Brittany Wagner Last Chance U

Netflix’s famed Last Chance U documentary series on East Mississippi Community College found an unlikely star in EMCC athletic instructional adviser Brittany Wagner, but Wagner announced last week that she’s leaving the school after eight years. We now know where her next job will be; she’s joined Mississippi-based chain Newk’s Eatery‘s Birmingham franchise as sales and marketing director for its five local locations. Wagner confirmed the move in a radio interview with Cole Cubelic on 730 AM The Ump in Athens, Alabama Wednesday:

Wagner herself delivered a passionate goodbye to EMCC last week:

We don’t yet know if Wagner will be featured in any further episodes of Last Chance U. The show was renewed for a second season last August, and it will continue to focus on EMCC, but there haven’t been any shooting dates or premiere dates announced yet. It’s possible they shot this fall and featured Wagner again, but it’s also possible that the second season hasn’t been shot yet.

Still, even if Wagner was only in the one season, she certainly made an impact. Her dedication to personally connecting with athletes and helping them succeed academically was impressive, and her passion for her job and for those she worked with shone through the screen. She spoke to The Comeback‘s Ben Koo this past summer and talked about the many connections she’s made with athletes over the years, one of which in particular was shown on screen:

I think for some of these guys, it’s the first time that someone has taken an interest in them at all in an area other than football. And it’s the first time that anyone has really believed in them, pushed them, given them confidence or hope, or anything kind of positive in an area other than football. I think it is important to just be real in those situations, and to say to Ollie “Hey, you can do this or I’m behind you I support you, or I love you.” And I do.

But that relationship I feel like is with several of them, and it just so happened that he was the one shown. I feel like they’ll text me, some of them will text me and say “Hey, love you” or if I’m having a bad day, one of the players you didn’t see a whole lot on this show, he was in a few of the scenes, Jay Johnson, he is a constant motivator for me. If I’m having a bad day or he comes in and sees that I’m down, he’ll send me a text immediately. “What’s wrong? Are you OK? We love you. You’re doing a good job.” So I think it kind of goes both ways with those relationships.

That ability to personally connect is definitely something that should help Wagner succeed in this new endeavor. She’ll certainly be missed by EMCC’s athletes, though, and by the viewers of Last Chance U. She was one of the most memorable figures on the show, evoking comparisons to Friday Night Lights‘ Tami Taylor for many. It’s totally understandable why Wagner is ready to move on after eight years, but she will be missed by many Last Chance U fans, and by many athletes at EMCC.

[AL.com]

About Andrew Bucholtz

Andrew Bucholtz has been covering sports media for Awful Announcing since 2012. He is also a staff writer for The Comeback. His previous work includes time at Yahoo! Sports Canada and Black Press.

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