CoachDad
Coach Dad helps dads, coaches, and sports families navigating the pressure, politics, emotions, and purpose of youth sports.
From playing time and parent drama to leadership, faith, discipline, and character, we talk about what really happens behind the game - and how dads can lead well through it.
It starts at home.
CoachDad
From Iowa to UTSA | Kris Reupke on Failure, Grit & Fatherhood
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In Coach Dad’s first guest episode, Jim sits down with Kris Reupke — husband, father, coach, business owner, former Division I pitcher at UTSA, and owner/manager of DBAT New Braunfels.
Kris shares his story from small-town Iowa to junior college baseball, UTSA, coaching, business ownership, and fatherhood. Along the way, he talks about mental toughness, failure, preparation, recruiting, youth sports pressure, travel ball, and what it really means to develop young athletes.
But the heart of this conversation is bigger than baseball.
Kris opens up about learning the difference between being a coach and being a dad, especially on the ride home after games. He talks about the moment he stopped trying to correct everything and started asking better questions, listening more, and giving his son room to process.
Jim and Kris also discuss what coaches look for beyond talent, why parents matter in the recruiting process, how athletes are shaped by the environment at home, and why youth sports should produce better people — not just better players.
This episode is a practical, honest, faith-and-character-centered conversation for dads, coaches, and sports families who want to lead kids well.
The mission is bigger than the game — and it starts at home.
📩 Join the Coach Dad email list for weekly encouragement, practical tools, and honest conversations for sports dads, coaches, and families.
Credits:
Photo/Video: Noah Miller, Micah Miller
Video Editing/CoachDad Theme music: Asher Miller
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Contact: team@coachdad.live
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Hey, welcome back to Coach Dad. Today is a special one. This is our first guest episode. Coach Jim is sitting down with his good friend Chris Rupke, a former Division I pitcher at UTSA, University of Texas San Antonio, owner and manager of D Bat New Bromfels, among other locations, a coach, a husband, and a dad. This conversation covers a lot of ground. Failure, preparation, recruiting, travel ball, parenting, and what kids really need from parents after the game. But underneath all of it is one big idea. We're not just trying to build better athletes. We're trying to build better people. Let's jump in.
SPEAKER_03I'm glad you went blue instead of red because that would have clashed and I should have thought to bring at least two shirts.
SPEAKER_05I got more shirts in this pro shop, and you check a stick and I would just go through one on.
SPEAKER_03Yeah, yeah, yeah. Okay. All right. Are you rolling? Okay. So let's get going. So today's guest is Chris Roopkey. Rootke? Yes, sir. Man, I nailed it first try. He's a husband, a father, coach, a business owner, and a former Division I pitcher at the University of Texas in San Antonio. Chris's baseball journey was not a straight or easy road. He came out of a small town in Iowa. Correct. Took the junior college route and eventually earned his opportunity at UTSA. His college career included some difficult doubtings and setbacks, but he refused to let one bad performance define him. He battled back to become a dependable conference starter through a complete game shutout. Always. Always. Almost every time now. Helped UTSCA win a conference championship and was later selected by his teammates and coaches as team captain. Today Chris is the owner and general manager of D Bat New Broncos, where he works with young athletes, coaches, and parents every day. He brings the perspective of someone who has competed at a high level, overcome failure, led teammates, coached young players, and navigated youth sports as a dad. Chris understands that developing an athlete is about more than swings, velocity, and wins. It's about building confidence, perseverance, character, and healthy relationships along the way. I'm excited for young sports families to hear as it.
Journey of an Athlete
SPEAKER_03We want to make you look good.
SPEAKER_05We do what we try to do. So appreciate you having me on today.
SPEAKER_03Yeah, so honored to have you. First, first guest. First guest, Dad.
SPEAKER_05Right. Crazy. Like, yeah, let's go. Seeing the episodes, I'm excited to see where this goes.
SPEAKER_03Me too. I appreciate it. So um trying some of our favorite podcasts that we listen to. One of them starts the same question for everybody. And so I thought that would be a good way for us to get going. And so today, uh, the first question that we're going to try to ask every guest who was your sports hero growing up and why?
SPEAKER_05Golly, sports hero? Uh-huh. Sports hero was definitely probably Greg Maddox.
SPEAKER_03Okay, now I see. Yeah. Yep.
SPEAKER_05So so Greg Maddox probably is the guy. And I would say that just because Cubs fan back in the day. He started with the Cubs. Right. Um just that whole pitching side of stuff. Sammy Samsa. Yes. Right. Going on the run with Mark McGuire. I got a chance to go watch that year. No. Yep. Oh, how cool is that. He didn't hit a home run, but just to be a part of that whole scenario and the the vibe at Wrigley Field. Right. Uh was something special.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05You know, more towards my teenage years, but that was that was it. Definitely Greg Maddox. Yeah. I would I would have to anticipate and say on that end of it.
SPEAKER_03He's one of the goats. It's it's amazing how how widely recognized he is as being one of the goats. Yep. But still underappreciated in so many ways. I mean it's it's possible. Correct.
SPEAKER_05Yeah. I I think the whole point of you know his whole thing was spots. Yeah, he threw hard. Right. He didn't have to throw hard. He was very successful in what he did. Right. And then even watching the videos coming out today where he would actually call his own game by different things he did, where you didn't know that back then. Right. And so it came out and all that kind of stuff. So the changeup, like I tried to throw the change up like Greg Maddox. Sure. Tried to do this like Greg Maddox. Like I would have to sit and say that's probably who my biggest tremendous.
SPEAKER_03Yeah, that's a great answer.
SPEAKER_05Idol was on that end of it.
SPEAKER_03Uh-huh. Loved watching him pitch and compete. And just as a competitor, he was like top of the food chain as a competitor. Just the stories about even them going and playing golf and just how they would compete on the golf course and then come come compete at the, you know, just everything they did was a competition. So it was fun. It was fun to watch.
SPEAKER_05Absolutely. And then Smoltz getting after it, especially when the Braves era. Yeah. You had Glavin at the same time.
SPEAKER_03So you as a lefty watching Glavin throw. Absolutely. Yeah.
SPEAKER_05Try to pick up things. For sure. But yeah, that I would definitely have to say that.
SPEAKER_03Okay. That's a great answer. All right. Greg Maddox, if you're watching this, reach out to us. You're the first hero on the Coach Dad podcast. Congratulations. We'll send you a prize, I'm sure. Come beyond it, Greg.
SPEAKER_05We got plenty of room. You can be the next guy.
SPEAKER_03We'll ask you who your hero is. All right. So so as an athlete then, tell me about your greatest sports moment.
Wrestling & Team Sport Dynamics
SPEAKER_03My goodness.
SPEAKER_05Probably I've had a few. Okay. Right. From Iowa, wrestling was big.
SPEAKER_04Okay.
SPEAKER_05Yeah. And even in the family, wrestling was a big thing that we'd we did in that in that root key kind of lineage. Yeah. Still to this day, I've got nieces, like second nieces, third nieces, and in and even cousins. Okay. Yeah. Um, you know, so making a run at state in Iowa, my senior year was was probably one of the big moments. Second biggest moment, and probably at each level, to be honest with the gym. Yeah, yeah. Uh in junior college, qualifying for the World Series. Right. Going to going to Tennessee to play where they had the old USA training stadium. Wow. Wow. Uh being a part of that run was something really, really special. Saying that I was able to do that. Not very many people can.
SPEAKER_04Right.
SPEAKER_05And definitely a UTSA. Winning that championship.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05Getting the ring. Right. Making the dog pile. Right. Um, that was probably a moment that will never be forgotten. Forgive me. And still still having that when you go through and be able to do those types of things.
SPEAKER_03Yeah. Yeah. So what do you see? This is we're going a little off script here. What do you see? So even a part of I think it's interesting you had kind of that wrestling is that individual mentality with kind of a team background, right? Really, really that's more of an individual sport that you contribute to the team mentality. In some ways, in some ways, baseball is similar because you got nine guys competing together, everybody's wearing the same uniform, but at the same time, it's an individual that has to like the shortstop has to catch the ground ball and throw it. You can't just rely on one guy.
SPEAKER_04Right.
SPEAKER_03Uh, like a basketball, you can just rely on a Michael Jordan to take the game over. Yep. That can't happen in baseball in the same way. Right. So what do you see as differences that that have kind of helped you in your sporting evolution and the way you coach kids and and how those mentalities work together?
SPEAKER_05Yeah. So I think the biggest thing that I took away from wrestling, right, as that evolved into what I did. And even my wrestling coach is like, are you working hard enough to get you better at baseball?
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05Right. Because it was always a thing of I want to be a major league baseball player. Right. I want to be a major that was the dream.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05And so I think in the wrestling side of it, the the workouts, the training, even when you have to cut a little bit of weight, right? Right, that mental wear and tear that it potentially does does, yeah, that creates the strength on the backside. Right. The the the ability to battle through situations, yeah, scenarios and different things that you go through.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05Nothing's perfect in baseball. You would love for it to be perfect, but you're going to be put in situations that are difficult. Yeah. And finding the way internally to know that I'm mentally strong enough and that I have that self-confidence in myself of knowing, all right, that just happened.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05But I don't care. Give me the ball, here we go.
SPEAKER_04Right.
SPEAKER_05Right. So I think being able to carry that through each and every scenario and situation was something that that was there. Knowing that my body's tired.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05But there's still more. Right. I I like to reference that with kids as like, yeah, you know what, you're going to hit a brick wall. But behind that wall, you actually have more. Yeah.
SPEAKER_04Believe it or not. Yeah.
SPEAKER_05And it's finding the right way of getting beyond that
Mental Toughness & Overcoming Failure
SPEAKER_05wall.
SPEAKER_04Right.
SPEAKER_05Um both mentally and physically.
SPEAKER_04Right.
SPEAKER_05To know that you're okay.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05You're going to be just fine. Keep going. Yeah. Right. Trust the training that everything you've done.
SPEAKER_04If you've done these reps right, navigate somewhere.
SPEAKER_05If you've done the reps right, if you've listened correctly, if you've taken that knowledge in, whether it's writing it down in a notebook because this is the scenario that we've coached just went over two weeks ago. Or just knowing, you know, I'm going to rely on everything I've done and not try any harder. I'm just going to relax and do it. Yeah. That's where the success in and trusting the training.
SPEAKER_03That's a good word. Yeah. Yeah. I think that's I hope you're taking notes at home on that. That's the the I think the training. So many people wanna wanna believe in their their ability level or they want to believe in the fact that I can do it this time, but really when we rely on the things that we've already put in, that's where that's where the gold and the confidence comes from. Is that is that the reps, the work, the the effort, hitting off a T, you know, doing reps in the backyard, all of those things are the things that pay off and give you opportunities in the in the future.
SPEAKER_05And something, you know, even my dad, my mom, when we were younger, would would try to instill into us is failure is opportunity.
SPEAKER_04Right?
SPEAKER_05So you're you're going to fail.
SPEAKER_04Yeah. Yeah.
SPEAKER_05You're gonna fail in life, unfortunately. There's gonna be situations that aren't perfect. You might you might fail. I I say fail, right? But you might something might not go right as a as a friend, a family, a dad, a mom, a son, right? But if I can look back at that, or even as an athlete, if I can look back at that time and say, man, I I I can do this instead. Right. And so all these scenarios that you go through through training, through games, through just playing in the yard, yes, right? If I can go back and reflect on that. So that failure, now I'm getting better the next time might not be perfect, right?
SPEAKER_02But it's gonna be better than that boss. Yeah.
SPEAKER_03Okay, give
Growing Up in Iowa & Early Sports Experience
SPEAKER_03us kind of give us your background. Mentioned Iowa. Yep. Tell me about growing up in Iowa, what that was like. Did you play Little League? You wrestled, like what other kinds of sports did you play? What's your family like? Yeah. So give us a bit the background on that.
SPEAKER_05So I uh I'm a middle child. I've got an older brother and a younger sister.
SPEAKER_03That explains a lot.
SPEAKER_05Grew up in Iowa, about my seventh grade year, moved. Prior to that was definitely I was in Little League nonstop until I was about 12.
SPEAKER_04Okay.
SPEAKER_05And at that point in time, my dad had put a little team together. Okay, you know, the Altoona Diamondbacks.
SPEAKER_03Altoona Diamondbacks.
SPEAKER_05The Iowa. Yep. Yeah. And then uh from there we we moved, but literally the whole time, and we would get some kids together and go play a little bit.
SPEAKER_04Okay.
SPEAKER_05Right. I still remember the day that we won this little T ball championship, right? And and all that fun stuff. But grew up outside, right? We were we were playing football in the yard. Right. Um my mom was catching bullpins, right? Wow. In in the front yard, all that kind of stuff. It was kind of we've always had the house of it doesn't matter who you are or where you're at, come over. Yeah, be there if you want to go do something, go do something. So cool.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05And so grew up doing that in flag football and and wrestling. Okay. Right. Um and then moving on from there when we moved to Adele. I did go kind of into a select world side of stuff, being that I was in middle school now. Right. Um, or more of that travel ball, I guess. But in Iowa, you don't start in January.
SPEAKER_04No.
SPEAKER_05Right? You don't start in February. You don't you might start in March.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05Right. So we would play catch in a gym, high school gym.
SPEAKER_03Sure.
SPEAKER_05We would go to Drake University with the team and do some stuff. But from there, we did travel a little bit, did a lot of AAU back when it was popular.
SPEAKER_03Right.
SPEAKER_05On that side of it, went to a few national championships, won a couple there, second place, fourth place. Yeah. And then had the opportunity to to get into high school. In high school in the state of Iowa, you can play as an eighth grader. So I had the opportunity to be on varsity for five years. All right, let's go. With my brother, which was a pretty neat situation to be able to be with him for a couple years. Yeah. Uh and play with him. Now I I probably wasn't very good at that point in time, but I had the opportunity. And I had some great coaches to be around. Sure. People that have been successful.
SPEAKER_04Sure.
SPEAKER_05Been through scenarios, situations, all that kind of stuff. I also played football.
unknownOkay.
SPEAKER_05Small town. I had a hundred kids in my graduating class. Right. So every athlete you typically played as much as you could.
SPEAKER_04Right.
SPEAKER_05Um, so being able to be in multiple sports throughout the whole entire year.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05And then baseball not starting until March or April.
SPEAKER_04Right.
SPEAKER_05Right. So you never really conflicted with other sports like like you see down in Texas or in other states for that instance.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05Um Yeah. So my brother went to play college baseball for a few years. I went and did it. And then my sister did as well. Oh my. Um probably the best athlete in the family is the sister, if I can be honest with you. Uh-huh. You know, one what's funny is when I talked to my brother, yeah. You always thought we were the golden boy. But what he doesn't probably see in this whole situation is I learned a lot from him from being in every game and being there and just playing around. Right. Uh seeing him grow, learning things, and then things that he brought back to me even when he was in college. Right. And he's in college for three years playing baseball while I'm still in high school. So being able to have feedback and getting that higher level stuff. Yeah. Or just little intricate things.
SPEAKER_04Right.
SPEAKER_05It's not necessarily you're doing it wrong, but it's like, hey, do this or do that.
SPEAKER_03It's just a way to tweak it, make it a little better. Correct.
SPEAKER_05And then that gave me the opportunity. Really didn't get recruited out of high school much. Yeah. I had a chance to go wrestle. Had a chance to go play football.
SPEAKER_04Uh-huh.
SPEAKER_05But baseball was my thing and went to, you know, Rick Peterson over at Iowa Central.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05Gave me that opportunity.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
Impact of Coaching & Mentorship
SPEAKER_05Went there and and I still recall that coach being one of the biggest driving forces in where I'm at today. Right. The way the way that he went about his business, the conversations we had. Yeah. Uh and even that first visit where if you come here, you're here for two. You're not here for one. Right. You're here for two because we're gonna develop and we're gonna get a lot of people. This is a program of where we're at. And during that whole time, there's probably a reason why Iowa Central has, you know, last two years been in the top six in the country. Yeah. World Series last two years. Um during my time we were 14 time regional champs in a row. Wow, that's crazy. Yeah, went to World Series seven or eight times prior to that. Like their powerhouse in the division two JUCO World. Right. Um, and then with with from there, given that opportunity and that success, led by those that coaching staff, having the chance to pick from 14, 15, 16 colleges. Yeah. And and you found my home at UTSA. Yeah. Now I've got four kids, right? A wife, uh a few businesses, a dog. Yeah, right.
SPEAKER_03It's it's crazy to think that how long you've come, how far you've come.
SPEAKER_05I'm old, Jimmy. Holy cow.
SPEAKER_03Moving backwards.
SPEAKER_05You know, and then I get a chance to work with kids every single day. You get to see a smile on a face. Right. That's the biggest driver to everything I do. Right. Giving the kids the opportunity to maybe things I've I've learned when I was done. Yeah. Right. That I wish I would have known prior to.
SPEAKER_03Right.
SPEAKER_05Right. Even as a parent.
SPEAKER_03Yeah.
SPEAKER_05Right.
SPEAKER_03All the stuff. How much does the culture of so you talked about, I mean you were in a highly successful environment in JUCO. And you talked about Rick Peterson, the coach there, and how he kind of what were the kinds of things that that you saw him do that maybe were not typical that were some of the things that you say made you into who you are today?
SPEAKER_05One thing that comes to mind right away is there's an incident that occurred. I'm not gonna lie. I don't know if I want to feak. Sorry, coach, I'm gonna have to fuck and throw this out there. It's hilarious. I I think at one point in time he got hit by a funga. I don't know what happened. Uh huh. Fell to the ground. Uh-huh. Stood up immediately and said, show no weakness. Right? And all that. I just immediately. And he got thud. He got he got hit. But I think, and that's just a funny story back then that even our teammates now laugh about that whole situation. And I'm sure that he will laugh and be like, darn right. Like on that side of it.
SPEAKER_04So great.
SPEAKER_05But I I think the biggest thing is showing up early, looking right, yeah, mentally right. Yeah. Knowing what needs to be done. Right. Holding yourself to a higher standard.
SPEAKER_03So those are the things, as I hear you talk about that, it's it's the things that anybody can do. Easily. Right. It's not a talent thing. It's it's a culture that anybody can show up early and be on
Life Lessons Beyond the Field
SPEAKER_03time. Anybody can can have dress the part correctly. Anybody these are things that you can control no matter what you're doing.
SPEAKER_05I think, if I recall correctly, preparation is the key to success.
SPEAKER_03Yeah.
SPEAKER_05Right? Yeah. And I'm and when I say preparation, yes, you're on the field preparing.
SPEAKER_04Right.
SPEAKER_05But if you're not physically prepared, mentally prepared, and look that part, that's easy, right? Right. Controlling emotions, doing all those types of things. Yeah. Yeah. Then you can't be prepared on the field.
SPEAKER_04Right.
SPEAKER_05Um, so I think having the mentality of I'm gonna come in with the attitude of work hard, yeah, give the effort, listen, yeah, go through those types of things. Right. That was the biggest thing, right? Accountability. Right. I think is a fair word when it comes to that side of it.
SPEAKER_04Sure.
SPEAKER_05Because I do think both mentally and physically on the field and off the field, those do align where it doesn't take much to be able to be mentally there prepared on all those types of situations.
SPEAKER_03Yeah, that's good. That's great information. Thanks for sharing that. All right, let me. We've kind of covered so much of this already. And I love it.
SPEAKER_05We jumped around. I I blab a little bit, Jim. I apologize about that.
SPEAKER_03That's why we get along so well. That's why we get along so well. Okay, so tell me this one. As a coach, uh what are some of your favorite behind the scenes kinds of stories or things that you've noticed that you uh that you remember?
SPEAKER_05You know, I think it's w one of the couple things is is is getting to know the people outside of the field. Right. Not not necessarily when you're on the field.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05Right. Going to Atlanta as a coach, coaching kids of 14, 15, 16, seeing smiles on their face when they go to a professional game and see those guys hitting balls that they've never hit before, accomplishing things that they've never done.
SPEAKER_04Right.
SPEAKER_05I I I think those always will sit in your head as like, I remember those moments.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05But I think it's getting the call of coach, hey, I'm going to play ball somewhere. I I think it's coach, I'm getting married. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. Coach, I'm having my first kid.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05Right. What do I do? It's more of understanding and having those phone calls of what life looks like.
SPEAKER_03Right.
SPEAKER_05More than what baseball looks like.
SPEAKER_03For sure. Yeah.
SPEAKER_05So I think those scenarios and then running into people, still getting text messages of coach, I put you down as a reference. Is that okay?
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05Yeah, I'm not gonna talk to them about how good of a baseball player you are, right? But I I was gonna talk to them about who you are as a person.
SPEAKER_04Right.
SPEAKER_05And I think that says the most about what we do.
SPEAKER_04Right.
SPEAKER_05Um a lot of people want to be professional athletes. Not everybody gets to do it.
unknownYeah.
SPEAKER_05I think it's a well point five percent.
Role of Fatherhood in Coaching
SPEAKER_05I don't know what that number is. I think it's a very small number. But having kids, athletes, parents grow as humans as better people are that to me probably the biggest ones that makes you smile.
SPEAKER_06Yeah.
SPEAKER_05Yeah and getting self-accomplished.
SPEAKER_03So how has being a dad and reshaped your view of what it means to coach and how how you coach kids?
SPEAKER_04I wasn't perfect.
SPEAKER_03Right the camera down.
SPEAKER_05My my eldest, yeah, Robert, you know, w at a at a point in time, he he went through it a little bit with me. Um and I was that dad that was probably overly pushy at certain point in times. Sure. Um the f the ride homes initially probably weren't the best. Uh and my wife will attest for that. And we've probably had many conversations at night of how I can do better, not in a bad way. Right. Right. But being a dad more than I am a coach.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05Um, because I did coach on the field.
SPEAKER_04Right.
SPEAKER_05And I struggled with letting that thing go when I got to the car, just like your first two podcasts.
SPEAKER_04Right?
SPEAKER_05All right. We we hit on it and and we've had this conversation a little bit harder in the past. Right. Uh but what it ended up doing is as a coach, knowing when to push, when not to push, and just making sure the athlete's okay.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05We come a point in time in high school where he didn't play in the spring because it's high school ball.
unknownRight.
SPEAKER_05And I said, you know what, I'm just gonna be a dad. I'm gonna sit up in the corner.
SPEAKER_04Right.
SPEAKER_05In the parking lot with a tent and a chair.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05I I don't want to be down by the field. I don't want to yell.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05I just want to watch.
SPEAKER_04Right.
SPEAKER_05And I hadn't had a chance to do that up until that moment. And when I did that, I told myself I'm going to ask three questions after the game.
SPEAKER_04Okay.
SPEAKER_05How you think you did?
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05What did the coach say?
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05To the team. Did the coach bring anything up to you?
SPEAKER_04Mm-hmm.
SPEAKER_05From that point in time, I said, after that moment, I'm not going to ask any more questions.
SPEAKER_04Mm-hmm.
SPEAKER_05We're going to write home. Yeah. We're going to talk normal. And if he wants to bring up more situations, great, I'll have that conversation. I love that. Right? But I I I gave myself that point of I'm just going to watch, observe. And when he's ready, we'll have that conversation of where it's at. It's time for him to kind of feel things, see things, and do things.
SPEAKER_04Right.
SPEAKER_05Uh and me be there to help as much as I can.
SPEAKER_04Yeah, yeah. I love it. That's good. How's the camera doing?
SPEAKER_03Okay. So let's pause me to kind of get you back in or you want to just keep going in the flow.
SPEAKER_05I mean, I can I can keep going.
SPEAKER_03Do it.
SPEAKER_05So I think that, you know, as a dad and a coach or a coach and a dad. Yeah. I I in those moments with Robert, the biggest thing that I figured out for myself, sometimes the hard way, yeah, was being there as a support. Right. Knowing
Conclusion & Reflection
SPEAKER_05that if a bad game happens, he's probably beating himself up. Right. He doesn't need the secondary and third and fourth and fifth person to let him know those situations. My biggest thing is I needed to be there as a support structure for him.
SPEAKER_04Right.
SPEAKER_05Right. That person that can be there and say, hey, it's okay.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05Right. You're going to figure it out. Like we'll work through it. We'll do those things.
SPEAKER_04Right.
SPEAKER_05The struggles happen. But if I can support him and in his endeavors and what's next, good things will happen for him in the long run. And then he can pass that along to his children if he decides to have that.
SPEAKER_03Love that. So let me ask kind of in a follow-up to that. And that this may be a, I don't know. Do you feel like you saw when you kind of made that shift? Do you feel like that helped him to shift also?
SPEAKER_05I do. I think it helped him shift. Even the at-home
The Role of Support in Coaching & Parenting
SPEAKER_05balance. Right. The conversations, the opening up about things, knowing the different things as far as that goes. Right. Right. We know that these athletes go through stuff at school personally, all that kind of things. Right. I think it allowed that to open up and have more of that father-son conversation.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05And not a coach and son conversation all the time where he thought I was going to be upset with him. Right. Or everything was this, or you're not doing good enough or stuff as far as that goes.
SPEAKER_03Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Okay. That's good. That's that's really good. Appreciate that. So then kind of flip side. How has uh how has you coaching at a high level? How do you feel like that has affected your parenting?
SPEAKER_05I think as far as coaching at a high level, changes have to happen. You see things, you have to make adjustments. As much as you want to stay and say, my way's the best way. Yeah. It's always learning and doing different things as far as great. Um the situations that you go through that might be bad, the conversations you have with parents or players or athletes or getting told no in a recruiting visit or something as far as that goes. I think what really opened my eyes is as I continued with the family, and the family grew, you know, we had Gabby, and then from Gabby came Beckett, and from Beckett came Elena. And when when Beckett was young, he was diagnosed with autism, right? And then right after that, Gabby was diagnosed. Wow. And then you have the soul train of Elena, yeah, and the lioness that she is, and whatever you want to call her. Right. Uh, but going through things with Beckett, learning how to change how to be a father, how to be a parent. Sure. In those scenarios.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05Um, and then bringing that to athletes, knowing that there's certain situations or certain things that maybe I'm saying it wrong. Maybe I've gone about this the whole time incorrectly.
SPEAKER_04Right. Right.
SPEAKER_05Right. Maybe there's something of that sort. And in conversations with employees, with parents, right? Knowing those things. But once I, in my opinion, once you are around these special need children, yeah. Then the diversity of what they have. Yeah. Right. At all levels. Yeah. Right. Being neurodivergent to different things. Right. Uh, it opens your eyes to this world in a completely different way. Do I wish it upon people sometimes because you see it in a different world? You see life completely different in eyes of somebody that goes through something in just the little things that are amazing.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05And the little triggers at the same time.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05Right. My wife and I say it all the time. Beckett triggers on certain things.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05Gabby triggers on certain things. Kind of triggers us now.
SPEAKER_04Okay.
SPEAKER_05Right? Because you're around it so much. Right. You're witnessing and seeing it before anything
Adapting Coaching Styles
SPEAKER_05happens. Yeah. To try to distract, to try to change routes. But I think just seeing the world differently. Yeah. Has changed the way the conversations are had. Being able to open the ears and listen more.
SPEAKER_04Okay.
SPEAKER_05Right. Instead of like, no, you're doing it wrong. No, you're doing it wrong. No, you're doing it wrong. Right. Right. Right. Do it this way, this way, this way. Now it's like, hold on, slow down. What is he saying? What am I saying? What am I saying? What is he not understanding?
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05Right. And then how do we meet in the middle to ensure everybody's on the same page?
SPEAKER_03Right. So kind of what I hear is, and and I'm just trying to wrap, put a bow on it a little bit, is the idea that that it's giving you a perspective, an ability to kind of be introspective about how you're dealing with certain situations. And in some ways, the humility to step back and say, maybe I don't know how this write. Correct. Maybe I need to figure out a different or a better way to approach this with different kids. And situations, you know, however situations are playing out.
SPEAKER_05Yep.
SPEAKER_03So everybody's different.
SPEAKER_05Right. As much as cook-a-cutter I want to be. Right. I can't. Right. And that's just in my everyday life of where it is. And I think that's drawn over to working with athletes, speaking with parents, and kind of evolving through through that every single day.
SPEAKER_03Yeah. Yeah. That's great. That's great. Appreciate that insight. Okay. So now you mentioned uh you mentioned recruiting there as you were talking. Just kind of hit on that just real briefly. As a coach, what are some of the things that you look for in an athlete when you're trying to figure out is this somebody that I would want on my team? Or is you're training kids that are trying to get to the next level, what are some of the things that you're trying to instill in them that are going to make them quote unquote marketable so that when a coach comes and looks at them and goes, Oh, that's the dude I want right there.
SPEAKER_05The athlete is the athlete, meaning if you're athletic and you go through it and you do things the right way. Yeah. Am I going about my business?
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05By the time I show up and get out of the car.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05Right. To when I'm done, shaking hands, doing all that kind of stuff. Right. The effort, the little things, the the the items that are easy to do on that side of it. Am I doing that? But then at the same time, in in my in my opportunity to work out, right? On the recruiting side of it, I go to a camp, I go to whatever it is I want to showcase or whatever it is.
SPEAKER_04Right.
SPEAKER_05Am I going about
Recruiting Athletes: What Coaches Look For
SPEAKER_05my business correctly?
SPEAKER_04Okay.
SPEAKER_05Every single time, full effort, right? Got it. I I don't have to go hit 12 home runs for someone to recruit me. Chances are I can probably go one for 12 and a coach knows what you have.
SPEAKER_03Yes. Agree.
SPEAKER_05Yeah. Right? Yeah. They they know by you playing catch.
SPEAKER_04Right.
SPEAKER_05They know how you carry yourself, if this is a guy or not.
SPEAKER_04Right.
SPEAKER_05It's the hard conversation with the parents and the player. And sometimes it's more the parents than anything else. Right. A lot of times, if you're going and watching a kid or you're recruiting a kid, you already know what the kid has.
SPEAKER_04Right.
SPEAKER_05You're not going just because I think I'm going to go watch this game just to see if I find anybody. Typically that doesn't happen.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05Typically you're you're going to see how that person behaves in the dugout. Is he a good teammate? How does he handle himself before and after the game or in between any?
SPEAKER_04Right.
SPEAKER_05But at the same time, you're watching the parents.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05Right? Because you're recruiting a family, you're not recruiting a person. True. Okay. So if if if that family or those parents are difficult, guess what? They're going to be difficult with you too.
SPEAKER_04Mm-hmm.
SPEAKER_05Or if that dad or mom is is really, I want to say negative towards that athlete all the time. Why don't you do this? Do better, do better, all that everything's yelling at him.
SPEAKER_04Right.
SPEAKER_05Because they don't see the success in what he's doing. Right. What's going to happen when that athlete gets to the next level? Chances are things don't change. Yes. Right. So it's it's having those, and we even see it at the D-bat facilities. We call them hover parents, all that kind of stuff. Helicopter parents.
SPEAKER_03Yeah.
SPEAKER_05They stand on the fence, they get in the cages, they do all that kind of stuff. It's trusting who's around that person, that athlete to help them grow.
SPEAKER_04Right.
SPEAKER_05Let them do their job. Yeah. You be the parent.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05Be that supporting figure and have those right conversations to show that support. Right. And that's how you're going to see the success of your athlete. And you're probably going to see huge jumps in what they want to do. Unfortunately, we've seen too many times that parents run athletes out of the game. Yeah. Right. Even some coaches. Because of that. Where if if we can support and build and do those types of things, it'll be going to help the game.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05And it doesn't matter if it's football, baseball, track and field, softball, right? Those things will occur when that support system is there.
SPEAKER_03Yeah. So switching gears just a little bit then. If you could if you could go have a conversation with some of the coaches that are working with kids today, whether it's a select organization or a dad who's coaching his kids up in youth and you know, in Little League or or some something like that, what is a piece of advice that you would try to give to that coach? And I think I've heard a lot of great advice already, but if you just had like a sound bite or a billboard to write something down, what what is it that you would want those youth coaches to know before we
Impact of Parental Involvement on Young Athletes
SPEAKER_03talk one thing about baseball, softball, any sport at all?
SPEAKER_05How was your day? How are you doing?
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05Right?
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05For me, that's the biggest thing. Yeah. I wanna know how you're doing, how you're feeling. Yeah. That allows me to know as a coach, can I push or can I not push? Right. Right. And and is it the day to do that or is it not? Was it a big test day?
SPEAKER_06Alright, are we going? Okay, you're going.
SPEAKER_03Okay. Alright. If you had one piece of advice that you could give to a a coach on the youth side, what would you tell them?
SPEAKER_05Get to know the player as the person. Okay. Right. What I mean by that is my first thing that I'm going to ask is how was your day? How is life?
SPEAKER_04Okay. Yeah.
SPEAKER_05Do you have a test today? How's school?
SPEAKER_04Right.
SPEAKER_05Right? Anything going on?
SPEAKER_04Mm-hmm.
SPEAKER_05Right. I want to know them and I want them to understand I I want they mean more to me as the person than they do the player.
SPEAKER_04Right.
SPEAKER_05Right. Right. If I can create better people for the world, a better person.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05Right. I'm doing my job. Of course, do I want athletes? Yeah, for sure. Right. We want to compete and we want to win and and those are fun moments. For sure. I'm not going to take that away. But if I know that this person's having a rough day, if I know that somebody passed away, if I know that there's a situation at home that's tough.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05I know, okay, maybe I can't push him as hard today.
SPEAKER_04Right.
SPEAKER_05Maybe I know that I need to go this route.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05And it might be the whole team.
SPEAKER_04Right.
SPEAKER_05Right. It could be everybody.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05And guess what? We're gonna s we're gonna have some fun.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05We're gonna sit and chat. We're gonna talk life.
SPEAKER_04Right.
SPEAKER_05We're gonna talk the goods, the bads, the uglies that do happen.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05And if I can help them understand that everything's still okay, we're gonna be okay.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05And I can get that trust, then the team's going to be better off.
SPEAKER_04Right.
SPEAKER_05I'm going to be better off. The parents will be better off.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05And I think that's a full circle moment.
SPEAKER_04Right.
SPEAKER_05A coach is just not a coach of the game. Right, right.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05They're a mentor, an advisor, someone that's looked up to.
SPEAKER_04Right.
SPEAKER_05And and that's a very serious title. Yeah. Or something that holds under you. Is is that that's that person that you are to them. And the more I can accept that, yeah. The better off everybody is.
SPEAKER_03Yeah. I feel like if we go back and we look at the coaches, the the teachers, the people that have poured into our lives and and that have made a big impact on us, they were always the ones that saw the person before they saw the student, the pitcher, the, you know, whatever other title you may have had or a hat that you were wearing at that particular time. They were the person that cared about Chris and wanted Chris to do well and was wondering what's going on in Chris's life to help Chris move forward more so than you had a rough outing, you know.
SPEAKER_02And so then it was it was less about the performance on the field and more about the person. So that's really great.
SPEAKER_03So what are some of the changes that you've seen in youth sports over the last 10 or 20 years? What would you say?
SPEAKER_05Holy cow. There's been a lot. There's there's been a lot. Even in the business that I'm in. Right. Twenty-five years ago, I wasn't around. Right. You didn't have the premier indoor baseball and softball facilities like D Bat.
SPEAKER_04Right. Right.
SPEAKER_05Um you had the sand lot.
unknownYeah.
SPEAKER_05You had the backyard. Yeah. Right. You you had the fields. And that's where everybody got to. Right. Right. Football, all that kind of stuff. It doesn't really matter. The biggest change that I've seen is everybody's wanting to get drafted at eight years old. Yeah. Right.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05My athlete's going to sign a million dollar contract today or get recruited today.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05Enjoy the moments.
SPEAKER_04Mm-hmm.
SPEAKER_05The experiences.
SPEAKER_04Yeah. Yeah.
SPEAKER_05Those are going to last a lot longer.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05Right. I think that that's what it's it's gotten such a it's gotten so driven to get recruited so young.
Changes in Youth Sports Over the Years
SPEAKER_05Right. It's gotten so driven to get drafted at eight.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05And I and I see this at at multiple levels. Do I do I believe there's a place for training and getting better? 1000%. Yeah. I would agree with you to in this moment in time, if you're not working at it, or you're a little bit left behind. But do I like that it's gotten that way? Not necessarily. Yeah. But there's a lot less yards. Yards have gotten smaller. That's true too. Ability to go to fields and to go to gyms have gotten less and less. Yeah. Because of insurance and liabilities and people as far as that goes.
SPEAKER_04Right.
SPEAKER_05That I do think there's places to go and get workouts in. Yeah. To learn new things. Right. But I think it's gotten to a point where at eight year old at eight years old I'm the number one player in Texas. I'm the number one team in Texas. I'm the number one team in the board. Whatever that might be.
SPEAKER_04Right.
SPEAKER_05I think that has gone a bit overboard instead of playing for the love of the game.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05Playing because I really like it.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05It's satisfying.
SPEAKER_04Mm-hmm.
SPEAKER_05And in seeing my kids smile.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05But there's a lot more smiles in Little League than there is in the travel world.
SPEAKER_03That's true. This is absolutely true.
SPEAKER_05Right.
SPEAKER_03Yeah.
SPEAKER_05Because that athlete just loves being out there.
SPEAKER_03Yeah. Yeah. So what is the uh so we hear this a lot, you know, I I get I get parents that come to me sometimes and they say, Hey, we're looking for travel ball for my kids. You know, my son wants to play travel baseball or or whatever the the the situation there. And they're always asking me for advice, like which which team is a good one to go try out for. Without kind of naming teams, but just kind of in a broader sense, what are some of the things that parents should look for in a program that they want to put their kids in, whether it's basketball, baseball, you know, what are what are some of the things that you would see as like a this is a red alarm, this is a
Choosing the Right Program for Young Athletes
SPEAKER_03red flag, this is something that's really good.
SPEAKER_05I think one of the biggest things parents first and foremost need to understand is travel select, whatever you call it, isn't always the answer.
SPEAKER_04Okay. Yeah.
SPEAKER_05Right. It's it's not it's not the answer that wins everything for you.
SPEAKER_04True.
SPEAKER_05Uh that might not be the place your athlete actually gets better.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05Right. You hear a lot of people talk about development.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05How does my how does my player get better? How do I make sure he gets to the ability to make a middle school team, make make his high school team, and then eventually make varsity. Yeah. And have that opportunity to play at the next level.
SPEAKER_04Right.
SPEAKER_05There's more to be said on training than what a team is.
SPEAKER_04Okay.
SPEAKER_05Does it flesh that out a little bit?
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05So within a team, a lot of times you practice twice a week for two and a half hours.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
unknownRight?
SPEAKER_05Your field rent was an hour and a half.
SPEAKER_04Right.
SPEAKER_05That's what all the leagues in the fields have gone to.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05Right. You have twelve athletes.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05Ten, maybe fifteen, depending on what level, how many kids. Yeah. They're going over the generalized aspect of what that team needs to develop on.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05Right? Cuts, relays, bunk coverages, first and thirds, understanding situations and scenarios, different coverages, all those types of things. Right. That's not developing your athlete.
SPEAKER_04Right.
SPEAKER_05Might be creating IQ.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05Right? Knowledge of scenarios and situations, which is very important on the team role of what you do. And then your other hour for a week is you're in a cage.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05Maybe get an hour, maybe get an hour and a half, two hours. Yeah.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05You're in a cage and that athlete is working with 12 other kids in a in a cage. Yeah. Right. If that coach doesn't know how to maximize the space. Right. Right. Meaning there can be four, five, six stations done. You can develop within a scenario.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05But you're also developing what you see as a whole in the team.
SPEAKER_04Right.
SPEAKER_05Meaning maybe we're really bad at opposite field.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05Right. So guess what? I'm going to work opposite field for this whole hour.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05Okay. You're working on it on a coverage, on a coverage, like an umbrella of the whole group, not on individual needs.
SPEAKER_04Mm-hmm.
SPEAKER_05Yeah. So in the world of select, a lot of people talk about development. I'm going to develop your athlete. I'm going to develop your athlete.
SPEAKER_04Yeah. Yeah.
SPEAKER_05It's very, very difficult to build a singular athlete. Right. Unless your singular athlete needs everything that's under that umbrella that day. Got it.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05Does that clarify what you're saying there? Yep. Yep. So finding teams that do do a ton of drills, finding teams that do break things down, multiple situations or multiple stations. Going to a trial, go to a trial. I will tell everybody and anybody, even when I coached, go to as many trials as you can. If you feel like there's a better place, that's okay. I'm not trying to hurt my feelings. Right.
SPEAKER_04Right.
SPEAKER_05It might be a best situation for you. Maybe a side of town, maybe carpooling, maybe just coaches. There's a better, better situation there. But finding people that actually care about your athlete and it's just not a dollar.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05You're just not another number.
SPEAKER_04Right.
SPEAKER_05But guess what? You're Jim Miller. Yeah. Right? And I'm going to work with Jim Miller. And we're going to develop, and this is how we develop, and here's our plan to get there. Yeah. And if the coach can't tell you why we're doing something, it's hard. So we need to sit and say, that's a good spot. For my my offense. That's good. Yeah.
SPEAKER_03That's good. Okay. That's some good insight. Here, Coach Dad, we have a couple phrases that we say ad nauseum that we throw them out there at the end of every every every episode we do. And we talk about the fact that the mission is bigger than the game and that it starts at home. And so I would love your take on one of those or both of them if you want to kind of rally around it. But but give me, give me kind of your thoughts about one of those phrases.
SPEAKER_05But what was the last one that starts at home? It starts at home?
SPEAKER_03It starts at home. And and honestly, you've talked about both of these quite a bit. Yeah.
SPEAKER_05So I'm going to start with it starts at home.
SPEAKER_03Okay.
SPEAKER_05Where I think that's a huge situation. And for me, the mission's bigger than the game. Was the other was the other one correct? That's right. If we don't start at home, I don't think we can ever get to the mission.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05Right. There's no game if there's no home.
SPEAKER_04Right. Okay. Right, right, right.
SPEAKER_05So, you know, it when it starts at home is I want parents, players, grandparents, aunts, uncles, everybody that's around.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05To know that if we support athletes and what they do and give them opportunities in a positive manner.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05I think there's something to be said about being honest. But we don't know what an eight, nine, ten, twelve-year-old, eleven-year-old looks like in five, six years.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05Yeah. Okay. So giving them the positivity and support system at home, letting them see as many different things as possible. Yeah. Right. I think that's where it starts at home. Is if that athlete knows I can go and it everything's not going to be, why didn't you do this? And why didn't you do this? And why didn't you do this? Right. It's going to give them that. If that's always said all the time at home, why do I want to go try something else? And then that adds on to why didn't you? Yeah. Or you're not good enough, or this and that. Right. Right, right, right.
The Mission is Bigger Than the Game
SPEAKER_05The mission's bigger than the game. Everybody would love to go play somewhere big and make lots of money. Right. Right. But not everybody gets that opportunity. But guess what? There's going to be some amazing doctors, lawyers, salespeople, business owners, entrepreneurs. Yeah. Right.
SPEAKER_06Yeah.
SPEAKER_05That play these sports. Right. Right. And so if we can create and have that and give them the guidelines of just being the good person, the work ethic, the mental fortitude. Right. To succeed in life. The next generation and the next group of people are just going to be better and better and better. Yeah. And then before you know it, the mission's been really good. You can look back at your life and say, I did it. There's no self-doubt. Yeah. Right. Internal, internally.
SPEAKER_04Yeah. That what if what if I did this? Why did I do that? Yeah.
SPEAKER_05I think that's the biggest thing.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05It's okay to be a good person.
SPEAKER_04Right.
SPEAKER_05Right. Right. I'll take that too. It's okay it's okay to be a good person because good people do a lot of great things.
SPEAKER_03Yeah, for sure. You know, I think it's it's one thing to teach a kid how to hit a how to throw a two-strike slider, but it's something totally different to teach them how to practice throwing a two-strike slider and what it means to bear down and and the attitude that goes into being able to perform and the different character traits. We talk about developing the short term versus the long term, right? Short term is what you're going to do with two outs in the seventh inning. That's a short term. Long term is what are you going to do when you're 40 years old and you don't feel like getting up and going to work and and you know you and your wife are arguing and and you need to take a you need to take a better approach than the one you want to take. And those are all the long-term things that we're trying to develop in these kids as coaches. It's a big calling.
SPEAKER_05So I I would agree. And then and I'll add just briefly, a smile goes a long way.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05Right. And I reference that as I've had the opportunity to work with some amazing athletes.
SPEAKER_04Mm-hmm. Yeah.
SPEAKER_05Some athletes that are are playing at the highest level possible. Right. Right. Working with those kids and see them being successful is amazing. Yeah. That that's amazing. But the biggest joy in the world of baseball and softball is seeing the seven-year-old that comes in, that maybe has struggled a little bit to hit it league so far.
SPEAKER_04Right.
SPEAKER_05That has worked on trying to catch a ball. Hasn't been successful. Yeah. Yeah. And that energy that they bring.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05But at the same time, the first time they hit it and the first time they catch it. Right. And the wow moment.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05And the smile on that face.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_05I don't think it could ever be beaten in regards to those moments.
SPEAKER_03Yeah, for sure. Yeah. Yeah. Awesome. Chris, so much good in this, man. I really appreciate your time. Thank you so much.
SPEAKER_05Jim, it's been a lot of I really appreciate having me on today.
SPEAKER_03Yeah, my pleasure. All right. First ever guest. Let's go. We gotta have a shirt for you or something. You forgot to say, make sure you like, like, uh like, comment, subscribe.
SPEAKER_05No, it's already turned it off. Like, comment, subscribe. The biggest thing, guys, go in, watch the videos. If you really sit down and take a moment, I will tell you that there's something that every single person can take away from this podcast. Whether you've been there as a high-level coach, you're a first timer, or maybe there's some struggles within it. Go watch it, share it, like it, set the alerts. Amazing things are coming from Coach Dad.
SPEAKER_03I appreciate it. All right. Have a great day. Thank you, buddy. Heck yeah, let's go.
SPEAKER_00Thanks for listening to Coach Dad. If this episode was helpful, do us a huge favor and send it to a dad, a coach, or a sports parent who's trying to be their very best. And remember, the mission is bigger than the game, and it starts at home.
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