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Out of the Pocket: Football, Fatherhood, and College GameDay Saturdays
This powerfully intimate, plain-spoken memoir about fathers and sons, fortitude, and football from the face and voice of college football—Kirk Herbstreit—is not just “ a window into the game, but also a peek into what makes him his heart” (David Shaw, head coach, Stanford University).
Kirk Herbstreit is a reflection of the sport he loves, a reflection of his football-crazed home state of Ohio, where he was a high school star and Ohio State captain, and a reflection of another Ohio State football captain thirty-two years his dad Jim, who battled Alzheimer’s disease until his death in 2016.
In Out of the Pocket , Herbstreit does what his father did for takes you inside the locker rooms, to the practice fields, to the meeting rooms, to the stadiums. Herbstreit describes how a combination of hard work, perseverance, and a little luck landed him on the set of ESPN’s iconic College GameDay show, surrounded by tens of thousands of fans who treat their Saturdays like a football Mardi Gras.
He takes you into the television production meetings, on to the GameDay set, and into the broadcast booth. You’ll live his life during a football season, see the things he sees, experience every chaotic twist and turn as the year unfolds. Not to mention the relationships he’s established and the insights he’s learned from the likes of coaches and players such as Nick Saban, Tim Tebow, Dabo Swinney, and Peyton Manning, as well as his colleagues, including Chris Fowler, Rece Davis, and his “second dad,” the beloved Coach Lee Corso.
Yes, Kirk Herbstreit is the undeniable face and voice of college football—but he’s also a survivor. He’s the quiet kid who withstood the collapse of his parents’ marriage. The boy who endured too many overbearing stepdads and stepmoms. The painfully shy student who always chose the last desk in the last row of the classroom. The young man who persevered through a frustrating Ohio State playing career. The new college graduate who turned down a lucrative sales job after college to pursue a “no way you’ll make it” dream career in broadcasting.
Inspiring and powerful, Out of the Pocket “proves the importance of perseverance and family” (Peyton Manning).
Kirk Herbstreit is a reflection of the sport he loves, a reflection of his football-crazed home state of Ohio, where he was a high school star and Ohio State captain, and a reflection of another Ohio State football captain thirty-two years his dad Jim, who battled Alzheimer’s disease until his death in 2016.
In Out of the Pocket , Herbstreit does what his father did for takes you inside the locker rooms, to the practice fields, to the meeting rooms, to the stadiums. Herbstreit describes how a combination of hard work, perseverance, and a little luck landed him on the set of ESPN’s iconic College GameDay show, surrounded by tens of thousands of fans who treat their Saturdays like a football Mardi Gras.
He takes you into the television production meetings, on to the GameDay set, and into the broadcast booth. You’ll live his life during a football season, see the things he sees, experience every chaotic twist and turn as the year unfolds. Not to mention the relationships he’s established and the insights he’s learned from the likes of coaches and players such as Nick Saban, Tim Tebow, Dabo Swinney, and Peyton Manning, as well as his colleagues, including Chris Fowler, Rece Davis, and his “second dad,” the beloved Coach Lee Corso.
Yes, Kirk Herbstreit is the undeniable face and voice of college football—but he’s also a survivor. He’s the quiet kid who withstood the collapse of his parents’ marriage. The boy who endured too many overbearing stepdads and stepmoms. The painfully shy student who always chose the last desk in the last row of the classroom. The young man who persevered through a frustrating Ohio State playing career. The new college graduate who turned down a lucrative sales job after college to pursue a “no way you’ll make it” dream career in broadcasting.
Inspiring and powerful, Out of the Pocket “proves the importance of perseverance and family” (Peyton Manning).
400 pages, Paperback
Published August 2, 2022
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21 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
January 28, 2024
I really enjoyed this book. I grew up watching Herbstreit on College GameDay and listening to him called football games. He’s a great story teller and I really appreciated his humility and vulnerability. I would have given this book a higher rating if it weren’t for the dozens of glaring grammar and syntax errors throughout. I don’t know who Herbstreit’s editor was but I have never read a more poorly edited book. A real shame.
August 10, 2023
I love Kirk. I love game day. I love college football. Enjoying his vulnerability and humility throughout book. He did an amazing job sharing personal and career stories while sharing his feelings through it all. O-H!!!
October 27, 2024
I just love reading and learning about people!!
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews