Mike Neighbors is the Head Women's Basketball Coach at the University of Arkansas. He is a father of four (Abby 26, Alec 20, Bowen 2, Barrett 9 months), a husband to Jayci, and a coach to 277 former players. For the last 29 years he has been paid as a Coach, but if you ask his lifelong friends and family, they will tell you he has been doing it since he was 9. So, he has really been a Coach for the last 43 years.
Read MoreVernon Davis is a ridiculously accomplished player on the football field. He’s a 2-time pro-bowler who played 14 seasons in the National Football League. He was also a 2nd Team All-Pro in 2013, led the NFL in receiving touchdowns in 2009, he was an All-American in college, and he won a Super Bowl with the Denver Broncos. However, this conversation is about everything else that Vernon is involved with.
Read MoreD’Qwell Jackson was a superstar at the University of Maryland. He had an amazing and illustrious career, winning all kinds of awards. He did such a good job there that he ended up being a second-round pick in the NFL Draft. He went on to have a 10+ year career in the NFL starting at linebacker. This conversation is going to be about a lot more than just executing as a football player.
Read MoreBuzz Williams is the Head Men’s Basketball Coach at Texas A&M University. I first learned about him as the head coach at Marquette, then he went over to Virginia Tech, where I first met him in person, and now he’s at Texas A&M. All along the way Buzz has had tremendous success on the basketball court. Buzz is someone who is constantly learning, constantly looking to grow, and then trying to pour all of himself into his student athletes, his family, his community, and the people he has great relationships with.
Read MoreScott Drew is the Head Men’s Basketball Coach at Baylor University. Coach Drew began his career at Baylor in 2003 when he took over a program that was decimated by tragedy, player departures, a depleted roster, and NCAA restrictions. Fast-forward to almost 20 years later, and Baylor has become a contender almost annually. They won a national championship, they are constantly at the top of the rankings, and in their conference, the Big 12, they are a perennial contender.
Read MoreNick Hill is the Head Football Coach at Southern Illinois University, where he also played football earlier in his life. Nick also played professional football. The crux and meat of our conversation today is about what he’s building at Southern Illinois.
Read MoreDave Phillips believes in living life with passion, curiosity, and purpose. Described as "a visionary thinker with a passion for high-performance coaching," Phillips co-founded the Titleist Performance Institute (TPI). A member of the Professional Golf Association (PGA) of America since 1993. Dave has been a Golf Magazine Top 100 teacher since 2000 and is a Golf Digest Top 50 teacher in America. He currently coaches world number one golfer Jon Rahm and is part of hall of fame golfer Phil Mickelson's team.
Read MoreMike Deegan is the head baseball coach at Dennison University, where he is entering his 10th season. Coach Deegan has had tremendous success at the Division III level, winning 3 National Championships. He has also played in 2 National Championships as a player.
Read MoreDan Grunfeld is a former professional basketball player, an accomplished writer, and a proud graduate of Stanford University. An Academic All-American and All-Conference basketball selection at Stanford, Dan played professionally for eight seasons in top leagues around the world, including in Germany, Spain, and Israel. Dan’s writing has been published more than 40 times in media outlets such as Sports Illustrated, The Jerusalem Post, and NBC News.
Read MoreMarques Colston is in the record books with the New Orleans Saints for being on their all-time best wise receivers. He was recently inducted into their hall of fame, finishing his ten-year career atop the Saints reception list, their receiving yards list, their scrimmage yards list, and their receiving touchdowns list. During those ten years, he also helped lead them to a Super Bowl Championship.
Read MoreBernard Muir is entering his 10th season as the Director of Athletics at Stanford University. Stanford has one of the best programs and departments in the country. During Bernard’s tenure, he has seen 25 NCAA Championships and 34 national titles. He also has been involved with the Learfield IMG College Director’s Cup, which recognizes the best athletic department in the country. Stanford has won it 7 times.
Read MoreLars Tiffany is the Head Coach of the University of Virginia Men’s Lacrosse Program. They have won back-to-back National Championships. Lars has also spent time coaching at his alma mater, Brown University, which is where he played and had a great career. He coached at Brown from 2007-2016 and then took the leap to the University of Virginia, which is a storied lacrosse program, in 2017. He led Brown to 3 Ivy League Championships.
Read MoreJoanna Bernabei-McNamee, Head Coach - BC Women's Basketball, became the eighth women’s basketball coach in Boston College program history on April 11, 2018. In 2019-20, her second season at BC, Bernabei-McNamee was named the Coach of the Year in the Atlantic Coast Conference. She led BC to an impressive 20-12 overall record and a fourth place finish in the conference with an 11-7 record.
Read MoreAnnelie Schmittel serves as Vice President of Player Development for the Philadelphia 76ers. Schmittel is responsible for creating, managing and overseeing the holistic development and implementation of programs that support the professional and personal growth of 76ers players, staff and families. Prior to joining the 76ers, Schmittel was a member of the Oakland Raiders player engagement staff.
Read MoreSteve Mesler is the Co-Founder and CEO of Classroom Champions, a non-profit that brings together children and the world’s best athletes to mentor and teach kids the skills they need to succeed in and out of the classroom. After winning an Olympic Gold Medal in the 4-man bobsled at the 2010 Vancouver Olympic Games, Steve was inspired to bring the values, lessons, and experiences he and his fellow Olympic and Paralympic athletes had gained through sport into classrooms.
Read MoreJay Wright has become a mainstay in the world of College Basketball. He was recently inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame, he’s won 2 National Championships (one in 2016 and one in 2018), and he took a team to the Final Four in 2009, becoming one of the all-time greats when it comes to college basketball. He’s led Villanova, the team he coaches, to 6 Big East Conference Championships and 14 NCAA Tournaments.
Read MoreCandace Parker is one of the best basketball players to ever lace up their sneakers. In high school, Candace won the 2003 and 2004 Gatorade National Girls Basketball Player of the Year. She won player of the year honors in college before becoming the first pick of the WNBA draft.
Read MoreMuffet McGraw, previously the head coach of Notre Dame Women’s Basketball, was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in September 2017. As a coach, she’s a 2x National Champion. She is one of 5 coaches, men’s or women’s, in NCAA Division I history with over 930 wins, 9 final fours, and multiple NCAA Championships. Muffet is also the all-time wins leader among single sport coaches in the history of Notre Dame athletics.
Read MoreQuin Snyder was a McDonald’s All-American coming out of high school, eventually going on to play basketball at Duke, where he went to 3 Final Fours as a player. At the age of 32, Quin became the head coach of the University of Missouri Men’s Basketball Team. Today, he’s the head coach of the Utah Jazz, a perennial playoff team in the NBA. Quin has been integral in creating an incredible culture and an incredible core of young players in Utah.
Read MoreElton Brand had an NBA career that spanned 16 1/2 years. During that time, he was a two-time all-star and one of the top power forwards in the league. He entered the league as the first overall pick in 1999 where he became the co-rookie of the year. Before that, he had an illustrious career at Duke University.
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