Coaching Minds with Justin Lewis show

Coaching Minds with Justin Lewis

Summary: Deconstructing the Top Minds in Sports

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 Episode 22: Michael Federico ULM Baseball | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 0:00

Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadToday’s conversation is with University of Louisiana-Monroe head baseball coach Michael Federico. Coach Fed has just recently been named the head coach after successful stints as an assistant coach at his alma mater Southern Miss and before that, the University of Memphis. Coach Fed is an up and coming leader in college baseball and we had a great conversation about how he plans on bringing back to prominence a program with a steep tradition in winning! This is obviously personal for me since ULM is my alma mater and a program I am very proud of! For my fellow alumni, please reach out to Coach Fed via email at federico@ulm.edu he has made it very clear that he wants us involved and he wants to stay in touch. You can also follow him on Twitter at @CoachFedULM

 Episode 21: Brandon Rosenthal, Assistant coach Northern AZ Suns (NBA-D League) | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 0:00

Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadToday’s conversation is with a tremendous young up and coming assistant coach with the Northern Arizona Suns, which is associated with the Phoenix Suns. Brandon has a great story. He played college basketball at a DIII school in New York, because of an injury, he transitioned into a coaching role with the team. So how did he end up in the NBA? He said YES…a lot! It’s one of the best leadership lessons you can learn when you are an up and coming leader. Brandon is a fantastic follow on Twitter as well, full of great leadership nuggets! You can follow him here Tweets by CoachRosenthal

 Episode 20: Rollie Fingers, MLB Hall of Fame | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 0:00

Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadToday’s episode features Major League Baseball Hall of Famer Rollie Fingers. Rollie is a 3x World Series Champion, he won the American League MVP and Cy Young Award in 1981 with the Milwaukee Brewers. He is the father of the modern relief pitcher and has 341 saves. Rollie is the owner of the most famous mustache that I can think of. During our conversation, we talk about how it came to be his signature look. We also talk about if he ever considered getting into coaching, his golf game, and some pretty classic stories! If you ever want to have Rollie attend one of your event, you can book him through his website www.rfingers34.com

 Episode 19: Eric Thompson, Civil Organizations | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 0:00

Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadToday’s episode features Eric Thompson from Civil Organizations. Eric is an executive coach and He is the co-founder of Civil Schools, a nationally respected comprehensive bullying prevention program. Eric also owns and operates Global Ascension Productions, a Pro-social leadership development company that deals with issues related to diversity, inclusion and sexual violence prevention in both high schools and colleges. In our conversation, we talk about his work as an executive coach, his work with Civil Schools and he provides a ton of value during this episode because he provides you with strategies to help you in situations with your coworkers, your kids, and everyday life. Just FYI, we get a little loose with the language in this episode, so if you are super offended, I apologize. You can find Eric at www.civilorganizations.com for executive coaching or www.civilschools.com if you’re interested in bringing him to your school. He’s also a great follow on Facebook. He will challenge the way you think…so be prepared!

 Episode 18: Chris Collins, Fellowship of Christian Athletes | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 0:00

Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadToday’s episode is with Chris Collins who is the Southern Arizona Area Director for the FCA. I’ve known Chris for over 20 years. He played college baseball and was also a former college coach at Trevecca Nazarene University and also at Lipscomb University. Then he felt the calling to the ministry life at the FCA. We talk about the journey from his early childhood all the way to his current situation with the FCA. We talk about the FCA. What it is and what it isn’t. Chris has an amazing story and there are all kinds of leadership gems in this conversation. FYI, We had some technical difficulties and had to pick up the conversation a few days later, but it was worth it…You can follow Chris on Twiter @ccollinsazfca

 Episode 17: Josh Pastner Georgia Tech Basketball | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 0:00

Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadToday’s conversation is with Georgia Tech head basketball coach Josh Pastner. This is a little bit shorter of a conversation, so it is more interview style instead of the back and forth conversation that I usually like to have. I tried to cram in as much value into it as possible and Josh didn’t disappoint. We talked about him being named the ACC coach of the year in his first year in the conference, which is pretty amazing considering the amount of hall of famers that are in the ACC. We talked about his playing career at the University of Arizona. He had an amazing amount of self-awareness for a 19-22-year-old. We then talked about some of the tremendous mentor’s that he’s had in his coaching career, from his dad to Lute Olsen and John Calipari. Then I got to ask him a question that I’ve been really curious about since I was born and raised here in Tucson, AZ. “Is there a consensus among AZ alumni on who is the greatest wildcat of all time?”. Arizona and Georiga Tech both claim the phrase “Point Guard U”. He has a unique perspective of playing and coaching at AZ and now coaching at Georgia Tech, so I asked him who the real “Point Guard U” is. You can follow him on Twitter at @GTJoshPastner

 Episode 16: Smoke Laval, University of North Florida Baseball | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 0:00

Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadToday’s conversation is with Ray “Smoke” Laval, Head baseball coach at the University of North Florida. I played for Smoke when he was the head coach at Louisiana-Monroe in 1998-1999. Smoke is one helluva baseball coach and a tremendous leader. We do get into a bit of storytelling, but it’s really hard not to with him. Everyone I know who knows him has their own “Smoke” stories. We talk about his coaching career and his different stops from when he first started as a graduate assistant to being an assistant at LSU in the early 90’s. We talk about his first head coaching job at ULM and then on to LSU. He spent a couple of years as a scout and then back to the field at UNF. We also spent a lot of time talking about the differences in today’s kids, and the struggles of being a mid-major program. Please enjoy my conversation with Smoke Laval!

 Episode 15: Dean Whellams, Team Elite Performance | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 0:00

Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadToday’s conversation was a blast. I’m really glad that there is someone like Dean out there teaching college athletes these strategies. These are things that I wish I would have learned when I was a struggling student-athlete. Dean asks the coaches and athletes to be “all in” and all he wants out of them is “everything they have” and to show that he is “all in”, Dean will only work with one team per conference per sport. He is already working with Arizona Baseball (so sorry to the rest of the Pac12, but he will not work with anyone else unless AZ coach Jay Johnson decides not to bring him back…but fat chance!), New Mexico St baseball, University of San Diego baseball and more. If I’m a head coach looking to build a culture or maybe you need help building a new culture. Dean is you guy. True leaders have the confidence in themselves o bring in an outside voice. You can get a hold of Dean through his website at www.teameliteperformance.com and you can follow dean on Twitter @TeamElitePerf

 Episode 14: Erika Barnes, SR Associate Athletic Director University of Arizona | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 0:00

Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadToday’s conversation is with Erika Barnes who is the Senior Associate Director of Athletics and she is also the Senior Woman Administrator at the University of Arizona. In our conversation, we talk about her time as the Interm Director of Athletics where in just a couple of months, she got a contract extension for UA basketball coach Sean Miller and she was part of the $1,000,000 donation Terry Francona donated to the baseball program. We go back and talk about growing up in Thousand Oaks, CA, playing softball at Arizona and also her unique position of being an A.D. at the school where she played. I ask her about a quote that she would put on a billboard that every young athlete would see and we both butcher it, so here is the correct version… You can follow Erika on Twitter @ebarnes7

 Episode 13: Jon Wente, Pitching Coach UT-Arlington | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 0:00

Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadToday’s conversation is a good buddy of mine who just happens to be a heck of a baseball coach. Jon Wente is the pitching coach for the University of Texas-Arlington. He is in his third season with the Mavericks, but before his stint in Arlington, Jon was one of the top head coaches in the country at the Junior college level. As a head coach at Hutchinson CC, Odessa CC, and Central Arizona College, Wente had a record of 513-224 (.696). He was responsible for 190+ players signing with four-year schools and 63 players drafted to play pro-ball. Ten of those guys made it to the big leagues including multiple all-star and potential hall of famer Ian Kinsler. Jon wanted to prove himself at the highest level, so he joined UTA as an assistant three years ago. If I’m in need of a head coach this summer at the D1 level, he’s at the top of my list…dude can flat out recruit and develop players.

 Episode 12: Joshua Medcalf, Author, Director of Mental Training UCLA Woman’s Basketball | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 0:00

Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadToday’s episode is with Author, speaker and Director of Mental Training for the UCLA woman’s basketball team Joshua Medcalf. Joshua has published five books and a sixth one called “Pound The Stone”. His best seller is “Chop Wood, Carry Water“. I’ve read it three times…it’s fantastic. One of his other books is also a must read if you’re in any type of leadership position, it’s called Transformational Leadership. I’ve never marked up a book in my life as I have with this one. There’s so much amazing content in this book…pick it up asap! So, we obviously talked about his books, but we also talked about wrapping up your identity in your sport or job, we talked about heart posture and he even gave me some advice for something that I’ve been dealing with! His website is www.t2bc.com and you can follow him on Twitter @JoshuaMedcalf

 Episode 11: Troy Gingrich, Washington Nationals Minor League Hitting Coordinator | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 0:00

Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadToday’s episode is a conversation with Washington Nationals minor league hitting coordinator Troy Gingrich. I played ball with Troy when we were both at Central Arizona College. We talk about his playing career in college and how he broke his arm throwing a baseball his freshman year. We then talk about his pro-ball career and he has a really funny story about his “welcome to pro-ball” story. Troy then tells us about his coaching journey and he also talks about some of his mentors along the way. It was great catching up with him after 20 years. I hope he gets the shot to coach in the big leagues…I’d love to get some tickets! Haha! Good luck Troy and thanks for taking the time to do the show!

 Episode 10: Joey Myers, HittingPerformanceLab.com | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 0:00

Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadThis episode is a little bit different. I’m speaking with Joey Myers from www.hittingperformancelab.com Joey is one of a handful of guys who are bringing science to the baseball swing. I love it. I think baseball has always lacked innovation. When I was coaching I always knew that some of the more successful hitters weren’t doing what we were teaching, but I didn’t know why…now I do. Joey has published three books. The Catapult Loading System, which is all about his hitting system. The Science of Sticky Coaching and The Ugly Truth About Hitting Ground Balls which came from a rant he had on his website that I agree with, but some coaches were seriously offended…haha…you can read that post here. We were very careful to not talk about the swing mechanics very much in this interview because as much as I love talking about hitting, let’s face it, it would make for a terrible listen for most of you! We talk about coaching with a growth mindset vs a fixed mindset and we also spoke about where you should start when you first go to his site. You can follow Joey Myers on Twitter @hitperformlab You can follow him on Facebook at www.facebook.com/hittingperformancelab

 Episode 9: Bobby Pierce Fort Wayne Baseball | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 0:00

Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadToday’s conversation is with Fort Wayne University Head Baseball Coach Bobby Pierce. Coach Pierce has an amazing story which I think a lot of us can relate to. I coached with Bobby at Central AZ for one season and then he got a D1 assistant coaching job at Arkansas-Little Rock. He was there for three seasons and then got his first head coaching job at Metro State, a D2 school in Denver. He had two really successful seasons at Metro State and then parlayed that into his D1 job at Fort Wayne. Fort Wayne had never had a successful baseball program but coach Pierce knew that he could build it. He figured it would take him only a couple of seasons to turn it around…well life has a funny way of humbling us. His first five seasons at Fort Wayne were full of teachable moments for him personally. He is very candid in this interview about how losing took a toll on him personally. After re-evaluating everything, his last two years, the Mastodons have broken the school record for wins in back to back seasons. This is an amazing example of “In order for things to change, we have to change. In order for things to get better, we have to get better. Some of the books that we talk about are The Talent Code by Daniel Coyle, Psyco-Cybernetics by Maxwell Maltz, and The Intelligent Investor by Benjamin Graham.

 Episode 8: Susie Meyers, Golf Magazine Top 100 Teacher | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 0:00

Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadToday’s interview comes from the golf world and it’s fantastic! Susie Meyers is a golf coach based out of Tucson, AZ and she has recently been named one of the top 100 golf coaches in the nation by Golf Magazine. Susie has a new book out called Golf From Point A and it is really, really good! I recommend everyone read it, even if you’re not a golfer. The lessons in this book translate to everything in your life from your job, your relationships to any other sport you might play. Susie coached Michael Thompson for 15 years. Thompson was the 2012 runner-up at the US Open and the 2013 Honda Classic Champion. Susie and her son Chris We talk about her book, meditation and it’s benefits. We talk about her time on the LGPA tour and we also talk about the wonderful attitude she had as a young lady when she wasn’t as good of a golfer. She was working on her craft and she knew that she was training. I really enjoyed the conversation and I know that you will too! Some of the other books we talked about we Rethinking Golf by Chuck Hogan, The Talent Code by Daniel Coyle and Ernest Jones’s Swing The Club Head. You can follow Susie on Twitter @susiemeyers60 and check out her website at www.susiemeyersgolf.com

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