ESPN creating a five-episode documentary series starring Snoop Dogg and his son might cause one to wince, thinking of past attempts by the network to meld the worlds of entertainment and sports.

But Snoop & Son: A Dad’s Dream is solidly set within the world of sports, particularly college football and the recruitment of Dogg’s son, Cordell Broadus. The show just happens to center around one of the most famous rappers and celebrities in our culture.

Broadus is a star prep wide receiver at Bishop Gorman High School in Las Vegas, Nev., currently being recruited by several top programs, including Notre Dame, LSU, Baylor and his father’s favorite college team, USC. Although Snoop Dogg wasn’t too happy about the Trojans’ 38-20 loss to inter-city rival UCLA on Nov. 22., saying that outcome affected USC’s chances at successfully recruiting his son.

“I was just mad about the way we played. You have to understand, the tradition is, we run L.A. To lose to UCLA two, three years in a row, it ain’t right,” Snoop said to TMZ. “We’ve got too much talent to lose the way we lost — it should be a closer game.

“He’s going to be a grown adult, so he’ll make his decision, but I’d say that loss right there is going to hurt. Because nobody wants to go to a school that can’t beat their rivals.”

(AP Photo/Katy Winn)

With that quote, it becomes very clear why ESPN wanted to film a documentary series with Snoop Dogg. We don’t typically get that sort of immediate response and candor from the parent of a top football recruit, outside of the occasional quote in a local newspaper or recruiting website. And those football dads aren’t rappers who have sold 30 million records and have cameras following him everywhere.

According to the press release from ESPN, the show will follow Snoop Dogg and his son during family dinners, at football practices, on the sidelines during games, as well as on Snoop’s tour bus when business takes him away. When he’s on the road, Snoop gets Cordell’s games streamed to him and often looks at game film.

“People will see a very different side of Snoop. They’ll see a man navigating the line between father and friend,” executive producer Rory Karpf  (The Book of Manning) said. “They’ll see someone whose interest in his son’s life reflects what he himself never had. Above all, they’ll see a father extraordinarily proud of his son.”

Here is a trailer for the show.

http://youtu.be/0rWtJX9ls88

Snoop & Son: A Dad’s Dream will premiere on ESPN Jan. 14 at 7 p.m. ET. with replays airing on ESPNU. Each episode will be 30 minutes long and the series will run on five consecutive Wednesdays with the finale set for Feb. 11.

About Ian Casselberry

Ian is a writer, editor, and podcaster. You can find his work at Awful Announcing and The Comeback. He's written for Sports Illustrated, Yahoo Sports, MLive, Bleacher Report, and SB Nation.