We all know about Bring Your Kid to Work Day, but for Kirk Herbstreit, he's a big believer in Bring Your Dog to Work Day.
The college football national broadcaster was accompanied in the studio by his four-legged companion, Ben, who proceeded to make an appearance during the USC-LSU primetime game on Sunday night. As always, Herbstreit played off the surprise and just went with it as Ben made his way through a live shot of him and his partner, Chris Fowler.
"It was a little tougher to go away from this year," he told the outlet in December. "Just having him come out with me is the best companion you can hope for. He's super chill and welcoming."
.@KirkHerbstreit's dog, Ben, made his way onto the LSU-USC pregame show ?? pic.twitter.com/BetPuCpvcl
— ESPN College Football (@ESPNCFB) September 1, 2024
Herbstreit, who always tells it like it is, was in the middle of assessing the keys to the game when he noticed his fur baby entering the frame, "Oh, Ben's down here, sorry about that. It's a big booth, he's just making his way around here." Without missing a beat, he then went back to explaining the college football playoff system.
Talk about being a professional.
While seeing the dog came as a surprise to many, Herbstreit and Ben are a tag team that has been going strong for quite some time. The golden retriever, who is one of four in the family, has frequently traveled to games with Herbie, providing him with a piece of home in an otherwise hectic schedule between his college football and NFL calls. He told the Associated Press that having Ben around has made things easier for him on the road.
He added that Ben has become such a common visitor to his games that whenever he's not at production meetings, staffers are asking Herbstreit where his fur baby is at.
The cameo by Ben won't be the last time college fans will see the pup. Herbstreit has a YouTube series that he just fired up called "Walks With Ben." He just launched it over the weekend with the debut episode featuring he and former Texas A&M star, Johnny Manziel, talking about the game while, you guessed it, walking around a football field with Ben in tow.
Move over Air Bud, we've got a new golden retriever in the sports world!
