The 155-minute documentary celebrating Miami University's legendary coaching pipeline is now streaming on Peacock, giving local football fans a timely deep dive just four days before Lakota West and Lakota East open their 2026 seasons.
Cradle of Coaches, produced by Cincinnati-based RESLV over two years, debuted Monday, Aug. 17 exclusively on NBCUniversal's streaming platform, where it will remain for one year. The film features archival footage and interviews tracing the university's outsized influence on American football, from Paul Brown and Ara Parseghian to Super Bowl winners John Harbaugh and Sean McVay.
As we reported Aug. 6, the documentary explores how a mid-sized Oxford campus produced 10 coaches honored with bronze statues at Yeager Stadium's plaza.
The term "Cradle of Coaches" dates to 1959, when a Miami athletics staffer noticed that the top-ranked NFL coaches (Brown and Weeb Ewbank) and top college coaches (Paul Dietzel and Parseghian) that season were all Miami graduates.
The local pipeline
The Lakota West-to-Miami connection is alive heading into this fall. Jackson Kuwatch, a Firebirds graduate who transferred to Miami from Ohio State, was selected by the Carolina Panthers in the seventh round of the 2026 NFL Draft. Teammate Silas Walters, another Lakota West product, signed as an undrafted free agent with the Baltimore Ravens. And Notre Dame transfer Ben Minich, also a Lakota West grad, joins Miami's secondary for the RedHawks' Sept. 5 opener at Pittsburgh.
Miami athletic director David Sayler promoted the documentary in interviews with the Cincinnati Enquirer, Columbus Dispatch, NBC-WLWT, Yahoo Sports and Forbes ahead of the premiere.
Season openers Friday
The documentary's premiere lands in a big week for local football. Lakota West, ranked No. 10 in Ohio and No. 4 in the Cincinnati area by MaxPreps, hosts St. Xavier on Friday, Aug. 21, at 7 p.m. Head coach Tom Bolden's Firebirds return quarterback Jackson Smith, who threw for nearly 2,000 yards and 20 touchdowns in 2025, and running back Kenyon Norman, who rushed for 915 yards and 13 scores. Junior linebacker Judah Blair anchors the defense after posting 66 tackles, 16.5 tackles for loss, three sacks and a pick-six last season.
Lakota East hosts Centerville on Friday, Aug. 21, at 7 p.m.
The Thunderhawks and Firebirds meet each other the following week, Friday, Aug. 28, at 7 p.m. at Lakota West.
