On Episode 3 of Playbook Optional, Daniel Gotera talks about an unforgettable night taking his 9-year-old son to see AC/DC — on a school night, no less — and why sharing the music he grew up loving with his son meant so much more than just going to a concert.

Then it’s time for college football.

With another season underway, Daniel explains why a sport he once couldn’t get enough of just doesn’t feel the same anymore. From NIL and the growing financial gap between programs to the reality facing schools like his alma mater Northwestern, has college football reached a point where too many teams are starting the season with virtually no realistic path to a championship?

Plus, a little White Sox/Astros talk, life as a sports fan when you’re no longer working in sports TV, and why some of the best moments have nothing to do with the final score.

Games have playbooks. Life doesn’t.

On Episode 2 of Playbook Optional, Daniel Gotera sits down with longtime Houston television personality and former KHOU 11 Sports Director Butch Alsandor for a conversation that goes from funny stories inside the TV newsroom to one of the most difficult chapters of Butch's life.

Butch shares stories from his years in television, what life was really like behind the scenes, the people and moments that shaped his career, and some memories Daniel and Butch share from their time working together.

But the conversation goes far beyond television.

Butch opens up about the unexpected loss of his son, the impact it had on him and his family, and the strength, faith and perspective it has taken to continue moving forward.

There are laughs. There are stories. And there are moments that get very real.

That's what Playbook Optional is all about.

Games have playbooks. Life doesn't.

Real Life. Real Talk.

What happens when the life you planned suddenly isn't the life you're living anymore?

In the first episode of Playbook Optional, Daniel Gotera turns the microphone on himself. He looks back at the career he dreamed about as a kid, his years in sports television at KHOU 11 in Houston, Texas, the unexpected end of that chapter, the disaster that became his next job...and the uncertainty that came with figuring out what was next.

Daniel also opens up about fatherhood, health, identity, career reinvention and why some of life's biggest changes have taught him that having the perfect plan might be overrated.

It's the story behind Playbook Optional — and the beginning of conversations about sports, life and everything that happens when the playbook gets thrown out.

Playbook Optional with Daniel Gotera is a new podcast about sports, fatherhood, health, career reinvention and everything that happens when the game plan changes.

After more than two decades telling other people's stories in television and sports, Daniel is stepping behind the microphone again to tell some of his own—and to sit down with athletes, broadcasters, coaches, parents, friends and fascinating people who have learned how to adjust when life calls an audible.

Real stories. Candid conversations. No perfect playbook required.