Former NFL coach Mike Tomlin spent 19 seasons with the Pittsburgh Steelers and gained Tremendous Bowl LXIII, and now he is added one other main accomplishment to his resume: turning into a Minecraft YouTuber.
The previous coach gave soccer followers a bit one thing completely different when he launched his new YouTube channel earlier this week. With a profile image taken in entrance of NBC’s Soccer Night time in America brand, watchers most likely weren’t anticipating Tomlin’s first upload to see him confess how his love for structure and household led him to work on a Minecraft metropolis he spent 12 years constructing.
“You already know, 12 or 13 years in the past, when my children have been in center faculty, they’d be of their room all weekend and have pals over. They have been obsessive about enjoying this sport, Minecraft, that I knew nothing about,” he defined as his son and channel operator, Dino, sat within the background. “I obtained as a result of I simply was mesmerized by what might occupy their consideration for such massive durations of time.”
He admitted he lacked the “stick management” to deal with one thing like Minecraft’s Survival mode however nonetheless managed to discover enjoyment in Inventive Mode. That is the place Mojang’s techniques actually began to click on.
“I like to construct,” he mentioned. “I’ve all the time had an curiosity in structure, and so forth, so I began doing this artistic metropolis. It was a way of spending time with them. They participated throughout this metropolis. All my children have buildings.”
Nevertheless, as his children went off to highschool and faculty, their curiosity in Minecraft waned. For Tomlin, it was simply starting. In 2026, after 12 years of constructing, the sandbox phenomenon has turn into therapeutic for the previous NFL coach, and what he is constructed has the web in disbelief.
“That is the place it began for me,” Tomlin mentioned as a blocky blue pond surrounded by detailed metropolis buildings light into view. His tour then begins with a better take a look at a resort. This one constructing contains a totally fleshed-out inside with labeled rooms, a foyer, a ballroom, a pool, loos, and extra. Tomlin even factored in how lighting may have an effect on the views in a few of these rooms – and that is simply certainly one of many places he is made.
“I used to be all the time impressed,” he added. “I might go locations, and I might see issues and buildings, and I get impressed, I am going house, and I work on it.”
Tomlin then referenced the off-campus housing round universities that he recreated after dropping Dino off in school. The colour, flooring plans, and different memorable components all got here from these recollections, with a lot of his creation additionally constructed round completely different our bodies of water.
Tomlin stepped down as the Steelers’ coach in January 2026, with right now’s video exhibiting how he is spent at the least among the downtime since. He spent years within the NFL, but it surely’s his work as a Minecraft YouTuber that has everybody speaking right now.
Mike Tomlin has been engaged on his Minecraft world for over a decade
It’s UNREAL pic.twitter.com/XWxu9zMinY
— Barstool Sports activities (@barstoolsports) October 1, 2026
Aaron Rodgers: “CALL THE F*CKING PLAY!”
Mike McCarthy: “F*cking asshole”
*Loses to the Cleveland Browns*
In the meantime, Mike Tomlin: pic.twitter.com/axnE3655rT
— NFL Memes (@NFLMemes) October 2, 2026
Steelers down 20 in a playoff sport.
Mike Tomlin: pic.twitter.com/J4u56digNW
— Donny Soccer (@DonChed54) October 1, 2026
Mike Tomlin leaving the presser early to go end constructing the Government Spa in his Minecraft world pic.twitter.com/yHF2FOzeiZ
— ant ☘️ (@anthshiesty) October 1, 2026
“I am obsessed why is he genuinely a greater builder than me,” content material creator @Krtzyy said.
“Mike Tomlin turning into a Minecraft YouTuber was not on my bingo card for 2026,” one X/Twitter consumer said.
Tomlin signed off, promising to take a better take a look at his metropolis in future movies. He additionally teased plans to showcase one thing that “I feel you are going to discover attention-grabbing.” Regardless of being perhaps probably the most artistic movie star gamer to come out of 2026, the ex-NFL coach is not the one notable identify to share their love for gaming within the final 12 months. Obsession breakout Inde Navarrette garnered consideration for her The Final of Us and Name of Responsibility streams just a few months in the past. Newly introduced X-Males star, Samara Weaving, can be an enormous gamer.
Picture by Wealthy von Biberstein/Icon Sportswire by way of Getty Photos.
Michael Cripe is a contract author with IGN. He’s greatest recognized for his work at websites like The Pitch, The Escapist, and OnlySP. Be certain to give him a comply with on Bluesky (@mikecripe.bsky.social) and Twitter (@MikeCripe).