Stream It Or Skip It: ‘Eli’s Places’ on ESPN+, the Younger Manning’s Tour of College Football Hotspots

College football’s got a long history, stretching back more than a century and a half, and in Eli’s Places, a new series on ESPN+, former star quarterback Eli Manning gives us an intro-level course in both history and geography. He sets out to visit the places and the people that make college football such a special—and uniquely American—sport. He’ll bring in some famous faces, take on some silly challenges, and celebrate the sport right as we gear up for the new season’s kickoff.

ELI’S PLACES: STREAM IT OR SKIP IT?

Opening Shot: Eli Manning and older brother Peyton walk out of the family house, and load luggage into a packed car; “I can’t believe you’re going back to college,” Peyton muses, keeping in character. They banter briefly, with Peyton turning on his corny dad-slash-pitchman charm, about the storied history and marvelous pageantry of college football, and then Eli’s off.

The Gist: Surely you’re familiar with Eli Manning, even if he’s lived in the shadow of his more-famous big brother pretty much his entire life. Where Peyton Manning had a record-setting career (both on the field and as one of television’s most reliable advertising pitchmen), Eli’s seemingly labored in the background, at least relative to his relative. That’s no small feat, considering his two Super Bowl Most Valuable Player award wins (one more than big brother) playing in the nation’s biggest media market. Well, it’s time for little brother’s post-playing-career star turn; in Eli’s Places, he takes on the same path big bro has, as an affable emcee and tour guide.

What Shows Will It Remind You Of? It reminds one a lot of Peyton’s Places, of course—that’s the whole point here—but where the older Manning spent his time visiting historic and interesting sites in the NFL’s history, the younger one is keeping it strictly college.

Our Take: Last year, we were forced to do without college football, at least in the sense we normally experience it. Sure, games happened, and a champion was crowned (sigh. Alabama, again.), but there was a lot missing. Non-conference matchups were cancelled, schedules were shortened, and in many places, games were played without fans at all. For people in the large swaths of the country where college football is somewhere between lifestyle and religion, it was painful. Well, like the Texas Longhorns right before each season starts, college football is “back” this year, and this fun little series from former Ole Miss (and New York Giants) quarterback Eli Manning is a nice warm-up for our collective return to the tailgate, the student section, and the opponent’s end zone.

For the uninitiated, Eli takes it back to the beginning, visiting the two New Jersey—yes, New Jersey!—schools that lay the earliest claim to college football’s origin, with an 1869 contest between Princeton and Rutgers widely recognized as the first intercollegiate game. Comedian, talk show host, and proud New Jerseyan Jon Stewart joins Eli as they visit Rutgers’ campus and relive the game, something that looked very different from what we see between the hedges these days.

There were 25 players on each side, and they played in uniforms that look more like dress clothes than Jordan Brand; there were no quarterbacks, no receivers, but something called a “bulldog” and a “captain of the goal”. Of course, this is all based on contemporary accounts and a few paintings, because college football’s so old that it predates the invention of motion pictures. From what we do know, it’s about as close to today’s game as a game of pee-wee soccer.

Manning and Stewart ham it up in reliving this odd first content, donning period costumes and erecting a soccer-like goal in a New Jersey parking lot. They’re both doing a bit, of course, but they’re both very good at it. It seems like they’re having fun, and it’s fun to watch them do it, while sneaking in a little history in between their antics. It bodes well for the rest of the series—sure, Eli won’t always have one of television’s most skilled comedians by his side, but he more than holds his own as a comic actor, and he’s got plenty to work with. If you love college football, you know it’s an inherently hilarious sport; one basically has to just tell the history as it happened, and you’ve got a heck of a story to tell.

Sex and Skin: None, unless you get turned on by football history. (Which I do.)

Parting Shot: Manning and former New York Giants teammate Shaun O’Hara creep onto Princeton’s campus late at night with shovels, acting like they’re going to dig up a pair of cannons whose ownership was central to that first football game’s bragging rights. It’s a reminder that they’re going to keep things light and fun this season, as they should.

Sleeper Star: There’s really only two people in most of this first episode, and one of them is named in the show’s title. So, by process of elimination, we’re going to have to call Jon Stewart our sleeper star. This guy could really make it on television if he tried!

Most Pilot-y Line: “You will come to no Christian end!”, Manning recalls the famous exclamation made by a Rutgers professor witnessing the brutality of that very first football game. One wonders what he’d think seeing the Crimson Tide’s defensive line.

Our Call: STREAM IT. It’s not Ken Burns, but that’s not the point. It’s a fun tour of college football, and Eli shows much of the same charm that’s made his older brother omnipresent on television. “Don’t worry if you hit a car,” Manning notes in preparing to kick balls in a parking lot with Stewart, “I’m Peyton Manning’s brother, I have more insurance than anyone.”

Scott Hines is an architect, blogger and internet user who lives in Louisville, Kentucky with his wife, two young children, and a small, loud dog.

Watch Eli's Places on ESPN+