Game Changers: Incredible Stories of Resilience in Sports

Welcome to Season Two of the Game Changers Podcast.  This week I am the Host and the Guest and I'm breaking down some of the things that I have learned in my first season with this Podcast.  I'm talking about the Top 10 Mental Fitness Hacks—the game-changing tools that help athletes and coaches sharpen their edge, strengthen their mindset, and elevate their performance. I will briefly co...

Réka Gyorgy is not just an incredible swimmer; she’s a trailblazer. As a Hungarian Olympian who competed in Rio 2016 and a standout collegiate athlete at Virginia Tech, she’s a 2-time ACC Champion, 2-time All-American, and 7-time Honorable Mention All-American. Now, as Virginia Tech’s Director of Operations, she’s channeling her passion for the sport into leadership. But what truly sets Réka apart...

This week, I have a really special guest on the Game Changers podcast, someone with a deep connection to basketball history and a very unique perspective on the game. KC Jones III or Kip was an exceptional high school basketball player at Andover High School here in MA where he was the Merrimack Valley Most Valuable Player in 1981 and ended his career with a 24-1 season losing only to CRL and Patr...

This week is such a fun show for me because I’m talking to basketball great Bobby Martin whose story is filled with highs and lows that showcase his unwavering spirit and great perspective on the game of basketball. Out of high school, Martin was a McDonalds All-American, Street & Smith All-American and was a member of the Nation’s best recruiting class of 1987. Bobby went on to play at Pitt w...

This week's guest is one of the very few female coaches coaching in the National Basketball Association (NBA).  Jenny Boucek is the Indiana Pacers Assistant Coach.  For those of you who don’t know her – Jenny is highly respected basketball coach with a rich history in both the WNBA and NBA. Known for her strategic mind and deep understanding of the game, Jenny has made a significant impact in...

Continuing The Legends Coaching Series - University of North Carolina’s Women’s Lacrosse coach since the program’s inception in 1994, Jenny Levy.  Coach Levy has won 4 National Titles at UNC (including this year in 2025) and a National Title at University of Virginia as a player - making her only the 4th person to both play on and coach a national championship women's lacrosse team. She has t...

Brenda Frese is a legendary basketball coach at the University of Maryland where she has been coaching since 2002.  Frese led her to team to win the National Championship in 2006 beating Duke in over-time at the Boston Garden.  She was voted AP National Coach of the Year in 2002 and 2021, ACC Coach of the Year in 2013, Big Ten Coach of the Year in 2002, 2015, 2019, and 2021, and MAC Coach of the Y...

JR was an exceptional 3 sport athlete (hockey, football, baseball) in high school at Cushing Academy and then played Division 1 hockey at the College of the Holy Cross.  JR grew up in a hockey family.  His father was a high school hockey coach for 25+ years, his brother played college hockey and his other brother played in college, the NHL and the 2018 Olympics.  Upon college graduation, JR began...

Pete Bidstrup was an incredible college lacrosse player at Franklin Marshall College in Pennsylvania and then went on to become a legendary high school lacrosse coach at Governors Academy in Massachusetts for 22 years.  He is the father of two college lacrosse players – his daughter at Williams and son at Harvard.  He was an All American at Franklin Marshall, inducted into their Hall of Fame and a...

Owen Reid comes to us all the way from Singapore. He is an international baseball coach that has coached players from more than 20 countries on 5 continents.  He was a former college pitcher at Baylor and Winthrop Universities and prior to that was a stand-out player in Moberly, Missouri when he set numerous high school records.  In addition to many high school accolades, he was chosen to the Colu...

Kenny Servera is a lifelong New York sports fan and the host of the Podcast, Kenny the Sports Guy where he has interviewed hundred of athletes and coaches about their lives in sports and the impact that sports have on our society as a whole.  Listen in as Kenny tells his story about how sports saved his life and also reminds us about why sports can be uplifting and powerful when we need something...

This week’s episode of Game Changers is a little different — we have not one, but three incredible guests joining the show. As you know, Game Changers is all about resilience and amazing comeback stories in sports and life, and my guests this week truly embody that spirit. Ryan Scoble, Steve Scoble, and Bob Betcher are the founders and board members of Lax for Life, an organization dedicated to ra...

Stu Singer is an exceptional Thank you for tuning in to this episode of Game Changers. We hope you found inspiration and motivation in the stories of resilience and adversity shared by our incredible guests. Remember, no matter what challenges you face, your ability to overcome them lies within. Stay resilient and keep pushing forward towards your goals. If you enjoyed this episode, please conside...

Matt Sargeant grew up with Coach John Wooden's Pyramid of Success in the forefront of his mind - his youth coach introduced it to him at a very young age.  There was nothing that Matt loved more than basketball and after a very successful high school career at Ocean View High School in California, he played at Princeton University.  Like many athletes, Matt's journey was full of injuries...

Bryant Mitchell has learned a lot of Life Lessons on the football field. Mitchell was a walk-on wide receiver on the football team at University of New Hampshire.  By his Junior year, he earned a partial scholarship and by his senior year, he earned a a full scholarship and a starting position.  But his story, like most, is windy and up and down. He faced significant injuries, battled self-doubt a...

Mike Procopio is a Player Development basketball coach and a master of breaking down game film and providing players with the tools to maximize their performance. He was the Director of Player Development for the Dallas Mavericks for 6 Seasons from 2013-2019. He was also Kobe Bryant’s Strategic Game Coach for 4 Years from 2009-2012 where he gave Kobe detailed scouting reports and video breakdowns...

 Matt Koman's journey is nothing short of extraordinary. His deep love for sports and relentless perseverance led him to play both college football and basketball, overcoming numerous challenges along the way. His story is marked by severe injuries, remarkable recoveries, and invaluable lessons learned both on and off the field. After graduating, Matt dedicated himself to enhancing the mental...

Cricket Basa was a standout out soccer player at Montpelier High School where she was an All-State selection 3 times, the Times Argus Newspaper Soccer Player of the Year twice, the Capital League Player of the Year twice and played in the VT State Championship game in 2016.  After she tore her ACL in high school, she went to Holy Cross on a soccer scholarship.  During the first couple weeks ofher...

Kyle Casey is arguably one of the best basketball players ever to play at Harvard University.  He won the Ivy League Championship every one of his four years playing.  He was the Ivy League Rookie of the Year in 2010. He was also a two-time All-Ivy League selection.  He ranked 13th in program history for career points (1,242).  But his story is all about how he handled the hard things that came hi...

The list of basketball accomplishments by Lauren Manis is too long to list here.  Put simply, Lauren is a basketball STUD! She played at the College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, MA and was the first player in school history (men or women) to score 2,000+ points and have 1,000+ rebounds.  She is the Patriot League All-time leader in Rebounds with 1,188 rebounds.  She also had 58 career double-do...

Eli Bremer's sport requires so many skills that it's hard to wrap your mind around it.  Most Americans don't know what the Modern Pentathlete is and Eli is the perfect athlete to explain it. Bremer is not only an Olympian who represented the United States in the modern pentathlon at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, but he is also a dedicated military officer, having served as a major in t...

Susan's journey from a basketball-loving kid in Minnesota to a standout point guard at Stanford University is nothing short of inspiring. Following her collegiate career, she took her basketball skills to the WNBA, playing for the Minnesota Lynx. Susan’s husband Curtis played for the Utah Jazz making them the first married couple to ever play in the NBA and WNBA. Today, Susan and Curtis found...

Jeff Nelligan is the father of three boys and a well-known commentator in the world of American parenting. His book, Four Lessons From My Three Sons: How You Can Raise Resilient Kids , details how he helped guide his sons through childhood and adolescence learning a lot of lessons through sports. His perspective on the importance of good coaching resonates with all parents who spend a lot of time...

Cheer and Dance are often perceived as purely performative arts, but behind the amazing routines and team spirit is a world of intense competition, rigorous training, and unwavering commitment.  Nina Fernandez is a guest that offers a unique perspective into the world of College and NFL Cheer. Nina shares her journey from childhood dance to feeling burn-out to heartbreak after failing to make the...

My guest this week personifies what Resilience and a Comeback Story really means.  Ryan Scoble is one of the USA Lacrosse Comeback Stories of 2023.  He was a college lacrosse player at Mercyhurst University and played in the Div. 2 National Championship game in 2023.  That, in itself, is incredible but the fact that he had a heart transplant in May of 2021 makes him truly remarkable.   Ryan’s stor...