantly, they spoke about the power of environment.

The right coaches. The right teammates. The right family. The right mentors.

Or as my father still tells me: “You are the company you keep.”

This episode will resonate with athletes, parents, recruits and honestly anyone navigating pressure, opportunity and long-term decision-making.

Because the truth is, The Financial Athlete isn’t just a football conversation anymore.

It’s a life conversation.

It’s also Elite 11 Finals week — where every quarterback, parent and mentor will have seen this podcast and will get to be part of our powerful curriculum, Beyond the X’s and O’s, which we’ve been running for nearly 20 years.

The people who taught Luke and Ryan how to navigate life from day one — Mom and Dad — will be special guests in an intimate conversation with Dane and me, going behind the scenes on how they raised their sons to thrive on the field while staying so level-headed off it, as Financial Athletes at two of the most pressure-packed universities in the nation.

I can’t wait for this one — as a college football analyst and as a parent.

Be sure to subscribe to Y-Option: College Football with Yogi Roth to get it right in your inbox, and on YouTube as we continue to grow our community.

Much love and stay steady,

Yogi

Y-Option: College Football with Yogi Roth is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

There’s something refreshing about watching a quarterback bet on loyalty in an era built on movement.

That’s what stood out most to me after sitting down with Noah Fifita on the latest episode of Y-Option: College Football with Yogi Roth, fueled by our founding sponsor 76 — keeping you on the GO GO GO so you never miss a beat.

Noah has become one of the defining faces of modern college football, not because he chased the spotlight, but because he stayed put long enough for the spotlight to find him.

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In today’s game, quarterbacks transfer. Rosters flip overnight. Coaches leave. Expectations shift weekly. Yet here sits Fifita entering his final season at Arizona as one of only 5 senior starting quarterbacks still playing for the same school they originally signed with.

And the wild part?

That loyalty isn’t performative. It’s personal.

You can feel it when he talks about Tucson, his teammates, his family and especially his grandparents — whose sacrifices created the foundation for the life he’s now living. The humility is real. So is the conviction.

That combination is what makes him fascinating.

While Noah carries himself with gratitude, there’s also a very real edge underneath it all. He believes Arizona can do something the program has never done before. He believes this team can compete for a conference title. He believes they belong in the Rose Bowl conversation.

And yes — he believes he belongs in the Heisman conversation too.

Not in an ego-driven way. In a competitor’s way.

That distinction matters.

The best quarterbacks I’ve been around often carry two seemingly opposite traits at the same time: humility and unshakable belief. Noah lives in both spaces comfortably. He speaks like someone grounded by family, faith and service, while simultaneously preparing like someone who expects to walk onto the field as the best player every Saturday.

That’s rare.

And honestly, it’s part of why this upcoming season feels so compelling for Arizona football.

Noah isn’t trying to become “the guy who stayed.”

He’s trying to become the quarterback who won.

That mindset changes everything.

After talking with him, I walked away thinking less about statistics and more about legacy. About what it means for a player to choose development over escape routes. About what happens when belief inside a locker room becomes stronger than outside noise.

Arizona enters this season with expectations, but also with a quarterback whose story feels bigger than wins and losses.

He’s dynamic enough to put up massive numbers.Tough enough to carry a program.Grounded enough to lead it.

And if Arizona takes the leap many believe they’re capable of making this fall, don’t be surprised if the rest of the country starts talking about Noah Fifita the way Tucson already does.

Not simply as a great college quarterback.

But as a legitimate Heisman contender.

Much love and stay steady,

Yogi

Y-Option: College Football with Yogi Roth is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

A note on The Honor Roll

For the next few weeks, every Y-Option newsletter is free to read in full, no paywall, as a thank-you to this community. Subscribers are automatically entered into The Honor Roll, which includes a Pac-12 helmet from my collection, a Madden family football Sunday experience at Goal Line Studios, and more. Free subscription is open to anyone at y-option.com.

While no one is practicing this week in major college football Todd Blackledge and I sat down to reflect on our Road Trip this past spring in the Big Ten.

In today’s Y-Option: College Football with Yogi Roth podcast we explore the conference that has crowned the last three National Champions and this past December, welcomed four new head coaches. And for the first time on this podcast we went LIVE on YouTube and X. If you haven’t subscribed, please do so you never miss a conversation around college football, Coast to Coast.

Todd and I share our lessons learned and intel gathered from Penn State, UCLA, Michigan, Michigan State, Northwestern and Illinois.

As always, every podcast is fueled by our founding sponsor, 76, keeping you on the GO GO GO so you never miss a beat.

As always, much love and stay steady,

Yogi

Y-Option: College Football with Yogi Roth is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

I’ve known Jedd Fisch for a long time.

So long that when I walked into his building this spring, I didn’t just see a head coach in year three — I saw the same guy from 2019 sitting outside his home in Hermosa Beach, pulling out notes and asking, what do you think of this?

Back then, it wasn’t a job.

It was a vision.

I remember him walking me through it — how he’d structure a program, how he’d communicate, how he’d build it for players, his PRO mantra and more. It was detailed. Thoughtful. Almost like he was already living in a future that hadn’t arrived yet.

Fast forward to today, and you can feel it the second you walk in the Washington facility.

The building looks different. The roster looks different. The energy feels…settled.

Not comfortable. Just clear. There is a steadiness to it.

But every head coach has a starting point, and for Washington head coach Jedd Fisch, it all started with his curiosity to learn about the game of football.

And that is where we started on today’s Y-Option: College Football with Yogi Roth podcast, fueled by our founding sponsor 76, keeping you on the GO GO GO so you never miss a beat.

Not the buzzword version. The real kind.

The kind that shows up when you’re five years old asking questions during the entire drive from New Jersey to Florida. The kind that never really turns off.

That curiosity didn’t just make him a better coach.

It made him a collector — of ideas, experiences and people.

And when you sit with him now, you realize his program isn’t built off one philosophy. It’s built on years of filtering what fits, what lasts and what actually connects with players.

Personally, this conversation was a fun one for me.

Coach Fisch and I first crossed paths in 2009 when we were both interviewing with the Seattle Seahawks. He got the job. I transitioned into media. But we stayed connected, and over the years we’ve had countless conversations around football, leadership and quarterback play.

Which is why this episode felt different, as I only asked questions I didn’t know the answers to.

And honestly, those are usually the best conversations.

Topics Covered

* Demond Williams and why scars are unavoidable for quarterbacks

* His relationship with QB1

* A deep dive into Jedd Fisch’s mind as a play-caller

* His kitchen table as a child — something we ask every Elite 11 quarterback

* Why Year 3 feels different in Seattle

* What discipline looks like with this Washington roster

* The potential of the 2026 Huskies

* Why joy isn’t a tactic — it’s a byproduct of trust

Hope you enjoy this week’s Y-Option conversation.

And if you’re just joining us, thank you. Take a look back at some of our recent episodes and be sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel, where we pride ourselves on bringing thoughtful and insightful conversations around college football every week.

Appreciate you being here and following along this spring.

More coming soon.

Much love and stay steady,

Yogi

Y-Option: College Football with Yogi Roth is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.