Y-Option: College Football with Yogi Roth

I’ve known Dan Lanning for 15 years.

We’ve had a lot of conversations over that time. So going into this one, I didn’t want to hit the same notes, didn’t want to discuss the topics we’ve covered before and hoped to stick to my lone rule during interviews: "ask questions I don’t know the answers to.”

That wasn’t easy, but it was a blast to prepare for and it started with something I was almost embarrassed I hadn’t asked:

“Why do you coach?”

And honestly, everything flowed from there.

If you’ve read this newsletter you know how much I respect Dan Lanning’s DNA Traits: Connection, Growth, Toughness and Sacrifice. But not just because they offer clarity to anyone walking into their facility but because they offer a standard for those who join his program.

Standards are easy to create but after completing my spring tour across the country, it is clear that they are not as easy to uphold.

After talking with Coach Lanning on the latest 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, my mind was racing in route to my favorite cafe on the West Coast, Meraki, and onto my laptop while boarding a flight up north to Seattle to see UW.

Many people think that the Ducks win and retain players because they have resources, and yes they do. But they also have a group of returning players who love to learn from and follow their head coach. They know if they are willing to, as he says, “take the medicine” they will find tremendous growth.

From journaling post game to training this off-season, the entire 360 degree process in Eugene is a blueprint for success.

And now, the Oregon football process is player-owned and that is a reason why I think the Ducks can take the next step this fall and win the whole thing.

My Key Takeaways

* Coaching at its highest level is when you impact someone in a profound way.

* Standards matter more when players own them.

* Accountability has to be modeled, not just demanded.

* Growth comes from self-awareness and reflection.

* Obsession with improvement > obsession with praise. (personal favorite)

* Relationships still drive everything inside the Ducks program.

Hope you enjoy and thanks for the support along the way this spring. Am excited to share with you feature conversation’s over the next month with head coaches and elite players across the nation. Be sure to subscribe to our newsletter here at Y-Option: College Football with Yogi Roth and our YouTube page.

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.

In the summer of 1999 my Dad and I drove from Pennsylvania to Indiana, stopping at almost every college along the way.

The goal we spoke of on those highways: find a place to play college football.

The goal we never spoke of but was the underlying dream: earn a scholarship to Notre Dame.

While that never happened, I did play and coach against the Irish. But the truth looking back was that driving with my Dad allowed both of us to listen, learn and discover. Me about him as a father and him about my passion for college football.

Fast forward to the spring of 2026 and I found myself, along with Todd Blackledge, pulling into South Bend, walking the campus and reminiscing about our childhoods, drives with our fathers and both getting lost in the wonderment of the ND campus.

I also got to hear what led Todd to Penn State and what it was like growing up as a premiere player in the midwest.

The stories were endless, the laughter hearty and the connection meaningful. Reminiscent of that drive back in 1999 in many ways.

When the sun rose the following morning Todd and I found ourselves in the 2026 Irish team meeting, analyzing practice, meeting with coaches, sitting down with a Heisman candidate and Elite 11 alum CJ Carr and learning from a powerful conversation with head coach Marcus Freeman.

Afterwards, Todd and I reflected on lessons learned in South Bend and shared what we think about Notre Dame 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.

A few high level takeaways:

* The nostalgia during a walk around Notre Dame’s Stadium as the sun rises will give you the chills.

* CJ Carr is elite — full ownership of the offense, deep understanding beyond just the pass game.

* Clarity at quarterback = growth everywhere else.

* Receiver room feels upgraded — deeper, more competitive, more dynamic.

* Defense remains the backbone — experienced, physical, with added interior presence via the portal.

* Charlie Partridge is a huge addition to the coaching staff. And he was on the Pitt staff back in the day so it was a full circle moment on many levels for me.

* Culture is intentional — last season’s CFP decision has been used as fuel.

* A key to 2026: start fast — urgency around opening the season strong is real

Finally, this leg of our Spring Tour also served as a reminder that life goes even faster than a college football season. Watching Irish wideout Devin Fitzgerald compete in practice put a smile on my face as his Dad, Larry, was one of my college roommates over 20 years ago.

I can recall the day he was born and watching him run routes had Todd and I sharing stories about our kids and our childhoods. It served as a simple reminder that sports are a catalyst for conversation, change and inspiration.

We hope today’s conversation allows you to learn about Notre Dame in 2026 and maybe, just maybe reflect on a car ride with a loved one.

Thanks for the support on this Spring Coast to Coast Tour and if you’ve missed any of our past episodes at Indiana, Ohio State, Oregon and others be sure to subscribe to our YouTube page, as Todd and I are just warming up this off-season.

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.

Draft week always carries a certain energy.

You feel it in conversations, in locker rooms, in the quiet moments between reps. It’s the anticipation of what’s next. For some, it’s the culmination of a lifelong dream. For others, it’s a reminder that time keeps moving.

When walking into the Woody Hayes Athletic Center with Todd Blackledge, that energy was there.

Welcome to this weeks 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.

From Columbus, Todd and I talk about his Draft Day, as well as dive into the 2026 Ohio State Buckeyes.

It’s expected that 4 players will be drafted in the top 10 this week from Ohio State but let’s make one thing clear — this program doesn’t reset — it reloads.

And yet, by every modern measure, this years roster feels different.

Over 50 new players have entered the program since the end of last season and in today’s game, that kind of turnover can challenge a teams identity.

Not in the great state of O-H-I-O.

If anything, it felt tighter.

Many of the players who arrived didn’t need to be convinced of the standard. They already knew it. Some had relationships with coaches. Others had studied the program long before they stepped into the building.

So instead of adapting to a culture they stepped into one they were ready for.

Hope you enjoy this week’s podcast and if if you haven’t, be sure to subscribe to our YouTube Channel.

Quick Takeaways from Ohio State

* Ohio State doesn’t rebuild — it evolves with intention

* 50+ new players, yet zero drop in identity or expectation

* The portal is being used to reinforce culture, not replace it

* “Tough love” shows up in daily standards, not messaging

* The best players are also the hardest workers — and it’s contagious

* The receiver room sets a tone that elevates the entire roster

* Year two at quarterback brings ownership, not just experience

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.

Years ago my Dad and I walked the Camino de Santiago, one of the worlds most spiritual pilgrimages stretching across Portugal and Spain. Somewhere along that journey, he shared a line that has stayed with me ever since:

“Humans are made to move…and we move through things.”

I found myself coming back to that thought last week, driving along Midwest highways with Todd Blackledge. And after watching the reigning national champion Indiana Hoosiers in spring practice, it hit me even deeper.

It’s time we move through the idea that Indiana is just a great story.

They’re not.

They’re a legitimate national title contender. Again.

Welcome to 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.

Todd and I spent time at Hoosiers spring practice, and one thing was undeniable — this program is taking its next natural step.

What does that look like after an undefeated season?

* Competitive depth across the roster

* More imposing, developed bodies along the defensive line

* Big portal additions at key spots

* Staff continuity + a key familiar face returns

* A standard that hasn’t flinched, even after reaching the mountaintop

That last part matters most. The standard hasn’t changed. And that’s why this isn’t a two-year flash.

If you want to revisit it, tap back into my conversation with Curt Cignetti and Rhett Kleinschmidt earlier this offseason. The blueprint has been there.

Today’s episode also marks the first installment of our new series:

Y-Option: Coast to Coast

A journey across the country with Todd and I, diving into spring football, sitting in meeting rooms, watching practice, and then stepping back to share what it all means.

Because if you’re willing to move…you might start to see things a little differently.

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.

Talking to quarterbacks and those that help build them is one of my passions. And today’s conversation on Y-Option: College Football with Yogi Roth is a deep dive into that position with Seth Wickersham.

Seth wrote the best-selling book, American Kings, A Biography of the Quarterback. In a sentence: it’s the best QB book I’ve ever read. He combined years of interviews, insights and experiences and takes his readers on a ride that had me taking notes, pondering the position and juiced up to talk to coaches this spring about my takeaways.

After co-authoring 5-Star QB and then reading American Kings and sitting with Seth Wickersham, I kept coming back to this: the best quarterbacks aren’t defined by success, but by how they evolve when their identity gets challenged.

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

I walked away from this conversation with Seth Wickersham thinking less about quarterback play and more about what the position does to you. Not the throws, not the scheme, but the identity. The role asks you to become something bigger than yourself early, and then at some point in your journey, it asks you to let that version of yourself go.

And that tension feels heavier today than ever.

Quarterbacks are arriving with attention, expectations, and a version of themselves already defined before they’ve truly been developed. And even though every player knows their path won’t be perfect, there’s still a belief that it will be. What this conversation reinforced for me is that the ones who last aren’t the ones who avoid the hard moments — they’re the ones who can rebuild when everything they thought they were gets challenged.

In this powerful and insightful conversation, Seth Wickersham discusses the complexities of the quarterback position, exploring the mental, emotional, and cultural aspects that define elite players. From leadership and humility to the pressures of fame and the journey of development, this conversation offers valuable lessons for aspiring and current quarterbacks, coaches, and fans.

Some high level thoughts this book will force you to have:

* The psychological traits of successful quarterbacks

* The impact of fame and social media on players

* The importance of humility and self-awareness

* The transition from college to professional football

* The influence of family and coaching on player development

Also, if you missed my conversation with Dr. Michael Gervais, this is a bookmark for you if you love QB play, leadership and development of the world’s best.

As always, thank you for the time and community.

I’m off to the mid-west for a spring tour with Todd Blackledge as we hit Illinois, Indiana, Notre Dame and others. Be sure to subscribe to Y-Option’s YouTube page as the content will continue to come all off-season long.

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 are a handful of conversations each year that stay with me.

Today’s conversation with Dr. Michael Gervais is one of them.

I’m excited to share it with you while we’re on spring break in Japan as a family. And to those who sent recommendations on where to go and what to do, thank you. We’ve been loving it.

Dr. Michael Gervais is one of the leading high-performance psychologists in the world, host of the Finding Mastery podcast, and fresh off a Super Bowl run with the Seattle Seahawks. He’s also a dear friend who makes time each year to join this show.

As always, every conversation on Y-Option: College Football with Yogi Roth is fueled by our founding sponsor 76, keeping you on the GO GO GO so you never miss a beat. And this one is worth slowing down for.

Dr. Mike and I rarely stay in one lane. We start with football and quickly get to something deeper. This time it was about performance, pressure, parenting, and what it really takes to build people in today’s game.

We talked about championship environments and the tension every team lives in. Every individual wants to feel like they matter while also being part of something bigger. The best teams don’t fight that tension, they coach it.

That led us into college football right now. NIL, the portal, new rosters every season. It’s easy to chase what it used to be. The reminder was simple. Great coaches make contact with reality. They coach what is, not what they wish it was.

And more importantly, they coach the human, not just the athlete.

Because underneath performance is something deeper. Pressure. Identity. Fear. The need to belong. If you only coach the surface, pressure builds. If you understand the person, you give them a chance to play free.

We also spent time on something that doesn’t get talked about enough. Emotions. Not as a weakness, but as a skill. If you want consistency in the biggest moments, you have to be able to name what you feel, understand it, and work through it. As a father, coach, husband, and teammate, that part landed for me.

Since 2011, Dr. Mike has been a staple at Elite 11, so we had to talk quarterbacks. With a front row seat to Sam Darnold this past season, we explored a simple question that parents should explore.

Is the biggest stage always the best place to grow?

Then we went to something every parent and coach is navigating right now.

Technology. AI. The future.

It’s never been easier to remove struggle. But growth has always lived in it. The word that kept coming up was discernment. Knowing what actually matters.

We closed on youth sports, and it hit home. Most coaches care deeply, but without the right tools, the experience can miss.

One simple idea stuck with me. Give kids goals that are completely within their control, then let them reflect on them. It builds ownership. It builds confidence. It builds humans.

That’s what this conversation was really about.

Not just high performance, but how we show up for the people in front of us.

If you’re a coach, a parent, or just someone chasing growth, this one is worth your time.

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.

Last week a clip of USC practicing in 2008 went viral and a few friends sent it to me.

Watching it brought me right back. Every rep felt like your position was on the line. Every drill had juice. And what stood out most was that everyone welcomed it. It was competitive, it was fun, and players thrived in it.

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, focuses on this year’s Trojans.

And I’ll admit this. Being around this freshman class at the Navy All-American Game, speaking to the team last month, and now watching spring ball, I finally sense that this roster has the type of competitive depth that can make it feel like that again. Daily.

I’ve been around USC for a long time. As a camp counselor in 2002 and 2003 while playing at Pitt, on the coaching staff from 2005 to 2009, and now broadcasting their games for nearly two decades. I’ve seen a lot of cardinal and gold.

One of the biggest takeaways from my time with Pete Carroll, and from learning alongside him since, is his definition of competition.

Most people think of it as striving against one another. He always went back to the Latin root. To strive together.

That’s what the best teams do. They compete every day knowing their job is on the line, but their focus is on the present moment and getting better through it. That’s not easy anywhere, and in Los Angeles, it might be the hardest place in college football to truly live that out.

What helps is talent. Real talent. At every position.

And this year’s Trojans might have that.

The freshman class has elevated every room. The portal additions have done the same. But the reason I’m leaning toward USC making a run at the CFP isn’t just the talent. It’s how the returners are responding to it. The offensive line, the quarterback room, the running backs, the defensive front, the linebackers. They’re welcoming the competition. They’re leaning into the idea of striving together, not against.

After being at practice, I don’t think talent alone is driving this. It’s their disposition.

This team feels blue collar.

That might sound odd in Los Angeles, but if you’ve been around this program, you understand. There has always been a tension between internal reality and external expectations. The hype can get loud, and at times, it can get in the way.

This group feels different.

The young players aren’t arriving expecting anything. They’re arriving ready to work. And the veterans are responding to that, not resisting it. There’s a shared understanding that competition is the path.

Up front, the offensive line looks like one of the better units in the country with real experience and depth. At quarterback, Jayden Maiava has a calm confidence that comes with ownership of the role at USC. Along the defensive line, there are multiple players who can impact a game and look like future pros.

And maybe most importantly, when you watch this team walk onto the field, there’s no drop off. It looks like a complete roster. Head coach Lincoln Riley and GM Chad Bowden deserve a ton of credit for that.

Now let’s be real. It’s March. Spring ball creates optimism everywhere. And USC’s path is not an easy one. Hosting Oregon, Washington, and Ohio State. Traveling to Rutgers, Penn State, Wisconsin, and defending national champion Indiana. That’s a B1G schedule.

But this team feels like it knows exactly what it has. And more importantly, what it’s building toward.

So yeah, I’m leaning into the hype.

Because I’ve seen what it looks like when it gets rolling here. And once it does, it’s hard to stop.

Thanks for all the support of Y-Option: College Football with Yogi Roth and our YouTube channel. Be sure to subscribe, share, and let me know what you’re seeing as our spring tour continues and if you’ve missed the last two episodes, be sure to run it back to learn from Curt Cignetti and my takeaways from Nebraska.

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.

Spring football always tells you something if you’re willing to listen.

I found myself in Lincoln, Nebraska for a quick trip to learn about this years team. I flew in at 5am, got a great cup of coffee at The Mill Coffee shop, walked to the stadium, spent a few hours around the program, and headed back home to hang with our sons. And the 24 hour down and back to a true blue-blood program was insightful on many levels.

Upon landing back in LA I was able to reflect on my time in Lincoln and wanted share my thoughts around the 2026 Nebraska program, which is the focus of 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.

When I go to a practice, I try to organize my mind first. I build out a depth chart, jot down what I’m most curious about and track position groups. Overall, I’m just trying to understand who’s who so I can focus on how they move, how they compete, and how they communicate. Because in mid-March, that’s what you’re really evaluating —growth.

And right away, Nebraska felt intentional.

There was no wasted movement. Warmups had purpose. Guys were talking, moving, transitioning with clarity. It felt organized, but more than that, it felt player-led vs coach-fed.

In a sentence: this team felt mission-minded.

Then practice started, and the energy jumped. Bag drills, bodies moving, juice from the start. It took me back to my days around Pete Carroll where practice wasn’t something you eased into, you attacked it. And knowing how much Matt Rhule believes in that philosophy, it made sense. This wasn’t just a practice, it felt like a standard.

What really stood out though was the competition. Every drill mattered. Not just team periods, everything. Routes, blocking, individual work. And when that’s real, you stop focusing on Saturday’s and you start obsessing over winning a Tuesday practice in the spring. This team felt like it was living there.

At quarterback, Anthony Colandrea has real presence. You can feel it. He’s dynamic, decisive, and there’s an energy to him that lifts people around him. That “It Factor” is hard to define, but I’ve always felt it’s defined as someone whose presence is felt when they walk into a room…AND they make everyone better.

Behind him, there’s growth and depth. TJ Lateef looks like a different player, and Danny Kaelin coming back home looks like he’s ready to compete in a real way. That room feels strong with three Power 4 starters.

The receiver group is deeper than I expected, and in an offense that’s built on mindset as much as scheme, that matters. The offense, led by Dana Holgorsen isn’t just concepts, it’s conviction, and in the Air Raid offense you need guys who can play that way. I think this group is best suited for that approach.

Defensively, new DC in Rob Aurich brings in a new system from San Diego State, but the same theme showed up. Intentional coaching, clear teaching, real physicality. Take a look at who he has been around and it’s easy to be impressed on many levels. Additionally, watching coaches like Roy Manning work, you could hear it and feel it in every drill.

After practice, I spent some time with Coach Rhule, and I walked away thinking this isn’t a reset in Lincoln, it’s a build. A program taking its next step with clear standards.

It’s early, way too early to make any bold claims, especially in the hyper-talented Big Ten, but I left feeling something that’s hard to fake — competitive depth, clear identity, and a team that looks like it’s having a blast doing hard things.

If you want the full breakdown, take a listen to the Y-Option: College Football with Yogi Roth podcast and as always, thanks for the support.

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.

Welcome back or welcome to THE PROCESS, a limited series within Y-Option: College Football with Yogi Roth, hosted by myself and Rhett Kleinschmidt. This series exists for one reason: to study how high performers actually live. Not what they post. Not what they say at a podium. What they do when nobody’s clapping.

The first 5 conversations delivered in powerful ways: Mark Jackson, Peyton Manning, Chris Fowler, Jared Goff, Dan Lanning and today, the final episide airs within this limited run.

This conversation, fueled by our founding sponsor 76, keeping you on the GO GO GO so you never miss a beat, takes us to Bloomington, Indiana. We go inside the head coaches office. Inside the mind of the man who built one of the most relentless, standards-driven programs in America.

Curt Cignetti.

Indiana and Coach Cignetti are coming off a season that ended with hardware and history. Awards. Trophies. Headlines. The whole thing.

And the first thing he made clear was also the most revealing.

Inside the building, it is already time to start over.

While the outside world is still celebrating, he is in development mode. New faces, teaching standards, sharpening the details, preparing for spring ball. The tone is not nostalgic. It is not sentimental. It is focused and the message is simple: what happened is real, and it is over.

What Rhett and I loved most is that our conversation was not a performance from Coach Cignetti.

It is who he is.

The deeper we went, the more the through-line showed itself. His approach does not change because the circumstances do. Big game, small game, championship, rebuilding year—it’s all the same.

The Process stays steady, but the improvement never stops.

Coach Cignetti is always refining how his staff teaches, how they spend time, how they build schematically, how they communicate. That mindset shows up in how he evaluates players too.

We have all heard his phrase production over potential and this conversation gave it real teeth.

Yes, the portal makes evaluation easier in some ways—you have a body of work. You can see consistency. You can see how a player performed against real competition over multiple seasons. But he talked about something that matters more than highlight tape.

Fit.

When you sit across from a player, you learn a lot fast. How they carry themselves. How they talk. How they listen. First impressions are not perfect, but they are meaningful. Then comes the research. The calls. The trusted recommendations. The quiet intel. The stuff that never gets posted.

He also got specific about what he looks for physically too, beyond the high school combine stats.

* Flexibility in the lower half. The ability to stop, start, redirect, generate power. It is detailed. It is intentional. And it is consistent.

* But toughness is still number one.

Not the cartoon version. Real toughness. Day-to-day accountability. The willingness to work. The ability to be coached. The resilience to keep growing when it is hard, when it’s boring.

What stood out most: even with more doors opening after a historic season, the standard does not bend.

Most of us would imagine that there is a temptation after winning to widen the net, to take a few more chances, to rationalize why a guy might be worth it. Coach Cignetti made it clear that is how you quietly change the standard without admitting it. If you start accepting players below it, that becomes the new standard.

And that is a reminder that goes well beyond football.

Everything is earned. There are no promises. There are no guarantees. There are no shortcuts.

We also spoke about pressure and how he manages it for his players and his staff.

Coach Cignetti shared a story from early in his head coaching career that has become one of his quiet tools. In the tensest moments, when the game is tight and everything feels heavy, he will drop a simple line that changes the temperature. It is a reminder that the players are alive in the moment, not trapped by it. It is pressure relief and recalibration in one breath.

With his staff, he is big on consistent messaging. He will step into a staff meeting and deliver one short, specific message. One or two things he believes the team must embody right now. Then he trusts his coaches to carry it. He trusts the message to trickle down and become action.

He does not need to touch everything to control everything.

That trust, built over time, is part of why the standard holds. And if something is off, he will step in and rattle chains. Not because he is emotional. Because he is protective of the level.

The conversation closed where so many great ones do: family.

I asked about his father, about adversity, about the moments that shape leaders before they ever wear the headset. He talked about his dad as a fighter. Competitive. Disciplined. Tough. A man with a relentless work ethic who never met a challenge he did not believe he could overcome.

Those traits did not just stay in the family. They got handed down into the program.

That might be the real story of why Indiana has been able to rise and sustain. Not just scheme. Not just recruiting. Not just facilities.

Its identity. Its standard. The daily choice to do it the right way, even when nobody is watching.

Coach Cignetti said he is proud of the team they had. Proud of the leaders. Proud of the closeness. And he made the point that matters most—whether you are building a program, a company, or a family:

* You can win games, but you do not win big or win consistently if you are not doing it the right way. If you are helping people become the best they can be, football will carry them now, and it will carry them later when football ends.

Then Rhett and I stayed in The Afterglow for a few minutes, because these conversations always leak into real life.

We talked about standards at home. Non-negotiables. The idea that if you want your kids to live with discipline, you have to model it. If you want a standard, you have to set one, and then you have to live it.

Nobody keeps you more honest than your kids.

That might be the best accountability system on earth.

So here is the takeaway I am sitting with today:

Dig into your philosophy, your values, what matters most to you and your circle. And compete to keep the standard. Then attack the details, but do not attach to the outcome. Rather, and maybe even ironic, stay connected to The Process…

Thanks for coming along for this ride with Rhett and me, as it’s been a blast.

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.

One of my college roommates is heading to Canton.

That sentence still feels surreal.

When I first met Larry Fitzgerald on his visit to the University of Pittsburgh, I had no idea I was meeting a future Hall of Famer. I just knew he had presence. Not hype. Not ego. Presence.

When he arrived at training camp, the coaches quietly pulled me aside and asked me to help him learn the offense. What I didn’t fully grasp at the time was what they already knew: he wasn’t just there to compete. He was there to take over.

And it took about two weeks.

But here’s what most people miss about Larry’s story. Yes, he could high-point a football like nobody I’ve seen in 25 years around major college football. Yes, he tracked the deep ball with the instincts of a center fielder tracking a line drive into the gap. Yes, he could manipulate defensive backs, adjust stride length mid-route, and finish through contact with late, violent hands.

But that’s not what made him an All American at Pitt.

It was how he saw the game — and his life — from the beginning.

So in the latest Y-Option podcast, fueled by our founding partner 76, keeping you on the GO GO GO so you never miss a beat it’s just me, celebrating him.

My 1st lesson from him.

During the first game of his freshman year he, like the rest of us at Pitt, wore a suit and tie to the game. That was the rule our head coach, Walt Harris, mandated. I think we all liked it as it felt like a business trip. But postgame everyone was changing into warm-ups to leave the stadium.

I noticed that Larry started to put his suit back on.

I quickly told him that he doesn’t have to. He looked at me and said, at least this is how I remember it, “Yogi, they’re going to know what I’m about from the jump.”

That wasn’t bravado. It was clarity.

He came to college with a vision. Not just to be great at Pitt. Not just to make the league. But to be a pro — in habits, discipline, preparation, relationships.

Small things, All things as the phrase goes.

Larry grew up around it. His father, Larry Fitzgerald Sr., covered sports in Minnesota. As a kid, Larry was a ball boy around legends and he saw how pros moved, trained and most importantly how they treated everyone around them.

By the time he arrived on campus, Larry Fitzgerald wasn’t dreaming. He was executing.

Talent Is Everywhere. Discipline Is Rare.

I’ve been around Elite 11 quarterbacks for nearly two decades. I’ve been a broadcaster for 19 years and a coach for 4. Point being — I’ve seen first-round talent up close. Natural ability is not rare at that level.

What’s rare is clarity.

Larry didn’t drink. Didn’t party. Had a tight circle. Was early to bed. Lived in the film room. Lived in the weight room. And that playlist was on repeat daily.

I remember visiting him during the season when he was with the Arizona Cardinals. It was 8:00 PM and he said, “You can hang out, I’m going to bed.”

Why?

“I’m trying to be my best.”

That’s it. No drama. No speech. Just alignment between what he dreamt of and how he lived.

When he decided to leave Pitt early for the NFL, I asked him if he’d considered coming back. He reframed it in a way that’s stayed with me forever: if a surgeon is offered his dream job early, he goes. If a musician gets the gig of a lifetime, she goes.

He was a wide receiver being offered his dream.

He wasn’t chasing status. He was honoring preparation.

Playing Through Loss

During spring practice after his freshman season practice stopped and Larry left. News spread that his mom had passed away.

I didn’t know then what that kind of loss felt like. I do now.

What I remember most wasn’t just the grief — it was how he channeled it. He played for her. He carried her smile. He allowed the pain to sharpen his focus, not shrink his world. Or so it seemed.

I know there was a lot of pain and I imagine that playing with his teammates allowed him to navigate through it. At least all of us hoped that we helped him out in the smallest of ways. After all, that’s what teammates do. And our roster was extremely close.

Looking back he taught me a powerful lesson that season: that there’s a difference between playing for applause and playing with purpose. After he lost his Mom, it felt like Larry was playing for something deeper that just touchdowns and wins.

And it showed.

The Infinite Game

Recently, I watched him receive his Hall of Fame invitation and greet Randy Moss — another all-time great. There was a knowing smile between them. A shared understanding of what it takes to get there.

But when I think of Larry, I don’t first think of Pro Bowl’s or a Super Bowl run. I think of the freshman who chose the suit. The teammate who made everyone feel seen. The competitor who handed, or threw, the ball to officials after touchdowns like it was part of his joy.

He played an infinite game.

Not just to win on Saturdays.Not just to dominate on Sundays.But to become.

He became one of the greatest wide receivers of all time.He became the greatest teammate I ever had.He became a father whose eldest son is now headed to University of Notre Dame to chase his own dream.

And in a few months he officially becomes a Hall of Famer.

I’ve never been to Canton before.

This summer, I’ll go.

Not just to celebrate a gold jacket.

But to honor the habits.The discipline.The clarity.The compassion.

Larry Fitzgerald didn’t just achieve greatness.

He decided on it — early — and then lived accordingly.

And if there’s one lesson in his story for any young athlete, entrepreneur, artist, or dreamer reading this, it’s simple:

* Be clear about what you’re about.

* Be truly confident around what Matters Most

* Then let your daily discipline make it undeniable.

Much love and stay steady,

Yogi

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