Packed Show! From the Wrestling Mat at Drury to Celebrating the Olympic Track and Field Cantwell Family!

Jared Rennick, Peter Kuster, James Reynolds

In this episode, we kick off the show with a FastBreak Update and look at two nationally ranked Drury wrestlers: (#6) Jared Rennick and (#8) Peter Kuster were here, along with their coach James Reynolds in his fourth season at Drury. Best of luck to all of the Drury Wrestlers as they get ready for Regionals. 

Teri, Jackson, and Christian Cantwell

We were then joined by former Olympians Christian and Teri Cantwell, and their son, Jackson. During our discussion we looked into their journey at the Olympics and with sports and how they are now integrating those valued characteristics into their parenting. Using sports as part of their family culture, the Cantwell’s have developed a strong bond in an out of the shot-put ring. Their experience at the national and world levels have prepared them for success in life. Now they enjoy and embrace the path that Jackson is traveling as he soars to the top of the charts in his own right winning the National Championship in the shot put in his age division!

Next week, we continue our Sports Families series!  If you have a family that you feel has been generationally successful and should be profiled on the show, email us at acoachsperspective@gmail.com

Let's hear it for the OPFER family!

Kasey, Austin, Kinjo, Tracy, and Scott Opfer

In this episode, we continue our series on Sports Family’s and showcase a local family that epitomizes the theory of implementing a sports culture into their family dynamics to create successful athletes and people for generations. Hall of Fame athletes Scott and Tracy Opfer have five children that have had stellar high school careers and showcase college careers and, in turn, are now successful professionals that positively contribute to society every day.  Lorin, Austin, Alix, Kasey and Kinjo have set this family apart through their accolades and accomplishments, but the family’s real source of pride is their character and how they represent themselves in the community.  My thanks for this family’s willingness to share with us their philosophy on success on and off the field! 

Next week, we continue this series with the Cantwell’s! Christian and Teri Cantwell are former Olympic athletes along with their son, Jackson, who just won the national title. in his age division, in the shot put.  Wednesday nights, 6:00-7:00pm, KWTO Jock98.7FM.

Legendary Coach Shares How Success Is Not About Winning

Valorie Kondos Field

In tonight’s episode, we profile legendary Hall of Fame, seven-time NCAA national championship gymnastics coach Valorie Kondos Field.  Miss Val, as she is widely known, discussed her philosophy and motivation to develop life champions through the sport of gymnastics. She discusses her relationship with John Wooden and her Ted Talk, that has been widely viewed over 1.2 million times, and emphasizes how success does not always include winning.  She also talks about her book, “Life is Short, Don’t Wait to Dance” and how she approaches coaching and life with no regrets. We also discuss the difficult experience of having a player confide to her that she was sexually assaulted by Team USA Gymnastics doctor Larry Nassar.  After reported, two more players and her assistant coach came forward as victims, too.  We discussed what she did to help them heal and process this horrific situation.  My thanks to this Human Champion and how she has positively impacted hundreds of athletes throughout her career.

Next week we return to our Sports Families series.  We welcome Scott and Tracy Opher and some of their children and how sports have been an integral part of their family’s life.

Wednesday’s 6:00-7:00pm on KWTO Jock 98.7FM

Garrison Family in the HOUSE!

Marty, Susie, Corey, Coday, Conley, Callie, Carie, Casey Garrison

In the first of our series on Sports Families, we gather with the Garrison Family: Marty, Susie, Carie, Corey, Callie, Casey, Coday, and Conley. We explored how sports, in particular with this family basketball, has been an integral part of their family dynamics.  The way that they support each other, and the way they compete with each other, has developed a lasting bond of appreciation, respect and loyalty. The generational success in this family has been noted by the multiple accolades, but they all agree that their family is their favorite team.

Next week we have a powerful conversation with Valerie Kondos Field, a Hall of Fame, seven-time NCAA Champion Gymnastics coach from UCLA.  We discuss her powerful coaching philosophy and how building positive and respectful relationships with her athletes has propelled her to being one of the most all-time successful coaches in the country.  You do not want to miss this conversation!

Don. West.

Don West, Mike McClure, Corey Riggs

In this special Human Champion Profile episode, we reflect on Don West’s broadcasting career and congratulate him on his upcoming induction into the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame.  My thanks to our special guests that expressed congratulatory statements and gratitude for working with Don West: Matt Coatney, Mike McClure, Corey Riggs, Trevor Casterlin, Scott McCauley, Rob Evans, Jon Rippenger, and Dan Lucy.  Congratulations to Hall of Fame broadcaster Don West!

Next week, we are kicking off a new series: Sports Families and how sports have enhanced relationships and characteristics within the same family generationally. We will see how these families have integrated a sports culture into their family life. Next week’s family: The Garrisons: Marty, Carie, Corey, Callie, Casey, Coday, and Conley will be in the studio (Duane-extra chairs, please, haha!). Send in your suggestions for family’s to profile to acoachsperspective@gmail.com!

Give me a T...Give me an O...Give me a C...TOC!

In this episode, we preview the number one attended high school basketball tournament in the country, the Bass Pro Tournament of Champions! This weekend, at the former JQH Arena on the campus of Missouri State University, Springfield Public Schools Athletic Director Josh Scott and Assistant Athletic Director Marty Marsh will host the 36th Annual Bass Pro Tournament of Champions (TOC). We previewed and evaluated the teams, bracket, and events going along with this weekend’s tournament.  Josh Scott and Marty Marsh gave us the “stats” of the tournament and previewed the incoming teams, along with local teams Greenwood Laboratory School and Kickapoo High School. We also caught up with Kickapoo coach, Mitch McHenry, and three of his players Anton Brookshire, Elijah Bridgers, and Micah McIntire about the tournament and their season.  We also spoke with Greenwood players Aminu Mohammed, Grant Harper, and Tommy Pinegar about what they hope their team will gain from playing in the TOC. For more information on the tournament, visit www.tofc.weebly.com.

We are kicking off a new series: Sports Families and how sports have affected the culture of their upbringing. Email your suggestions for profiling a sports family to acoachsperspective@gmail.com.

Stripes in the Studio!

Kelly Holt, Jeff Grenillus, Mike Denbow, Matthew Holt

In this episode we welcome back our officials’ panel!  The stripes were in the studio! My guests included Southwest Missouri Coordinator of Officials Kelly Holt, and officials Mike Denbow, Jeff Grevillius, and Matthew Holt.  The panel did an excellent job of expressing the mentality of an official and answering our listener and coaches’ questions.  Each one had a unique perspective and shared those point of views with us.

Next week, we will preview the most attended high school basketball tournament in the country, the Bass Pro Tournament of Champions, tune in Wednesdays from 6:00-7:00pm on JOCK 98.7FM!

It's time for...Play by Play Charades!

Happy New Year!  Wow! 2020!  What an exciting time!

Ned Reynolds, Misty Ramsey, Art Hains, Don Louzader, Jeff Burnett

We ring in the New Year with another challenge for our legendary duo, Art Hains and Ned Reynolds.  These two broadcast gurus decided to accept another test from Coach Hopkins. We met at Ebbett’s Field (thank you – such a great place to eat and catch up on the latest sports scene) and, this time, had a panel of judges/studio audience.  We hosted our St. Louis Cardinals correspondent, Don Louzader who did a terrific job and is always a welcome guest on the show.  We also had one of my former assistants and current school principal Misty Ramsey join us for the first-and after her performance definitely not her last-appearance!  We also hosted my younger brother, and Kansas City Chiefs Superfan, Jeff Burnett-one of my favorites to have on the airwaves. 

The challenge was to play, what I now like to call, Play by Play Charades.  I showed a one-minute video clip to Ned and Art of a lesser known sport – but still nationally or globally recognized –and, without saying what sport it is, they painted the picture so that the panel could guess.  The panel had dry erase boards and after one minute, they wrote down what sport they felt like Ned and Art described.  We went through 14 sports! It was fun, some they knew and some, well, I had to have some that “stumped the chumps”.  Jeff was the winner with seven correct and we had a great time playing (cue dramatic music in your mind)…Play by Play Charades! Listen to the show and give it a try, see how many you get!

My thanks, again, to Ebbett’s Field for their hospitality.  Also, thank you to Greg Burnett for compiling and selecting the sports and videos, he did an excellent job!  We hit sports from all around the world.  Kudos to Ned Reynolds and Art Hains for, again, proving how they are the sports broadcast legends of this area and to my stellar panel Don Louzader, Misty Ramsey, and Jeff Burnett – you all were wonderful sports and we appreciated your valued participation!

Next week - how can we NOT have an officials panel when the year is now 2020? We will help them see “clearly” on the field and court with that 2020 vision! Ha! We will also pick their brains on their valued role in the sports arena. We have an excellent panel put together - Kelly Holt, Mike Denbow, Jeff Grevillius, and Matthew Holt.

Holiday Tournaments Time!

Bob Kinloch and Mike Percival

In this episode, we visit with Hall of Famer Coach Bob Kinloch about his career and the impact that he has had on multiple athletes throughout his decades of coaching at Central High School.  We also previewed the Kinloch Wrestling Tournament coming up on January 3-4, 2020 at Parkview High School.  We also caught up with Greenwood Girls Basketball Coach Mike Percival about the holiday basketball tournaments going on this year between Christmas and New Year’s including the Greenwood Blue and Gold and the Greenwood/Springfield Public Schools Pink and White Lady Classic among others in the area.

Next week, Merry Christmas!  Enjoy the time with your family.  We will be back on New Year’s Day with another special with Ned Reynolds and Art Hains. Enjoy your holidays!

Thanksgiving Dinner with Ned Reynolds and Art Hains

Ned Reynolds, Kayla and Armondo, and Art Hains

In this episode, we enjoy a “Thanksgiving dinner with Ned Reynolds and Art Hains” at Springfield’s first and finest Japanese Steakhouse, Nakato.  We reflect on the gratitude, professionally and personally, that Ned and Art have and how sports broadcasting has changed and evolved over the years. We also gave these two legends a challenge – they performed play by play and color analyst work of our Hibachi Chef at Nakato! They did an excellent job and give a whole new meaning to, “And he goes for the butter AGAIN!”  My thanks to these two gentlemen, they have been wonderful mentors and friends. 

 Next week, it’s Holiday Tournament Time!  We will preview the holiday tournaments coming up between Christmas and New Year’s Eve! Happy Holidays everyone – count and appreciate your blessings and be kind and caring throughout this season!

ACES in the studio!

Lori Endicott-Vandersnick and Caira Dortch

In this episode, we hosted former Olympian, Lori Endicott–Vandersnick and Head women’s volleyball coach from Southwest Baptist University Caira Dortch. We looked into the mission of in season and out of season sports and how both high school coaches and off-season coaches need to communicate and bridge that gap with a centered focus on the athlete and their development. We also explored the value of multi-sport athletes and how beneficial it is for athletes to have experience in more than one sport if they choose to do so. As a former Olympian, and as a head volleyball coach at the collegiate level, my guests made excellent points in trying to provide the best experience for student athletes. 

Next week, we will re-air our “Thanksgiving dinner with Ned Reynolds and Art Hains” due to the audio issues on its original air date.  You do not want to miss hearing Ned and Art doing play by play and color analyst work of the hibachi chef at Nakato Steakhouse!

Steppin' Up!

Ray Meyer and Coach Keith Guttin

On this show, we previewed our new book, Raising Razorbacks: A Collection of Burnett Stories with an interview with Tommy Burnett, Billy Burnett, and Lacy Newman Humphreys who hosted the book launch party. Order online on our product page! We also previewed the upcoming Step Up to the Plate event with Coach Keith Guttin with Missouri State University Baseball.  We also caught up with talented local broadcaster Ray Meyer.  Take a listen!

Next week we have “Thanksgiving Dinner with Ned Reynolds and Art Hains.” We sat down at Nakato Japanese Steakhouse with these two talents and had some wonderful conversation.  Plus, wait until you hear the challenge, I gave them and how they responded. Yeah, teaser. Wednesday’s from 6:00-7:00 on JOCK 98.7FM!

Springfield Hall of Famers Game Night!

In this episode, we celebrated the Springfield Area Sports Hall of Fame season and had a plethora of sports figures.  We were very grateful for Ebbett’s Field in hosting the show and for all of the participants that were willing to join us and play some games on air.  We had, in no particular order, Corey Riggs, Art Hains, Ray Meyer, Ned Reynolds, Mark Stillwell, Mark Fisher, Dan Cashel, Lynne Miller, Lisa Tinkler, Becky Oakes, Reba Sims, Ed Beach, Bill Rowe, and Tom Mast who all braved the airwaves playing our segments of “Out of the Hat” and “This or That”.  What a fun evening! 

Join us coming up next week when we host Ray Meyer, and in two weeks, for our Thanksgiving Special, we sit down and have dinner with Ned Reynolds and Art Hains.  Join us on Wednesday nights from 6:00-7:00 pm on JOCK 98.7FM.

The Springfield Area Sports Hall of Fame Board of Directors

SLAM DUNK!

Kelsie Cleeton unveiling her jersey from the rafters of College of the Ozarks

In this episode, we visit with former two time All-American from College of the Ozarks Women’s Basketball player Kelsie Cleeton and celebrate her career as a Lady Bobcat and the retiring of her jersey.  She also joined in on our insightful conversation with Missouri State University Director of Athletics Kyle Moats. We discussed the current state of Missouri State’s athletic programs, the new NCAA guidelines on pay to play, and the mental health support athletic departments are giving their student-athletes.

Next week we will have a huge rotation of sports figures in this town.  We will meet with the Springfield Area Sports Hall of Fame board of directors.  It is too long of a list to name!  Join us as we play some games with some of our sports contributors in Springfield, Missouri.

Don’t forget to check out our new Human Champion Collection on our product page!

A proud former high school coach and Kelsie Cleeton

Kyle Moats, Kelsie Cleeton

Back in the RING!

John PInney, Michael Spinks, Hayden Hopkins

Michael Spinks

In this episode, we speak with former heavyweight boxing champion and Olympic gold medalist Michael Spinks.  He was a total gentleman while he recalled what the sport of boxing did for him and the journey he experienced through his career.  We also spoke with, and congratulated Miranda Atkins, on her title win this past weekend. Her, and Alicia Acero, in different weight classes, won world titles and showcased their skills by winning both of their fights in the first round.   We also hosted Hall of Fame and Southern Middleweight Boxing Champion John Pinney about his boxing career and his stand-up comedy career.  We wrapped up the show by debuting our new Human Champion Collection – check it out at https://www.acoachsperspective.com/hcc-product-line

Next week we will host Missouri State University Director of Athletics Kyle Moats about his thoughts on the new NCAA guidelines and what is happening in MSU Athletics.  We will also catch up with former two-time All-American Women’s Basketball player from College of the Ozarks, Kelsie Cleeton (yes, one of my former players) and celebrate some wonderful news she has to share. Tune in next Wednesday from 6:00-7:00 on JOCK 98.7FM!

A 1-2 Punch!

Alicia Acero, Hal Lewis, John Carden, Darrell Smith (Coach Smitty)

Alicia “White Lightning” Acero

In this episode, we were jabbin and punchin with some of the coolest in the industry!  First of all, thank you to radio host and American Idol coach Bobby Bones for sharing with us his journey and how he has developed such a multi-faceted career.  We then promoted a very special event.  Alicia Acero, a local boxer, will be going for a WORLD TITLE this weekend in Springfield, Missouri.  Her coach, Darrell Smith (Coach Smitty) shared with us, along with Alicia, how she got to this point.  Her story is amazing, and we are very proud of her path.  Coach Hal Lewis was also on the show and has some athletes from his gym fighting this weekend.  All of this is brought to us by John Carden from Carden Combat Sports and he is the event promoter.  We also received a special call from Heavyweight Champions and Olympic Gold Medalists (both!) Merciless Ray Mercer and Michael Spinks. Best of luck to all of the fighters this weekend! 

Details: Always Ready to Rumble Event

Saturday, October 26th 4:00 Amateur Fights; 7:00 Professional Fights

University Plaza 333 S. John Q. Hammons Pkwy Springfield, Missouri

Get tickets at Smittys Midwest Boxing Gym or at the Door!

Bobby Bones

Coaching and Promoting!

Kevin Agee and Ed Beach

In this episode, we met with the Content Strategist for Missouri State University, Kevin Agee, and explored his position and mission at promoting Missouri State University and how he accomplishes that with several outlets including social media. We also spoke with the Sports Information Director at Drury University, Ed Beach and how he uses several techniques to engage the community and inform fans about Drury Athletics. The insight of these gentlemen and their positions are fascinating. Coaches don’t only teach on the court, part of what they do is promote their program and Kevin and Ed gave out some valuable advice on how to do that and it relates to businesses and organizations, too!

Next week, we will hear from radio personality and American Idol mentor Bobby Bones and how his journey has propelled him into his multi-talented career. We will also catch up with Coach Smitty from Smittys Boxing Gym and hear about one of his athletes that will be going for a WORLD TITLE right here in Springfield, Missouri!

Tip your hat to these two!

Larry Nemmers and Mike Keltner

We welcomed in this episode two Hall of Famers, Coach Mike Keltner and NFL official Larry Nemmers. We spent the first half of the show talking about the psychology of coaches and officials in their game preparation, holding concentration, and minimizing distractions. . We then debuted a new segment called “Out of a Hat” where we drew random questions and they had to answer them on the fly. We are happy to report they did a tremendous job! If you missed it, make sure you listen on the website or Apple iTunes Podcast.

Next week we are going to look at coaching from another angle. We are going to dive into the business world and how to coach employees. Kevin Agee, Content Strategist from Missouri State University will be here along with Jeff Kessinger, Director of Communications for downtown Springfield. Wednesday nights - JOCK 98.7 FM 6:00-7:00!

I bet you didn't know it, but we had a poet!

Baseball Poetry Book by Loren Broaddus

This episode consisted of the return of our Major League Baseball correspondents Don Louzader and Ethan Bryan.  We also had a very special guest, and talented author, Loren Broaddus.  Ethan updated us on the Kansas City Royals and their season while Don shared with us the experience of feeling the champagne fly in the St. Louis Cardinals clubhouse after celebrating the path to the playoffs.  We then took an in depth look into the beautiful work of Loren’s book, Joe DiMaggio Moves Like Liquid Light.  This book of baseball poetry captures some beautiful memories, stories and experiences that entertain and generate conversation.  If you are interested, and you are, you can find a copy of his book at Barnes and Noble, Amazon, Books-A-Million and several other entities.  Check it out, it is a treasure!

Don Louzader, Loren Broaddus, Ethan Bryan

On our next show, we will have two Hall of Famers join us.  Former NFL official Larry Nemmers and former coach Mike Keltner.  We will be discussing some angles in Sports Psychology, plus debuting a new segment called “Out of a Hat”, tune in next Wednesday from 6:00-7:00 pm on JOCK 98.7 FM.  

Catching up at the MBCA Clinic and Wrapping a Series

In this episode we caught up with West Virginia Men’s Basketball Coach Bob Huggins about his friendship with Charlie Spoonhour.  We then caught up with Coach Steve Forbes from East Tennessee State University about his vision and philosophy for ETSU.  We then wrapped up our Sports Psychology series with Becky Oakes and talked about the roles of state associations, national associations and school districts in the support and access of resources for the mental health of athletes and coaches. This has been a tremendous series full of valuable insights and information.  My thanks to all who made it possible and we will revisit this series again in the future! 

Coach Bob Huggins and MBCA Board Member Coach Bill Gunn

Coach Steve Forbes

Next week, my Major League Baseball correspondents, Ethan Bryan and Don Louzader, are back in full SWING (yeah, I did).  We will also have a very special guest Loren Broaddus and discuss his new book that is filled with baseball poetry, Joe DiMaggio Moves Like Liquid Light.