‘In sickness and in health, in stadiums and on planes, we stick together.’ It is likely the travel mantra of Kirk Herbstreit and his loyal golden retriever, Peter. ESPN’s lead analyst is gearing up for one of his busiest weekends of the year, and as always, Peter will be right by his side. Thanks to his dual roles at ESPN and Amazon Prime, Herbstreit’s travel schedule during football season borders on exhausting. This week alone, he’ll rack up more than 4,600 miles. Even fans can’t help but worry about how he manages to keep up.

Of course, when you’re making around $20 million a year, complaining isn’t really an option, but that doesn’t mean you can ignore how hard it is. And Kirk Herbstreit’s X post explains it perfectly: “Week 10 with me and Peter, traveling over 4,600 miles—from Nashville to Miami for @NFLonPrime as the @ravens take on the @miamidolphins. After the game, it’s a redeye flight to Salt Lake City for @CollegeGameDay on Saturday morning with @Utah_Football and @GoBearcatsFB, then off to Knoxville for @OU_football vs. @vol_football on ABC.”

The trip starts in Nashville, where Herbstreit calls home, before flying to Miami’s Hard Rock Stadium for the Ravens-Dolphins matchup on Amazon Prime. From there, it’s straight to Utah’s Rice-Eccles Stadium for College GameDay coverage, followed by a quick turnaround to Tennessee’s Neyland Stadium for Oklahoma vs. Tennessee on ABC. Sure, it’s going to be an exciting journey, but it’s tiring and hectic.

Herbstreit admits the chaos can blur together. He often wakes up fuzzy in a hotel bedroom, confused about which city he’s in. “It happens quite often,” Herbstreit said. “I think the hardest thing is… if you said, ‘Where were you last week?’ That’s the hardest thing to know. Because when you do this, you know, it just stacks. Days and weeks stack on top of each other, so you kind of get lost on where you’ve been. I know where I am right now, and I know where I’m going this week. I know that. But other than that, I don’t know a whole lot.”

Despite the workload, Herbstreit always takes it all lightly and makes jokes about it with Peter. Back in Week 5, when their stretch hit 4,200 miles, he posted a video giving Peter a lighthearted “pep talk” before takeoff. But this time it’s still better than Week 7, when Herbstreit and Peter had to travel for 5,400 miles for various stops. After wrapping up the New York Giants game against the Eagles in New Jersey, he had to fly to Oregon for College GameDay, but ESPN just made it worse for him, as after leaving Eugene, he had to go to Dallas for the Cotton Bowl against Texas and Oklahoma.

At one point, Herbstreit even made his SEC game picks against Florida and Texas A&M mid-flight over spotty Wi-Fi. Fans, meanwhile, are growing increasingly protective of both Herbstreit and Peter.

Fans are going crazy over Kirk Herbstreit’s long stretch

Kirk Herbstreit’s long weekend plan didn’t sit well with fans, as they can’t stop worrying about Peter and his health. As this fan points straight at his higher authorities for a little easier stretch: “Think the producers (or whoever makes your schedule) would be a little better to you and your dog. Can’t be good for either.”  Even this fan doubled down on the same concern, saying, “Oh man… a lot of traveling.” Well, travelling 4000 miles in such a short time span is sure concerning.

Even fans understand how tough it is for Kirk Herbstreit to maintain a proper work-life balance, as this fan points out: “Man, you got one tough life there, Kirk.”  Also, the concern for Peter comes in the most, as travelling so long at such high altitude can’t be safe for a dog; even fans know it. “All these miles can’t be healthy for Peter.” 

Despite the stress and regard, fans stand tall beside both of them, urging Herbstreit to also take care of his sleeping schedule while travelling. As they said, “Safe travels for ya, Peter, and the crew 🙏🛩️!!!” Putting in the miles, big fella. Get some rest when you can!!”  Now, let’s hope this trip doesn’t stress him out too much, as the season is still there to end.