Any Given Saturday Review: Netflix Delivers the Goods in SEC Behind-the-Scenes Series

Netflix uncovered a gold mine with Formula 1: Drive to Survive. The success of that sports documentary spawned other subsequent series that followed golf, wrestlers, horse racing, NFL quarterbacks and wide receivers. Ahead of the 2025 college football season, SEC football is getting the Netflix treatment with Any Given Saturday.

Before the show arrives on Aug. 5, the fine folks at Netflix aired a screening of the first episode at SEC Media Days. Before I share how it all unfolded, I must make an admission.

I do not like sports documentaries that are a year or two old. A 30 for 30 about Marcus Dupree? Hell yes. Another “behind the scenes” look at something that I watched not that long ago? Don’t need it. I remember that game well. Why should I waste an hour of my time to see it with a cinematic view?

Despite my preconceived biases against this kind of show, I loved every minute of Any Given Saturday. Last Chance U and Hard Knocks served as a preseason football appetizer, and this SEC football show is much better.

Is Kentucky in the SEC Doc?

Yes! Great news, right? Not exactly.

The documentary crew was in Lexington for the week two matchup against South Carolina. We all remember how poorly that went. The good news is that it went so poorly, you might only see 90 seconds of the Wildcats getting dismembered by the Gamecocks. Kentucky is merely a footnote in the story arc for Shane Beamer‘s program.

In case that beatdown wasn’t bad enough, Beamer used it as a motivational tool. In Mark Stoops‘ postgame press conference, he said that Kentucky did not fight back when they got punched in the mouth. Beamer paraphrased: “That coach last week said his guys tapped out. Make this coach say the same thing today!”

Mark Stoops is giving Shane Beamer pregame speech fodder in front of the world on Netflix. That is clearly the worst part of the show for this Kentucky fan.

The Format for Any Given Saturday

In the premiere, LSU and South Carolina take center stage. Brian Kelly and Shane Beamer play right into the hands of the Any Given Saturday show runners.

The show opens with a barrage of F-bombs from Kelly. He is the son of a former political strategist who has lived a no-nonsense life, despite Kelly’s awkward attempts to be personable and relatable on camera. Meanwhile, Beamer is trying to live up to his famous father’s legacy by being the coach who hands out ‘atta-boys’ like they’re candy on Halloween.

Any Given Saturday highlights the dichotomous relationship between the two head coaches who start the season on very different paths. Kelly was slamming his hand on the table in his postgame press conference following another dramatic season-opening loss. South Carolina nearly stumbled in week one before riding high in a romp as a 10-point underdog on the road at Kentucky.

Those courses collide in week three. Williams-Brice Stadium was rocking for College GameDay and the fans were treated to a game that went to Banana Land and finished with a field goal in the final seconds. South Carolina-LSU was one of the greatest thrill rides of the 2024 regular season. This football nut wishes they would have truly opened the can of worms, but Any Given Saturday cut Garrett Nussmeier‘s pick-six that was called back by a penalty.

I can forgive omitting those finer details because the scenes from the sidelines were enthralling. That’s the beauty of Any Given Saturday. College football stadiums transform into coliseums of chaos. There is nothing else like it in America. The Netflix documentary puts you in the middle of it all in spectacular fashion, serving as an injection of enthusiasm that will test your patience ahead of the 2025 SEC football season.

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A Few More Highlights from Any Given Saturday

— Diego Pavia and DJ Lagway will get their time to shine later in the series. One can only hope that latter does not also come at Kentucky’s expense in The Swamp. The scenes from Vandy’s win over Alabama look incredible. My money is on that episode as the best in the series.

— “Waffle House is cursed,” according to Shane Beamer’s daughter. They had to quit attending the diner on a regular basis because it only brought more losses to South Carolina.

— Side characters will steal the show. We see the head coaches enough. I had no idea who “D-Mo” was on the Gamecocks’ staff, but now I try to live every day of my life with D-Mo energy.

— Hey! I know him! There’s a lot of that in this show. Andy Staples serves as one of the primary narrators who gives a greater context behind the week-to-week narrative. He’s one of a few friends of the program who appear on the show, like Alyssa Lang and SEC Mike.