TV Recap – Eli Looks at the History of the Rose Bowl in the Season Finale of “Eli’s Places” on ESPN+

Eli Manning is back as he continues to explore the world of college football in a brand new season of Eli’s Places on ESPN+. After this brother Peyton took us through the NFL and several other athletes – like Abby Wambach, Vince Carter, David Ortiz, Ronda Rousey and others – took us through their respective sports, it’s time to dive back into some football.

The ninth episode and season finale, titled “The Grandaddy of Them All,” sees Eli head to the Rose Bowl to take us through some of the history of the game and focus on one of the greatest college football games of all time.

Eli heads to the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California. There, he meets with Vince Young and Matt Leinart, the quarterbacks of the 2006 Rose Bowl game between Texas and USC. Eli and Young make Leinart relive the 41-38 loss that cost him a third National Championship.

Eli takes the two quarterbacks through some of the history of the Tournament of Roses parade, which didn’t always culminate in a football game. Previous events ended with a picnic, tug of war and even chariot races. They hop on some modern chariots, which essential look like segways decorated to look like chariots. Leinart wins a close race around the field in this week’s ridiculous stunt.

Leinart and Young recall some of the celebrity fans of their respective college teams, with whom they have had several interactions. Leinart talks about throwing passes to Snoop Dogg and Will Ferrell while Young discusses Matthew McConaughey making several appearances at practices. You don’t think about things like this happening with college sports, so it’s fun to hear them talk about these interaction.

The trio then takes us through that 2006 Rose Bowl game in great detail. It’s fun revisiting such a classic game, especially if you remember watching it live. It’s also great to hear from the two quarterbacks from the game and get their perspectives.

Eli then puts a bow on the second season of Eli’s Places by taking us through some of the lessons he’s learned along the way. It was a solid finale, but probably not my favorite episode of the season. While it was interesting to hear from Leinart and Young, there have certainly been more entertaining episodes.

That’s not the end though. This episode and season come to a close with a tease for the upcoming Peyton and Eli’s Spooky Adventure Halloween Special.The brother interrupt Jerome Bettis as he is taking a class at the University of Notre Dame and tell him they need his help with a ghost. They take him to a lockerroom where there is a Ghostbusters uniform waiting for him and we get a brief glimpse of the Ecto-1 before the episode comes to a close. Peyton and Eli’s Spooky Adventure will stream on ESPN+ on October 23rd.

You can watch Eli’s Places on ESPN+ now. Fans can subscribe to ESPN+ for just $9.99 a month and can cancel at any time.

Mike Mack
Mack is the Editorial Director for Marvel and ESPN content and he has covered comic cons, theme park events, video game showcases and other fun events. He is a fan of theme parks, sports, movies, Marvel Comics and is a self-proclaimed "nerd."