Narratives are everything in sports, and college football has no shortage of them. Ahead of the 2023 season, which kicks off this weekend, the chatter has been heating up as Georgia looks to claim its third straight championship—just one of dozens of talking points heading into fall.

Now, ESPN cranks up the anticipation with a 60-second spot that builds off last year’s “The Greatest Story Ever Played” campaign. The new ad, themed “The Story That Keeps Getting Greater,” offers a colorful, high-octane montage of the people, places, rivalries and mascots that could define the upcoming season.

More than 30 FBS and FCS programs are featured in the spot, with cameos by head coaches Deion Sanders (Colorado), Nick Saban (Alabama), Dabo Swinney (Clemson) and Kirby Smart (Georgia), as well as mascots Bevo (Texas), Horned Frog (TCU), Uga (Georgia) and The Oregon Duck (Oregon).

“In our second year of ‘The Greatest Story Ever Played,’ we wanted to highlight the importance of the nuances of college football that make these stories some of the most powerful in the sporting world,” said Chris Kim, creative at Arts & Letters. “From the places, to the rivalries, to the players, even down to the motorcycle-riding ducks, we want every college football fan to feel the passion and heart of the sport coming through in the work.” 

“This year is set to be a historic chapter of college football, we don’t have to look far to find compelling storylines for each fan across the sport,” said Curtis Friends, ESPN’s senior director of marketing. “We’re excited to set the stage for it all with our latest installment of ‘The Greatest Story Ever Played’ platform.”