How Did I Get Here

Did You Know?

• The producers considered casting Rosie O'Donnell, a fan of the series, to play coach Roberta 'Bobbie' Roberts.
• NBC announced the episode title 'How Did I Get Here' in October 2007.

Plot

Lyla, Jason, and Tim arrive in Dillon. Eric angrily confronts Buddy after learning his salary was cut by 37%; Buddy explains the booster club's funds were depleted by McGregor's lawsuit and his hiring, but Eric demands a fix. Eric and Tami also deal with the arrival of Shelley, Tami's sister. Tim finds his locker empty, and Eric tells him he is off the team for his absence. Buddy convinces Eric to add Santiago to the team; Santiago is fast but struggles catching or holding the ball. Lyla asks Tim to coach Santiago, but he refuses. Without Tim's protection, Smash struggles with his runs and forces Tim to dinner to get him back in shape. Eric is offered the athletic director position at a salary close to his previous season's pay and accepts, believing it will not change his duties much. He gets Jason his job back as assistant coach, but Jason questions whether people change and visits Lyla at church for advice. Julie visits Matt at the Alamo Freeze, apologizes, and asks to be friends; he agrees. At Jason's birthday party, Julie is devastated to see Matt kissing Lauren, a new girl. After the party, Jason tells Eric he is leaving the coaching staff to move on. Chad learns that car seat fibers were found in the dead man's jacket zipper, possibly from a 1974–1978 GMC car. He confronts Landry, whose car matches, and Landry confesses to accidentally killing the man. Chad takes Landry to a desert area where they burn the car to erase any trace.

Reception

In its original American broadcast, How Did I Get Here was seen by an estimated 5.56 million household viewers with a 1.9 in the 18–49 demographics, meaning 1.9 percent of all households with televisions watched the episode. It finished 77th out of 101 programs airing from November 5–11, 2007, a 3% increase in viewership from the previous episode, which had 5.40 million viewers and a 1.8 rating. The episode received positive reviews from critics. Eric Goldman of IGN gave it an 8 out of 10, writing that the show seemed to be returning to believable situations and interactions from season 1. Scott Tobias of The A.V. Club gave a B+ grade, calling it strong but problematic due to the Landry situation. Ken Tucker of Entertainment Weekly wrote that the episode built on the previous one and could cram in extra characters without strain. Alan Sepinwall noted that while the writers understand what makes the show great, the Landry plot was a tonal misfit. Leah Friedman of TV Guide called it the best episode of the season so far, praising the introduction of two new strong women and the final scene of Tim teaching Santiago football.