Week 5 has arrived and in some ways things have changed in college football and in other respects, it has stayed the same. Arizona heads to Utah on Friday night in a Big 12 clash and while the starting QB for the Utes is not solidified, we do know that the depth, talent and coaching acumen at Utah remains elite. And I highly doubt they have forgott…

I never got into House of Cards on Netflix. Was late to the party and there were so many episodes that it seemed a little intimidating, as I never felt I’d finish the entire series. But after living through realignment over the past few years, I wonder if that series would have benefitted me in some way. Regardless, here we sit with news out of the…

The Pac-12 has owned the airwaves this week. It began by adding 4 new schools last Thursday morning and continued with Washington State’s epic win in the Apple Cup on a 4th down stop that will be talked about for decades. While Pac-12 Commissioner Teresa Gould did not call a play last Saturday in college football, she did create the playbook that a…

Late last week news broke that the Pac-12 was taking its next step toward rebuilding by adding four new schools: Boise State, San Diego State, Fresno State and Colorado State. As we spoke to a variety of people involved in the expansion, as well as coaches around college football, one thing was clear – there was excitement about the historic confer…

While late November of 2021 may seem like decades ago for Jake Dickert, it was one of the most transformational moments in his coaching life and he can recall every moment. Then the interim head coach at Washington State, he led the Cougars into Seattle to face the Washington Huskies in the Apple Cup which the Cougs won 40-13. That next day, he wou…

It’s Rivalry Week! No, that is not a typo and yes, it’s Rivalry Week in the Pacific Northwest and in the Pac-12 Conference. For the first time ever, these 2 games will be played in September. The Oregon State Beavers host the Oregon Ducks in the 128th meeting of the game formerly known as the Civil War. This is the 7th most played match-up in colle…

It's Week 2! There are so many games of note that will impact the landscape of college football, the power struggle at the top, and factor into teams’ College Football Playoff arguments. We were able to talk to Colorado beat writer Brian Howell, from Buffzone and the Daily Camera, who knows the Buffaloes better than anyone in the nation. The Buffs,…

Week 1 was here and it delivered in a brilliant way. The USC Trojans met the moment, beating ranked LSU behind a Miller Moss performance that had the college football community buzzing, tweeting & reshuffling their Top 25. The Ducks final score wasn't what most predicted, but the talent in Eugene remains and as expected, America’s Teams won both of…

Bill Walton would often state that he was the luckiest man in the world. Every time he would say that with his infectious energy I’d smile, and I bet you would too. He looked at life through an incredible lens and one that was optimistic and oftentimes inspiring. Heading into my 16th year of putting a headset on as a broadcaster, I too feel like Bi…

Pete Carroll changed my life. I can vividly recall calling a few of my teammates at Pitt during my first week on the job as a member of the USC Football staff in the winter of 2005. “Guys, I wish you could have been coached by Pete Carroll and this staff. It’s incredible!” My former teammates would often ask why and while I couldn't nail the answer…

There is an on-going conversation around being a multi-sport athlete versus being singularly focused. Being the parent of a 9-year-old, I see these things becoming more and more of a discussion. Sport specific, playing one sport year round, paying thousands of dollars on private coaches or club teams and more. It’s a hard lane to navigate as a pare…

Football can change your life. I’ve shared this story a few times but it’s worth repeating. Years ago, I was in Northern California visiting San Jose State and Stanford. I was expected to fly home after practice on a Wednesday but was convinced by both Brent Brennan and Mike Bloomgren to stay in NorCal for one more night. I obliged and had a blast.…

“Patiently impatient.” That’s my new favorite phrase when it comes to being a backup QB, or really anything where you may not be in the position you desire. This past summer I sat down with former college and NFL quarterback Dan Orlovsky. Myself and Elite 11 head coach Jake Heaps had a conversation with the former UConn star around the QB position …

There is something special about coming home. For the recently hired Arizona State Athletics Director, Graham Rossini, home has always been the ASU community. Last training camp I found myself at Camp Tontozona, or as Sun Devil fans called it Camp T. On the sideline was a tall, sharply dressed man in an ASU polo. I’d always known of Graham, but had…

“The only thing that is guaranteed in college is that your career will NOT go exactly as you imagined.” A year ago, the legendary coach, Chris Petersen shared that line with the best high school quarterbacks in the nation at the Elite 11 Finals in Los Angeles and I watched it land like a Simone Biles gold medal routine. As I criss-cross the nation …

From 2011 to 2016 I would often find myself in Corvallis, Oregon. I’d fall in love with the fall foliage, the beautiful dimes from Sean Mannion, the crisp routes by Brandin Cooks and the production meetings with Mike Riley. But above all of that, what I enjoyed the most were Friday afternoons. Post meetings and post practice I would find myself alo…

Jerrod Johnson and I met in 2009. I was working for Fox College Sports and broadcasting Big-12 games each week. He was the starting quarterback at Texas A&M. To make you smirk, that season the Big-12 had two divisions, the North and South. The respective champion of each division was Nebraska and Texas. Missouri and Colorado were in the league and …

Mark Harlan is impacting college sports at an elite level. As the athletics director at Utah, he has also served in the Football Oversight Committee and has been in the room during CFP deliberations. To say he ‘gets it’ is a true understatement. Often times, college sports are seen as a business and I get it, it is HUGE business. But more often tha…

In my time working on the USC staff, one thing became clear – when a quarterback signs his letter of intent at USC he becomes a household name. When he starts, he becomes a Heisman Candidate. Calling games for the past 17 seasons has only proven that theory I learned while on Pete Carroll’s staff. And for Miller Moss, that’s also true. While many f…

Meet Dillon Gabriel. A one-time Army commit who would thrive at Central Florida before balling out at Oklahoma and is now in his final collegiate season as the starting quarterback for the Oregon Ducks. We sat down at the Elite 11 finals this summer and discussed his It Factor, why he chose Oregon for his final season, what Marcus Mariota winning t…

In today's Y-Option podcast, you'll hear from head coaches Jake Dickert and Trent Bray, as they share how their respective teams have 'met the moment' all off-season in anticipation of their new schedule in the Pac-12. Jaden Robinson, Jermaine Terry II, Kyle Williams and Kyle Thornton also joined me on stage and while all four are stars for the Bea…

As the founding faces of the Pac-12 Network, Mike Yam and Ashley Adamson carried the reputation of the league for over a decade but in 2020, amid a global pandemic, Mike learned he would not return to the network he helped build. The three of us never spoke about that day, or the fact that Mike would not return to the place we had such pride in, un…

Mike Yam and Ashley Adamson were the foundation of the Pac-12 Networks and the first two faces to grace the airwaves of that network. In the inaugural episode of Y-Option there was truly no other option--we had to have these two on to go down memory lane with us. And we do just that. We dive into the origin story of the once promising Network, how …

“So Yogi, what are you going to do now?” Introducing our re-imagined podcast "Y-Option" where we examine the college football landscape through the lens of the West Coast. Get full access to Y-Option: College Football with Yogi Roth at www.y-option.com/subscribePor Yogi Roth

The time has finally come. The series finale of "The It Factory" is here. Before we go any further, rest assured this podcast is not going anywhere. It may look a bit different come football season, but it will stay up and running! That being said, in this final episode of this iteration, Producer T.J. Brassil joins the show to say farewell. T.J. a…

Draft week is here and in order to celebrate we had to bring on a guest that not only knows the Pac-12 inside and out, but the NFL draft as well. Former Stanford head coach, David Shaw joins the show. He talks about how he views college football and college athletics right now, his take on some of the top quarterbacks in this year's NFL Draft and h…

Even with only a few episodes left of The It Factory, it's never to late to have an It Factory first. This week we welcome our first commissioner as Pac-12 Commissioner Teresa Gould joins the show. The first female commissioner of a Power-5 Conference talks about her passion for athletics, her time in the Pac-12 and watching sports like women's bas…

The It Factory goes to Europe this week... kind of. Yogi talks with former Arizona quarterback and current part owner of the Paris Musketeers, Jason Johnson. They talk about Jason's playing career including his family's football history, how his Arizona career played out, his time playing in Europe and how that led to the formation of the Paris Mus…

The It Factory is visited by its first comedian as actor/comedian Josh Mancuso joins the show. Yogi and Josh discuss how Josh found his niche in sports comedy videos, what his journey has been like to this point and the concept of chasing your dreams regardless of where you are at in life, how he creates his content and what people can expect from …

Welcome back! We took a week off as March Madness got going, but return with a new episode as we are in the home stretch of Season 3 at the It Factory. This week Producer T.J. Brassil joins Yogi Roth as we have our first "Ask Me Anything" episode. You wrote in with questions and now we are here to answer them. We discuss all things college football…

Yogi flies north for the ninth straight year as he hosts "Night with Cougar Athletics" for Washington State and sits down with head coach Jake Dickert. Coach talks about the tumultuous 2023 season, where the team stands now and what he sees for the future of Washington State. 'The Afterglow' continues the conversation after the interview. Come disc…

A new era has begun in Westwood and 'The It Factory' wanted to find out all about it. This week Yogi chats with UCLA's new head coach, DeShaun Foster. Coach talks about how he got into the coaching profession, when he found out he would be offered the head coaching job, how he sees UCLA right now and his vision for the team. 'The Afterglow' discuss…

Yogi chats with the new head coach at Arizona, Brent Brennan. Coach Brennan talks about his deep rooted connections to Arizona, his journey to becoming the head coach at Arizona, the decision from some of Arizona's key players to return and what he sees for the team this year. Plus he tells stories about his coaching tour of some of the great coach…

Yogi chats with new Oregon State head coach, Trent Bray. Trent goes through his coaching journey to becoming the head coach for the beavers, he talks about the new look of college football next season and he shares his thoughts for his team next season. Plus, Trent tells the story of being banned from tackling when he played football. 'The Afterglo…

Yogi is joined by the Reese's Senior Bowl Executive Director, Jim Nagy, fresh off of the 2024 Senior Bowl. Jim talks about his journey to becoming the Executive Director of the Senior bowl, how the college landscape has shifted and its impact on the Senior Bowl and he recaps some Pac-12 players that stood out this year. The Afterglow discusses furt…

Yogi talks with former collegiate football player, current private wealth advisor and managing partner at Roseville Wealth Management Group, Dane Burkholder to discuss "The Financial Athlete." Dane gives his thoughts on how to handle NIL, why athletes should look at other factors outside of NIL, ways to invest, while still in college, for one's fut…

The It Factory taps into the Pac-12 alumni base as former Washington quarterback, and current radio host and college football analyst, Brock Huard, joins the show. Brock shares his thoughts on the recent changes in Seattle, talks about how he started in broadcast and the philosophy he embodied when he began and he and Yogi reminisce on the first ti…

Yogi talks with the first strength and conditioning coach to join the show. Yogi sat down with Ron McKeefery, in Seattle, prior to the season. He also caught up with him at the National Championship. Although there have been changes with the staff up at Washington, Ron's story of how he got to where he's at, how he approaches each athlete different…

Yogi takes on a new role at The it Factory this week. Producer T.J. Brassil joins the show, and Yogi takes the interviewee's seat, as they discuss the 2023 Pac-12 Football season. Yogi talks about his overall thoughts on the season, gives some added insight to Washington's National Championship Game performance and he talks about what he sees for t…

The college football season is officially over and so is the 4-team playoff era. As college football moves into a new era, Yogi talks with someone who has been a part of multiple versions of the college football post season. The executive director of the college football playoff, Bill Hancock, joins the show. As he finishes up his time running the …

Happy New Year! As we get going into 2024, we thought we'd reflect on Season 3 of The It Factory in 2023. From some of our favorite moments to the best of the 'Final Five,' we take a look back at the year that was before we look forward to the year that will be. You can also watch this episode on Pac-12 Insider and on YouTube. Go to www.pac-12.com/…

Our resident coach joins the show as Yogi chats with Pac-12 Analyst, and former Oregon defensive coordinator, Nick Aliotti. They discuss the current state of the game and where Coach sees it advancing to. Then Coach and Yogi breakdown some bowl matchups as they preview the remaining Pac-12 bowl games. 'The Afterglow' chats about it after the interv…

Early Signing Day is upon us which means so is our early signing day special. Yogi talks with 247Sports National Recruiting Editor, Brandon Huffman. Brandon talks about where recruiting is at in today's college football landscape, how he has seen it change over the years, the effect the transfer portal and NIL has had on high school recruiting and …

Yogi takes a trip to the Finding Mastery studios as sports psychologist, Dr. Michael Gervais, joins The It Factory for his yearly appearance. With the release of Dr. Gervais' new book, The First Rule of Mastery: Stop Worrying About What Other People Think of You, he and Yogi discuss how this book came to be and what he focuses on in the book. He ta…

Yogi's "partner in the booth" visits the It Factory this week as broadcasting legend, Ted Robinson, joins the show. They reminisce on the Pac-12 season, Pac-12 football and the Pac-12 Network. Ted gives his thoughts on the future of the game and tells stories from his career in broadcasting. 'The Afterglow' reflects after the interview. Come discov…

This week Yogi chats with fellow Pac-12 Network football analyst, Nigel Burton. Nigel looks back on the final season of the Pac-12 as we know it. He also talks about his journey from Jesuit High School, in Sacramento, CA, to the University of Pacific and finally to the University of Washington. He shares some wild recruiting stories along the way. …

Yogi chats with one of the young stars in the Pac-12 as Cal quarterback, Fernando Mendoza, joins the show. Fernando reflects on how he almost ended up at Yale before decommitting and choosing Cal, deciding to stick it out at Cal despite being low on the depth chart, how life has changed since becoming Cal's starting quarterback and the lessons he's…

Yogi chats with Arizona State defensive back, Jordan Clark. Jordan talks about being the son of Super Bowl champion, Ryan Clark. He discusses what life was like growing up, the approach Ryan took towards football for Jordan and Jordan's decision to go "all-in" on football. Jordan also talks about his mom, his life at ASU and his approach to what co…

This week's guest has known Yogi since our guest was 11 years old. A man who has made his mark not only in the UCLA program, but in the community and NIL space as well. UCLA quarterback and multi-time Male NIL Athlete of the year, Chase Griffin, joins the show. Chase talks with Yogi about his exposure to high level football at a young age, being th…

Yogi chats with Washington stand-out receiver, Rome Odunze. Rome discusses his life growing up, the impact of his dad being a Nigerian immigrant, the wide receiver room at Washington, the journey of his collegiate career in Seattle, and Michael Penix freestyling on the sideline during the win against rival Oregon. Plus he tells stories about workin…