Youth $ports

Episode 27: Dr. Bob Dranoff (Former D-2 East Coast Conference Athletic Commissioner, Current graduate professor at St. John's University) - Both at the youth sports AND collegiate level, sports are more commercialized than ever.  - A focus on making rules and regulations that only benefit the "elite of the elite." - Trickle down effect of some new rule changes in college athletics with revenue sha...

Episode 26: Aaron Flaker (Former President/Co-owner and Co-founder of JAM Brands, current Co-Owner of Athletx Sports Group) - Flaker discusses his intro into the world of cheer (spoiler alert: He started out as a mascot!) - The history behind how cheerleading has undergone a MASSIVE transformation through the years... - Cheer has all of the markers of every other sport/competition, but the unique...

Episode 25: Aaron Anderkin (Youth sports Dad/coach/former athlete) - Can any other youth sports parents relate to 90% of their non-work life being consumed by sports? - Growing up in a small town, idolizing the "hometown heroes"  - The challenge of doubling as both a youth sports parent AND a youth sports coach. How do you strike the correct balance? - The trickle down effect we are seeing of play...

Episode 24: Philip Manga & players from the Box2Box Organization - Box2Box is a non-profit organization in Lexington Ky that strives to empower the youth to seek community through sport, to develop identity relevance and belonging.  - The game of soccer opened up so many doors for Philip Manga in his life. When he came to the United States with his family from the Republic of Congo, he struggl...

Episode 23: Charlie Ely (Medically retired college football player) - What happens when sports has been a huge part of your identity your entire life, and then it gets stripped away because of injuries? - What it's like to be an athlete who shows early potential, has great size and big dreams.  - Football is a grind. You almost never go through a game pain-free, but it's part of the mentality.  -...

Episode 22: Jessie Weis (Mother of Top 100 Basketball Prospect, Gabe Weis) - Jessie Weis is the mother of a Top 100, 4-star basketball prospect (Gabe Weis) from a small town in Kentucky - Weis walks us through the natural progression of Gabe's development and the opportunities that came as a result of his hard work.  - Parents don't have to PUSH doors open for their children when it comes to youth...

Episode 21: Jeff Kellman (Inner city high school football coach, Milwaukee) - Kellman has coached at both well-funded and poorly funded high schools in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The discrepancies between the 2 are massive... - Coaches having to pay for basic equipment out of their own pockets vs. 65 million dollar athletic complexes - Athletes seeing the lack of resources and opportunity provided to t...

Episode 20: Roni Robinson (Former high school football/basketball standout who spent 4.5 years in jail before beginning his redemption story) - Roni Robinson was once a candidate for Mr. Kentucky football and Mr. Kentucky basketball in the SAME season with letters from college coaches piling up in trash bags... - Robinson was a hometown hero, with his whole life ahead of him, packing the stands on...

Episode 19: Scott Strode (Blue Chips Nation/Prep Hoops Scout) - Scott Strode works as a basketball writer/scout for PrepHoops  - Strode sees himself as a connector/referral service between college coaches and players, helping both sides to streamline the recruiting and evaluation process.  - With many colleges operating on $500 recruiting budgets (No, seriously!), efficiency is crucial.  - We disc...

Episode 18: Kobe Johnson (Soccer parent/Former soccer player) - A story of sacrifice and love in the world of youth sports.  - The 5-6 day weekly grind of being a high school athlete - Sports can teach kids life lessons: Managing time, prioritizing, working with others, etc.  - When you sit down and actually add up all of the expenses (10K, 20K... etc...), is it really worth it? Would it have been...

Episode 17: Katie Filiatreau (Physical Therapist) - The frequency in which Early Sports Specialization is happening these days is ALARMING! (Spoiler alert: It's NOT good for your kids' long-term future) - Comparison: Using patient-first language vs. Using athlete-first language. Are we unintentionally putting pressure on our athletes when parents refer to themselves as "Soccer Moms" and "Baseball...

Episode 16: Tansy Coats (Parent of 3/Elementary school teacher) - The struggles of juggling the weekly youth sports schedule of 3 children.  - Constantly dividing and conquering. "It takes a village." - The inequity in opportunity to participate in sports based on family structure, support, transportation, financial ability, etc. -Sports are supposed to be the great equalizer... but have we create...

Episode 15: Jordan Parker (Our 1st repeat guest) - The Youth $ports Podcast is officially 15 episodes old! We've talked about a LOT of topics. - This episode serves as a bit of a recap/halftime episode, where we discuss some of the underlying themes and topics of the podcast so far.  - We discuss the biggest takeaways from Episodes 1-14. - Jordan turns the questions in Ally's direction to ask some...

Episode 14: Katherine Southerland (Founder of a free, all-girls Galaxy Basketball League) - Southerland started a COMPLETELY FREE basketball organization for K-5 girls only in Louisville Kentucky (Galaxy Basketball Incorporated).   - Lack of opportunities for young girls who want to play basketball.  - Co-ed teams exist, but sometimes only 2 girls play at a time.  - Basketball SHOULD be one of the...

Episode 13 Guest: Mallory Shake (Former Division 1 Swimmer) - Mallory tells the story of what it’s like to be identified at a very young age as being exceptional at a sport (by breaking an Olympic swimmer’s previously held record at 8 years old) - The tug of war playing 2 sports: 1 that you play because you’re really good at it and 1 that you play because you love it.  - Should you choose the spor...

Episode 12 Guest: Cy Tucker (7-time state champion, Hall of Fame coach, my Dad) - The blessing of being able to sit down and have a conversation recorded with my Dad is not lost on me… (He also just so happens to be a 7 time state champion and Hall of Fame girls soccer coach). - Humble beginnings. Learning the game just by playing, without lots of structure and outside influence. - The unique bond...

Episode 11 Guest: Jennifer Smith (Retired youth soccer parent) - Now that her kids are older, Jennifer Smith reflects back on her time as a youth sports soccer parent. Hindsight is 20/20, but she would have done a lot of things differently... - Non-sports parents on the outside looking in saying... "Are you crazy?" (Like when you reschedule a flight to Italy with your family that has been planned...

Episode 10 Guest: Sara Martin (Former volleyball coach) - Hear stories from a coach who fell in and out of love with coaching... - We are all TOO ACCESSIBLE these days. Cell phones make it instant gratification/communication. Remember phone trees? - The golden years of coaching: Before it gets too serious and it's still about the love of the game.  - Club sports aren't for the best players anymore...

Episode 9 Guest: Mike Webster (Basketball Official/Referee) - Everyone loves their youth sports, but without refs... There IS no youth sports. - Referee abuse is a real issue and it's causing MAJOR ripple effects with shortages nationwide, across all sports.  - Losing more #s in officiating than we are gaining. Not a sustainable model.  - Quality officiating is declining because there's no incenti...

Episode 8: Linda Flanagan (Author/Researcher, Take Back the Game) - Author of Take Back the Game: How Money and Mania are Ruining Kids' Sports-- And Why it Matters - Sports used to have a different, less central role in family life - Obesity problems in America... sports are linked to better outcomes in life. So why are we making them more expensive and LESS accessible? - Pay to play is shutting o...

Episode 7: Trip Rogers (Centre College Women's Soccer Associate Head Coach) - Hear the truth about recruiting Myths and Misconceptions from a college coach - There is NO RETURN on investment when it comes to club/travel sports. I repeat, there is no such thing as a return on investment.  - No one is earning a scholarship at 10, 11, 12 years old... College coaches do not care where you're traveling...

Episode 6: Matt Bomeisl (A3 Baseball Academy Owner/Director) - A3 Academy: An alternative path for high school age athletes, designed to give an edge to serious athletes to prepare them for college/professional baseball.  - Travel sports are emphasizing creating "mercenary teams" that meet up to play in showcases, but does this come at the expense of development?  - American sports mentality vs. o...

Episode 5: Nate Valentine (North Laurel HS Basketball Coach, home of Reed Sheppard) - High school basketball coach of Reed Sheppard (Former Kentucky men's basketball player and 3rd pick in the NBA draft) sheds light on the story of a kid who decided to stay home and play for his hometown team.  - The value of playing for your community - If you're good, they'll find you. More pathways than ever ex...

Episode 4 Guest: Betsy Huckaby (Current collegiate athlete, Univ. of Louisville) - Slow and steady wins the race: A blueprint for what youth sports CAN look like... A late bloomer turned Division 1 athlete (University of Louisville) - The value of growing up as a multi-sport athlete and being a good teammate.  - How adversity can change the trajectory of an athlete's career.  - Not everyone has th...

Episode 3 Guest: Drew Watts (Performance Coach) - We broach the topic no one wants to talk about... Injuries -The impact of over-scheduling at a young age - Is the emphasis on GAMES, GAMES and more GAMES coming at the cost of free play, creativity and recovery? - At some point, will level headed adults start to say no? - A concerning increase in overuse injuries - Variety isn't a bad thing and rec...