ESPN Releases Official Trailer for Special in Honor of Former Tulane Football Coach

ESPN will honor a late Tulane Green Wave coach in a feature-length documentary.

They released the official trailer for "The Buddy Way," highlighting the historic life and career of former Tulane football coach Buddy Teevens.

The documentary, executive produced by Peyton Manning, will premiere on Jan. 29 at 5:00 p.m. ET on ESPN2 and will be available for streaming on ESPN+ as detailed in their press release.

"We are honored to share Buddy's story and preserve his legacy," Manning said. "Buddy's motto as a coach and leader was 'adjust and improvise.' But it was more than a motto; Buddy was a true football innovator. He hired female coaches in the college ranks before anybody else, and he emphasized smarter and safer tackling long before the practice was adopted across the sport. Buddy was a terrific coach, but the legacy Buddy leaves behind extends well beyond his success on the field."

The feature will explore Teevens' journey from childhood to a coaching career that spanned four decades. It will highlight his success as a multi-sport athlete, his critical work with the Manning Passing Academy, and the innovations and impact he made on and off the field.

Executive producer Murry Bowden celebrated Teeven's living a full life, which was a point of focus for the documentary.

"He had a major impact on the game of football and the game of life," Bowden said. "Documenting this will provide future generations insight into an extraordinary husband, father, coach, and visionary. My wife, Polly, and I are delighted to have provided the resources to capture his life on film. We hope this documentary provides inspiration to all who dream big and work hard to leave this earth a better place for future generations."

"The Buddy Way" will feature never-before-seen footage and exclusive interviews with the Teevens family and famous figures in football. It will include his celebration of life that Dartmouth held last May and the renaming of their stadium in honor of his legacy later in October.

Teevens died at 66 years old in 2023 due to injuries sustained when he was struck by a vehicle while riding his bike down in St. Augustine, Fla.

He is most prominent for his time as a quarterback at Dartmouth and a two-time head coach with the program. His alma mater now has a football stadium named Buddy Teevens Stadium at Memorial Field.

Teevens moved up to the FBS football level when he took the job as the Green Wave head coach and led the team from 1992-96 with an overall 11-45 record. He was one of 11 coaches in program history who served as head coaches for five or more seasons.

His landmark victory was a 31-17 win over the No. 2 Alabama Crimson Tide in 1993—the year after they won the national title.

Teevens would go on to contribute to the foundation of future Tulane football success. He recruited many of the players that went undefeated on the 1998 team.