Brad Neffendorf - Head Coach, LSU Shreveport

[00:00:04] Speaker A: Welcome to the ABCA's podcast. I'm your host Ryan Brownlee. Recruiting is time consuming, but what if you could filter through the noise and find the right players in minutes for free with ProLook athletes, create detailed profiles with verified stats, academics and highlight videos so you can search for exactly what you need and connect with top talent instantly. And it's free for College coaches. Download ProLook today to start searching for your next recruit, among many other coaches features available for both Apple and Android devices. For more info, visit www.prolook.app. this episode is sponsored by Netting Pros. Netting Professionals are improving programs one facility at a time. Netting Professionals specializes in the design, fabrication and installation of custom netting for backstops, batting cages, dugouts, BP screens and ball carts. They also design and install digital graphic wall padding, windscreen turf, turf protectors, dugout benches, dugout cubbies and more. Netting Professionals is an official partner of the ABCA and continues to provide quality products and services to many high school, college and professional fields, facilities and stadiums throughout the country. Netting Professionals are improving programs one facility at a time. Contact them today at 844-620-2707 or infoettingpros.com visit them online at www.nettingpros.com or check out Netting Pros on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn for all their latest products and projects. Make sure to let CEO Will Miner know that the ABCA sent you. Now onto the podcast since taking over the LSU Shreveport program in the fall of 2019, Brad Neffendorf has built something special in Louisiana. Shreveport ran the table this season, becoming the only college baseball team in history to end the season undefeated and winning the first national title for any sport at the school. This was Shreveport's third NAI World Series appearance under Neffendorf and the fourth consecutive Red River Athletic Conference regular season title. As to be expected with this type of season, Neffendorf was named the ABCA ATEC College Baseball Foundation Skip Burtman Perfect Game Collegiate and NAI Ball National Coach of the Year let's welcome Brad Neffendorf to the podcast. Here with Brad Neffendorf, ABCA ATEC NAI Coach of the Year LSU Shreveport but first ever undefeated college team at any level and then national champs but head coach there since COVID So Brad, thanks for jumping on with me. [00:03:05] Speaker B: You bet. Thanks for having me on. [00:03:07] Speaker A: Yeah, Dave Serrano gave you a shout out so he was on with me. [00:03:09] Speaker B: This the other day. [00:03:12] Speaker A: Yeah, good stuff. Did you start coaching with the Pacific? The Northwest Star Academy? Is that was your first Coaching. [00:03:19] Speaker B: I had. I had a couple years before that. After I. I got hurt, my college career was done. So that was kind of the place where I would say I. I started getting around the right people, you know, right timing, right people that kind of, you know, got me to where I am today. Because, I mean, obviously we know it's all about the people, you know, and the people you're surrounded with. So that's kind of where people would look at it that way. I mean, I coached some high school for a couple years before that, and then started another random summer team for guys in the Oregon Portland metropolitan area that had nowhere to play that year as a seniors. And that kind of just went from there. [00:03:58] Speaker A: What was your injury? [00:04:00] Speaker B: Shoulder surgery. Rotator. And then I think I've told the story a lot lately because it's kind of where I am today. So I was actually. I had Rotator out of junior college, played in the NWAC at Clackamas Community College, and I was gonna play at Oregon Tech. I was signed to go play there next. The next year for Pete Whistler. There's two things about that. I wasn't good enough to play anywhere outside of, you know, small college, but academics were awful. And then a month after my Rotator, I was actually going to the surgeon, and this is the only part I don't remember. I think I was getting cleared to get out of my sling that day, but I was at a stoplight, that was the first one, getting ready to turn right, and some guy fell behind, fell asleep behind the wheel and hit me. What? Threw my shoulder up and didn't do anything to what I just had surgery on, but it tore my labrum and everything else. So, you know, I still have some. Some limitations and issues with it because nothing recovered well. But I would not be talking to you today, where I am right now, if that didn't happen. So I think it worked out. I thought it worked out. Well, It's. [00:05:03] Speaker A: It's funny how life works. And you got a chance to start coaching earlier, too. [00:05:07] Speaker B: Yep, 100%, because I think I started about three months after that. [00:05:10] Speaker A: You guys won a Babe Ruth championship. [00:05:12] Speaker B: Yeah. Back in 2008, we played Connie Max. We were the only. Basically the first Oregon select team at that age. Well, I mean, I guess there was legion back then, but from a true. A true select standpoint, I mean, I'll be honest because of that. And that's probably, you know, kind of what got me going a little bit. Well, I mean, we were loaded. I think we had eight or nine out of the 18 guys, eight or nine draft picks. We have a couple guys are still playing them. And we had the. Two years later, we had the Pac 10 pitcher of the year, our shortstop, who only threw, like in any of the World Series, where it ends up being the Cubs minor league pitcher of the year a few years later. Yeah, we were with. The next year, we had the freshman. Freshman strikeout leader at Arizona State. That. I mean, we were. Yeah, it was a. It was a really good group, but I got to take the whole year. Like I said, there was no other select group. So, yeah, we ended up going on and beating Modesto, California in the national title. Who had some drafts as well. And a guy by the name of Braden Hagan might have been who we beat. He ended up pitching in the big leagues, I think, for the Arizona Diamondback. So, yeah, it was back 2008. [00:06:21] Speaker A: Then. What was the edge for you to try to get into college? [00:06:23] Speaker B: Coaching, you know, I don't know. So my dad was a high school P teacher and then went to administration. He just retired not too long ago from being a principal. I knew I was in the basketball gym all the time, so I knew, just being around him that I wanted to coach my grandpa. Coach college, I didn't know. But as I. As I got through that select deal that led me to be a head high school coach for a couple years at the high school down the road, actually, where Wally Bachman went. Aloha High School. Couple a couple miles from where I graduated. I think high school is always what I wanted to do. And then one thing led to another kind of. I don't know. Due to the timing of everything that happened with my shoulder, I had no clue what I wanted to do other than I wanted to coach. And the crazy thing is they got mentioned. I was so bad academically, I was so far behind with the degree that I was trying to finish. It was teaching. I never knew this was a thing. So I went to Concordia in Portland, and then my advisor got ahold of me, and she goes, hey, Brad, we got a problem. I'm like, what? She's like, you've been in school so long and you've jacked around so long, your credits are about to expire. My credits are about to expire? Like, what are you talking about? She's. Yeah. I was like, so, like. And I was doing my practicum or my field experience. I was like, so what do I do? She's like, well, you're not gonna be able to teach unless you Go through the whole thing again. But what we can do is we can switch you to a non license and you can go get CPR and a math class and you'll get your bachelor's now. I was like, all right, do it, let's go. So I knew that the teaching deal with high school was going to be done, and that was in the middle of me being ahead of high school coach. I said, well, crap. So instantly it's like, well, you just need a bachelor's to coach college. So they kind of led me to the college route. [00:08:11] Speaker A: I guess that was the thing we try to tell our players that signed after their junior year, like, hey, you got to come back. I know you think you want to put this off. I said, but there is a, a time limit to your, your earlier credits. So you do need to come back and try to finish because if not, you're gonna have to go take those classes again, which I know you don't want to do. [00:08:28] Speaker B: And what's crazy is we've got some guys, former players that played here that I've gotten to know really well, alumni that haven't graduated yet, and they're wanting to get back and finish it. And I've yet to hear our school. I mean, maybe it's different everywhere, but at least here I've yet to hear our school. Like, I haven't heard coach expiring with me other than talking to you. But I mean, I do know it's a deal, so it's kind of crazy. [00:08:49] Speaker A: So how'd you get hooked up with part time scouting for the Marlins? [00:08:52] Speaker B: That's kind of the deal where I was mentioned being around the right, right people. Gabe, Sandy was, was the head coach at Mount Hood Community College back in the day. And then he left to take a job with the Marlins. I was finishing my last year at Concordia and then a guy by the name of Matt Dory, who's now very, very, very high up with the Cubs, got the head job. Then he got into scouting. But during that time I was like, man, I'm not going to be able to drive out here every day and coach here at Mount Hood and finish my classes with this schedule like it's impossible. So Gabe is like, look, I'm, I'm going to get you hooked up. I'm going to get you paid. And it wasn't, it wasn't, it wasn't. But you know, it was a deal where there, there was a little bit of a contract involved where I still got paid to get, you know, every month. You know, I can't remember the amount. Obviously I still got that, the whole manual and everything around and even the, the deal. But I got going with him and that kind of let you know, that kind of led. So it was two years while, you know, one of those years was me finishing and the other year was just doing the, you know, maintaining, doing the, the select stuff. But I got involved with Gabe, just kind of met him because I'd reached out to him the first year. I threw that random team together in about two weeks and I got a hold of his, him and I was like, look man, I can take some 19 year olds that, that turned 19 after May one. He's like, well, I got four guys for you then, so. And their guys had a good experience and we kind of hit it off and helped him with some things. And that's, that's, that's how that got, that got going a little bit. [00:10:24] Speaker A: What did that open your eyes up to? An evalu from an evaluation standpoint of. [00:10:28] Speaker B: Players, you know, just the education piece of what they look, look for at that level, you know, and it allowed me to really, you know, I think I, I had such an extreme, and I do. And it can be, you know, obviously your positives can be your negatives. My attention to detail is a positive and negative time and I had that back in the day. So let me kind of maybe see some things and get some of the right players for us. But it also allowed me to really start understanding evaluation at a higher level. You know, just. I remember him sending me up to watch a guy by the name of Trevor May. That was a high draft pickup in the Longview area back in the day. He's like, hey man, all I need you to watch is this today. You know, hide out. Everybody's gonna think I'm not there. Everybody else is gonna be there. It's gonna allow me to go somewhere else. So I want you to just watch how he lands today. I want you to let. How's he sticking when he lands? I, you know, I want to want, you know, he gave me five things to look at. It's like, that's all you want me to watch? He's like, yeah, get the gun readings and text it to me. He goes, but I love it. Nobody else is gonna know that I, you know, that I'm somewhere else and you're there to just hide out. So I, you know, no gun with me and pick over the gun and see what it is and text him. But, you know, just certain things that allow you to kind of see, you know, from a pitching standpoint on that day, just, you know, how the body aligned, how he moved and how, you know, you know, when he didn't consistently get to where he needed to be at the right time. So. And then, you know, just being around those guys, you know, just the verbiage and the things that they're talking to you about and the things that they're educating you on, you know, I could talk to you, and we could be out watching somebody that I could hear you say something that I've never heard. And I think that's the one thing it opened up my eyes to is just when you're evaluating and you're seeing things in person, you have your own way of what you look at. But then you start taking things from other people that open up your eyes for it. And that's really what that did for me. I thought. [00:12:13] Speaker A: Do you think we missed some of that now because there's so much stuff done online from a recruiting standpoint now? [00:12:19] Speaker B: I think so. But it's also tough. I look at us like being a small college, and we got a good budget for where we are, but we'll go out all fall and try to bear down as much as we can. But how many guys do we really sign? We're looking at guys. There's not many of them where the coaches, hey, he's a for sure Nai guy right now, academically and with the all the amount of different ways that the rules have changed the portal the fifth year, you know, you really got to dig in a whole heck of a lot more. So that really prevents us from, I think, seeing a lot of these guys outside what you just mentioned. I think we do miss it. I think that, you know, we're looking at a lot of different things now and things that, for us, we don't have. Trackman. It's not that we can't get it or afford it. I think we could. But our school is so cyber tech as of right now, they won't let us because it has to go to some certain WI fi deal. I mean, they won't even let us hook up to our phones, the irrigation box with the WI fi on it. But, yeah, I think we do. You really got to trust the people that you know, and I think you. I think it actually helps us a little bit because I talk to my assistant about all the time. Hey, man. Not only like the last guy, like the first and last guy we're going to talk to is the coach of the Players that we talk to. I want to know what everybody else in the league says, and then what that also is. More names. And that's how we develop our circle of networking and whatnot. But, yeah, I think it leaves you with potentially some surprises when you get in person when these guys show up. But the majority of the guys that we're signing right now are through people that we know. It's like I told him, I said, we have to bear down on the portal as much as possible. But the thing with the Portal is, you look at us this year, what we did, we only had three guys, and it was the three that we said all year long, if these guys take off and they take off in the right time, we're gonna have a chance. And guess what? They did. And it took a while. They had three. Division one. You know, two of them were Division one transfers, one was a Division two. There's. There's no. There's never been a science to this recruiting deal, but I think more than ever right now, it's. It's way beyond that. It's. It's. And it's frustrating. It's frustrating if you don't trust patients like I. Every year I sit here and go, man, we need X, Y and Z. Well, we were way off this week, and we just signed five this week. We still needed pieces, but at our level, I mean, it's. It's a combination of absolutely everything, but I think all levels are going to that. [00:14:55] Speaker A: When you took the Shreveport job, did you feel like it was going to be what it is? [00:15:01] Speaker B: I knew. So when I got here and we had the interview, I remember the last one of the last questions after kind of hearing everything out. And Obviously, I've been three different NAIs now, and each system is completely different, which everywhere is. They all have their positives, they all have their negatives. When you look at a facility standpoint, Campbells Hills Bullets, everybody out of the water. We look at location with that place. It's a little bit tougher. Tennessee west and built off a. Just like this place, an unbelievably rich tradition, you know, and Barry had been there and, you know, off of other guys that had done really good. He'd been there forever. And that place, I still remember when I showed up, Steven Baker, who's with the. The Diamondbacks now, a good friend of mine. I walked in, had never been there. They just won the national title, I think, a year. And I walked in, he's running a tournament, and he goes, you ever think we'd win one here. And I was, I was confused. I looked around and go, there's no way you guys want one of these facilities. And obviously those are getting better and they're getting better now and then. When I came here, I'd always known of this place very, very historic. And it shows how tough it is to win one, because you would have thought this place and they'd been in position before, it's just that tough. We had some things go our way this year. 22. We had a chance. But remember, leading us up to what I'm talking about now, the question is asked, do you believe we have the resources here to win a national title? And I still remember. And I don't want this to sell the wrong way or arrogant or anything. I said, yes, I do. And I said, if this works out here, it's not a matter of if. I think it's a matter of when. I do believe we have a chance to win one, it's just a matter of when. And it might not even be if I'm here. It could be, you know, but our job is to keep it going. And they've grown, right? They've grown. The. I'm looking out right now to my left. It's taken three years, but they're ripping up our outfield now, which has been, it's. It was not good. We can make it look nice. The drainage, the level of it bad finally got. Now we got the turf infield. We, you know, this clubhouse with the locker room that I'm sitting in and all those things, I think were perfect timing when I came in, that if we continued to build off what they did and went and got the right players, we would have a chance if we did our part on the flip side, you know, with the relationships and the communication and the care and the trust and the players that we get and coaching in the right way. And it took time, but, you know, I think this place will only continue to keep growing. So to answer your question, in a five minute answer, yes. And I do believe, again, it's not a matter of if. I think we, this place will win another one at some point, whether it's me or somebody else here. [00:17:37] Speaker A: And you were 22 and 4 your first year. And then Covid shut the world down. [00:17:40] Speaker B: Yeah, yeah, yeah. And this. But you know, that 22 and 4. And what happened led to, I think, where we are today, because every single player came back and you know, obviously LA Valley, prior to him leaving, did a tremendous job. The fall and they held off, you Know, with good reason of why they waited as long as they did, really announce that he was leaving. And I think if they didn't do it that way, I wouldn't have, you know, they could have gone on, got anybody for this job. And it's not that I don't think I was qualified for it, but I'm coming from being, you know, around a lot of success as an assistant coach and obviously coming off of something at this level that everybody's trying to do. And I think that helped a lot with, you know, with the players when I got in here. But the next fall was rough. You know, they were going home when I got here, and we only had a month and a half with them, so they listened right away. And it's not that they didn't listen the next year, but they did have a fall with me, and we ran it. You know, my job when I came in was to keep building off of what they did in the fall and not really getting. Getting a lot away and just kind of let them go. But, you know, we put some things in. But that next fall, obviously they'd never been through, you know, whether it's right or wrong that the fall was. Ran obviously different with the things that I believed in. And we had some rough patches. I mean, Covid hit us bad that next year as well. I think we're out for three weeks. We got off a bus with the tournament one that we ran, and just one by one, so we were out. But with the timing of everything, three weeks. I think we started off 12 and 11 or 11 and 12 that year. Hadn't played at home for a while, and then things kind of took off. But I would say that's kind of responsible. It spearheaded the thing because there were so many really good players that came back. I think we lost two total, and then we added in some other ones, and it just kept going from there. [00:19:26] Speaker A: What were some tips that Billy Barry gave you? [00:19:30] Speaker B: Just stick to who you are, whatever your standard and expectation is. You know, you got to live by it. And that's one thing I really respect. And he's a powerful leader. You know, it takes guys some time if you don't have, you know, tremendous thick skin, to be able to deal with him. But I think you appreciate it more. And it's not deal with him, it's. It's to be able to commit to the things that he asked. It was tough for me, you know, as well, and I came from a very same type of coaching background in my family. Befort Sanders was the same way. You know, Barry grew up and I would, it's kind of like a, you know, Marine style background with what he's. With his family and whatnot. No, he was, he was unreal. But, you know, my job was to make it as easy as possible on him and I did everything I could for him. So it allowed him with what, you know, when we got on the field, I knew and I always loved watching it. Defense was his deal that day and he was going to get after him, you know, let him manage the game the way he's supposed to stay the way. And you know, I think it, we developed trust pretty quickly with each other, even though it took some time. And what I really appreciate, he cut me loose with going out and getting the players and he was still unbelievably involved with it. But he also cut me loose, you know, trustwise with those pitchers, you know, and I worked at it and you know, we're supposed to. Why wouldn't. I wouldn't sleep at night if I didn't. But I think a lot of the work ethic, you know, came from my prior background. But watching him and how he stuck to the things that he believed in, he wouldn't. There's things he might change, but he wasn't going to change the standard of that program. And that standard has been a standard and it's still there. And that's why, like I've always told him, you're going to have some really good years and you're going to have some years where maybe some of those players, they can't like. And that's what I respect so much because it's not going to change for them. And, but like I've told him every year that you've gotten to the series because of who you are, what you do, you. You're going to play deep into that thing and you're going to have a chance to win it. And sure enough, he's played in three national title games, he's won two, he's been a game away from it two other times. You know, we all want to get there every year, but it might take some years where some things don't go your way that help lead you the next year. And that's what I respect so much about him and what he's done there. [00:21:46] Speaker A: Do you think that's the key to being a good assistant is making things easier on your head coach? [00:21:51] Speaker B: 100%. And I think if you're committed to doing that number one, the number one job and Responsibility of your loyalty, because of your loyalty is why you're making it so easy on a guy, whoever you're coaching for. So, yes, absolutely. [00:22:07] Speaker A: Shout out to Robbie Gutierrez, by the way, because in the Nai preview, he had you guys. He, he was extremely high on you guys. [00:22:14] Speaker B: I, you know what's funny about him? He's two for two with teams I've been. Because at 19, he picked us at Wesland as well. And I told him that. You know what's really weird about this year, I had a lot of people that. And I don't know why they said it. It was, hey, just letting you know you're going to win it this year. I'm like, man, we haven't played a game yet. Like, this was the roughest fall I've ever been with. And then I remember Robbie picking us and perfect game. If I remember correctly, when they did theirs, they picked us in 19 as well. I'm like, man, this is weird. Like, you know, maybe they are going to land this year and then we go out, we don't lose a game. But, yeah, no, Robbie, I talked to him often. I've really appreciated his dedication to this level. I think it's. [00:22:55] Speaker A: He's done a lot for Nai baseball. [00:22:57] Speaker B: He has. And obviously, unfortunately, Cody was a driving piece of that as well. And then obviously, all the guys that are with involved now. [00:23:04] Speaker A: I mean, at what point during the year does it become a thing that you're undefeated? I mean, did you even talk about it or. Cause it was a big story. I mean, from outside the program, for me, following it, you know, suny, Niagara too. Like, we had two teams going to the postseason undefeated. But. And so that's why I'm asking, because I'm not in your shoes. And I don't know if it ever gets to that point. [00:23:30] Speaker B: Look, and obviously everybody's asked it and you've asked it in a little bit. Like, I appreciate the way you've asked a little bit more because you expanded on it. The one thing I can explain is each year we've had some winning streaks here. 23, 24, 25. And each one of those years it's broken. The program won for winning streaks. So you, you know, we got to that point, it's like, all right, well, we're, we're doing the winning streak a little earlier this year. Typically, it's been kind of, you know, quarter of the way through the year, and we've ran off some games. And I think all the good teams at this level do this. No I. And that's what I'm going to tip my cap to these guys and. And. And give such an appreciation, a level of it for what we did this year, because our guys, it was almost like they didn't want anybody to talk about it. Obviously, when we got the 38 on 40, 41, and a couple different records they deserved. And I did as like, fellas, you deserve to applaud yourself a little bit. And they did for two seconds. But I was all, you know, like, I remember being at Texas Wesley, and I can't remember which one it was. And then we went to somewhere else and we did. It's like, hey, you guys did this today? Yeah. All right, let's go. Let's get on the bus. I'm going to. On here. And then the more I watched them, I was like, you know what? It was every day in practice, so we had a routine. We'll meet, we'll talk for, like, two minutes, and we'll go. That was kind of our talking for the day, unless there's anything that we needed to change while we were instructing. And they would just nod their head, all right, let's go. And then there was so much excitement. I think the deal was they were so much more excited. Practicing together, playing together, getting in that locker room together. They did not talk about it, obviously. Yeah, there's been some talk since we won. I think they held it in, but their focus was so driven on. And I think this is why we. We did what we did on getting better, each and every. And we did. We got better. And, you know, the last two years, we were kind of tinkering with playing our best baseball at the end of the year, which obviously doesn't matter who you are. It can be tough. And there's some really good teams that just get outplayed at the end of the year, and things don't go their way. We just kept getting better. And I would got to give the credit. And obviously, as a coaching staff, we did some things to try to remind them, but we didn't have too much. They did such an unbelievable job of checking each other. You know, one of the things that we changed this year, we did not talk to him on game day, before the game, or during. Like, it was, hey, you know, just normal conversations. There was no talk. Like, you know, I.O. is over. Let's go talk. Let's have a conversation. We didn't have to do anything. There was no reminders about who we're playing, what we're trying to do. They did that. We tried to stay out of their way as much as we could on game day this year and stick to what we all say. We'll get with you doing practice. That'll be kind of our time to prep you and whatnot. You execute in practice and then games are yours. I had to change some things as well and I think it allowed these guys to really just take off and that's I think a big piece of why they had the routine with what they did and they stayed out of each other's way and any like just the way of talking about that. And the more I get a chance to really start sitting down and thinking about what they did this year and how they did it. That's the thing that's so unbelievable to me. [00:26:44] Speaker A: It's a blueprint for this generation of players. Giving them ownership, allowing them to take ownership. I think this is, this is how this generation is built. I like this generation of kids that's coming out because they are built community. I love them. [00:26:59] Speaker B: I agree with you. [00:26:59] Speaker A: I think they're going to change the world in some great ways just because they are more about community and helping each other. [00:27:05] Speaker B: Couldn't agree with you more. [00:27:06] Speaker A: You still heavily involved coaching the pitchers? [00:27:11] Speaker B: Yes and no. [00:27:11] Speaker A: Not big. I looked. I mean you may have more, but there's three of you listed. [00:27:15] Speaker B: Like that's a. Yeah, there's. [00:27:17] Speaker A: There's only staff relatively well. [00:27:21] Speaker B: That's because Steve Jones, that came over with us from Texas Arcana, just got back his old head job as the head coach at New Mexico Highlands. So they were just updating some things. So I started out this year with the hitters and that's just what I wanted to do this year because we brought Jordan Swellenbach in and he's had a ton of success. Obviously it runs in the family. Brother's a big leaguer. You know, his other brother was a two way guy for him at Central Methodist. That's what he's always done. I've always been impressed with his pitchers ability. We played him every year at Central Methodist with their ability to execute in game. He was always prepared, they were always prepared. And it was the same thing with us this year. One thing that we did and I didn't want to like I went down there for the Bullpits, maybe said something, maybe didn't. He was with him on everything else. It allowed me with the staff that we had this year to really just roam around and be able to do the things that I feel a head coach should be able to do because you look at so many head coaches now that especially Division 1 level head coaches that were pitching coaches that they transferred, they're doing what they're supposed to do and being involved with everything, and this allowed me to do that. Jordan did an unbelievable job. I mean, look. I mean, take a look. 2, 3, 8 era this year. Yeah, we had good arms, but we've always had good arms. The one thing it kind of went throughout the fall is I'm a big believer that you call the pitches after a couple weeks of the fall to get these guys to understand with what you do with them on the side. Work, kind of take the thinking out, but get them to understand this is how you need to work to be able to execute to both sides of the plate, to be the best version of yourself and give you the best. The highest level of success. Plate, come in game, two weeks. He's like, man, I'm not calling the pitches this year. He goes, our tempo's too fast here. I was like, what do you mean, dude? It's like everybody has to get used to it. Yeah, like, that's how you'll be fine. I'm not calling the pitches, Jordan. No, no, no, no, no, no. You got to call the pitches. So I was like, fine, whatever. So we got in season and it actually worked really well. I don't call the pitches ever in my life without a chart. So I have got my info how we're trying to attack my eye with what I see, but also, I'm not like, I don't. Nobody can remember everything that you did with every guy prior to. So he was next to me. We ran ideas and that chart and a scout report up each other. I called him. It actually sped our already fast pace to play up, and it allowed him to communicate with pitchers. I stayed away from him. He kind of worked the bullpen. We. I mean, it was such a. It worked really well. And I'm not the guy. Like, I don't want to go into this thing. Call the offense, call the pitches, and make it look like it's about me. It's not, but it worked really well this year. So that was my involvement. Calling pitches, knowing the hitters of what our guys did, our coaching staff with an unbelievable job of getting the report for us as a staff ready. But then I was involved with bullpens, and then I would yell at him tremendously during pfps, like, all the time. But Jordan is responsible for the success of these pitchers this year. [00:30:15] Speaker A: How do you get new pitchers to acclimate to Maybe a higher tempo than what they're used to. [00:30:21] Speaker B: You're just on them every pitch. In the fall, we got certain drills that we do that are not like, you can't replicate game speed, but like one of our big deals is, and we had a couple of guys, it took them all fall. Like, if you throw a pitch, you're not walking down the mound. Like, you're immediately, boom, back up and let's go. And we had a couple walk down. Get it? Turn the back. Like your, your back is not allowed to. Like, if you watch us during outs, strikeout, boom, get it? Firearound as quick as possible, right back up to the pitch. And we're here. Before the guys walked halfway. We want him to get in the box. So I think one of the biggest deals in anything as a coaching staff, when you've got new players, I try. We try to present the why of what we do from a teaching standpoint before we ever go over it. So the why is already answered. And then that way if they do have another question off it, we can present the why and expand on a little bit. But before we teach something, it's whether it's audio part of it, the visual part of something we're trying to show that would be the biggest way is like. And then our returners, like, our returners did a good job. Because our returners, it's funny when they go out and play in summer ball or independent ball now it's like, coach, I can't, I can't do that. I'm like, what? Like this pace of play, walking around, like. But they were the same guys when they got here. That's what they wanted to do. And it's just one of the things that we're not going to change. But it takes all fall and then until you line up against somebody else for them to really see it and then they're bought into it. [00:31:52] Speaker A: And you talked about you had to change some things too. What were some specific things that you needed to change? [00:32:01] Speaker B: Probably my reactions to stuff. I'm intense. I care a ton. I'm invested a ton. Like I tell these guys, my demand on you is probably. I have a higher demand on myself. My 10 minute drive every day home after practice is probably the toughest 10 minutes of my day. It's my time to think. And a lot of it is thinking of stuff that I need to get better on, which I still have to get way better on, but trying to. I wouldn't say I've had a problem with it, but I'm so I think I explained attention to detail and I see I, I, I I coaching correct as much as possible. I believe they deserve that. But what that's led to me in games a lot is my ability sometimes understand, hey, man, you gotta wait on that. Like, explain that tomorrow or after the game or, you know, whether it was good or bad. Like, wait on that. Like, they don't want to hear it right now. My biggest deal that I probably had to do is I have a great deal of trust in these guys. Like, I tell them, I wouldn't have you line up if I didn't, if I didn't trust you, you wouldn't have a uniform or be a part of this. If we didn't trust you, you wouldn't be. But I had to do a better job of showing them that I trusted them with how I relayed things on. And then getting out of their way on game day doesn't mean we didn't, you know, pull them up one time during the game and explain some things or try to adjust, you know, which is a different sport compared to basketball, where you can adjust something so quickly. Or football. Baseball is a little bit different. You know, just my level of showing them the care and the trust and then doing a much better job because it looked right, I got a loud voice. And people can interpret that as me being like, I was gifted with a loud voice. So it works on, it works in practice. Well, because you can hear me in center field on the way in the outfield. I don't need a walkie for the bullpen, but I do use one. Just try to get them to understand me a little quicker while understanding them and then just getting out of their way, the trust, the care, and just getting out of their way and letting them do their thing. Like, it's not just about trusting them. I think we have to, as coaches, trust our ability to get guys, you know, through preparation, to execute at a level. And then you gotta trust it, just like to let it go, let them play, get out of the way. And, you know, I think I still gotta do a little bit of a better job at that. Because I want these guys, like, I tell them, like, nothing is with bad intention. I want you to succeed more than, you know, individually and as a team. Like, so if I do something sometimes, or I pull you up or my voice is like, because I want you to be the best version of yourself you possibly could be. We tell them all the time, if the individual gets better, the team gets better. If the team gets better, the individual gets better so on both sides and you know to really, you know that fine line of being involved on game day and not. [00:35:02] Speaker A: Was Isaac seasons one of the best you've ever seen on the mound? Yeah, I mean it's 146 K's with 11 walks. [00:35:12] Speaker B: That guy. I've had two national pitchers of the year at this level now. One in 16 at Tennessee Westman. Ryan Hartman, who had a short stint in the big leagues, one of the more gifted arms I've ever seen. I still remember in 16. You know, I was actually so when I was at Campbellsville in 15, he was at Lindsay Wilson. He was good that year. Really good. He no hit at sacks, I think. And we won the conference that year. They won the conference tournament. But when I got in person with him in 6:10, I mean, you're talking about a guy that I know for a fact and he even admitted went home over winter break and never tested baseball would show up. It's like, Ryan, you're not throwing a pin today. Coach, we had three weeks. I'll be fine. Would not miss like. And I still tell the story. Ryan Hartman back in the day, I don't recall him to the opposite side of the plate all year long. It was one of the more dominant years I've ever seen. Isaac Rhodey was a little bit different. You know, Ryan would sit 88 to 91. Such a 92 ton of deception. Didn't really have a third pitch. That was one thing he had to develop with the change up. And everything came off that fastball so well with a fastball. They change it. But we only threw that change up to the right side of the play. It would never. It's back in the day. Oh no, you don't throw left on left or right on right change ups. Well, I think we missed that for years. The one thing we did with Isaac this year, as good as his year was last year, we threw that left on left change up. This year it never. I mean you won't talk about swing and miss. He already had a high level of swing and miss on that change up. But I believe. And he. I think he started flirting with it in the summer and he kept texting me, hey man, the left on left change up. All right, let's do it. I had people that were, hey man, that slider he was throwing left on left in the World Series was. No, that's not a slider. That's his change up. Huh? He just had. Isaac's not a very physical, overwhelming presence. But he had the it factor, just like Ryan did. What was. Even if it was a bad day, Isaac could lose some balls up with his velo and get hit a little bit because he gets to a point where he works faster than he should. So he can't process some things that he needs to. And that could be because of how fast we make him work and how fast, you know, when you put that, how fast he already worked. Now it's at a different level. Yes, I would say his ability to start a weekend off game one of every series until the conference tournament. And maybe that's why he gave up seven runs in the conference tournament the one time of year we still won it because it was out of routine. But his ability to not show if it's a bad day and still make big pitches and big moments, even if it got barreled up the pitch before and trusted was one. I mean, 16 wins. It just two starts there, you know, well, it was two in the world Series. And then come out of the pin on that final game where he was walking around asking for the buzz like, Isaac, I don't think you understand this, dude. Like, you're on two days rest, okay? If something happens. We're already having the worst first half to a game where things weren't going our way all year long. After 58 games like, we gotta have you tomorrow. If we get to a point where we got big enough lead, we'll put you in. It's not that you couldn't go in and give us a chance to rest the game, but if we blow you and we already put Ziggler, we're done. We're done. Coach, Give me the ball. Give me the ball. He didn't. Finally, I remember, he's up, moving around. We got a few in that last nine times. And I go up there, that was the quickest three outs on the least. You know, other than the one game with Matthew in the comp. In the. In the regional. The quickest three outs. I think it was eight pitches, maybe eight, maybe a six that we got all year long. And so fitting for his year. And then that moment of what it. [00:38:58] Speaker A: Was, what finally clicked for him with left on left change. [00:39:02] Speaker B: Just throwing it, I think. [00:39:03] Speaker A: I mean, that's it, right? Like just finally trusting it that I can use this pitch on the same side. It's just a trusted thing with it. [00:39:12] Speaker B: And the thing about it, the depth went a totally different direction that it did with the right handers. The right handers, you know, he knew where to throw it. And let it stay in his own long enough and then do its work late when they had to make a swing decision. And then the same thing with the left handers. The left handers were chasing so I can see why it looked like a slider. He was throwing an outer half, left side and it's fading on the outside of play. But coming back over, they had no choice to swing. I mean what he did left on. [00:39:39] Speaker A: Left and no grip change at all with it just. Just where he was starting it, where he was starting it. [00:39:46] Speaker B: I think, you know, just his starting point of it was different, which is a big term for us here. Unless he had a grip change that I didn't know about. No, I don't think it was. And the thing about he throws a couple of different change ups and even flirts with what he calls a screwball. I mean he tries to thr row. And that was my worry about him going in in the independent ball. And he gave up a couple runs in his first start last week with New York Boulders. And then he dominated. He went six innings, punched out seven, two runs, got the win, but he gave up those runs early on. It's one thing with him and why I felt coming back to school for him because he, he ain't a school guy. It took until about two weeks before the season finally getting to realize, dude, independent ball, be there, coach, I don't want to do school. We finally get. He made his decision to come back. We didn't talk for a month. He didn't want to talk. He wanted nothing to do with it. He didn't want to think about it. And he decided to come back. And I'd obviously use a saving grace to our season, but my worry for him was like, you got to get the catchers that are calling your game for you to understand who you are. Have you had so much success? He text me after start this last week because I've never. And look, man, I thought I called more changeups for him than anybody. He goes, I've never called so much changeups. This is last week in my life. He's like, I threw 85 change ups today. And they just kept calling it, calling it, calling. Well, that's who he is. So he's going to pitch for quite a while. It may be independent ball, but he's going to pitch as long as the age allows him to at that level. Because there's so many things inside that allow him to click and do some things outside of just his ability to do to maneuver pitches around his own. [00:41:25] Speaker A: Well, with the eliminated rounds of the draft now independent ball is a great way to try to get in. It's a great way. It's a great avenue to get back to get into organized ball. It really is. [00:41:35] Speaker B: I think it is the way the amount of guys that have already been signed. I think in the first two weeks of the Frontier League there were 20 guys signed already. It gives these scouts the ability to prove their war. We didn't want to in high school. We got free agents. Look what they're doing in independent ball which is filled with like you just said, with so many ex affiliate guys. So. [00:41:54] Speaker A: And they all track man. Like that's the thing. [00:41:56] Speaker B: Like yeah, yeah, there you go. [00:41:58] Speaker A: Right have track man. They're going to get that. Scott's going to get the data off every independent 100 game out there. Like it's. [00:42:03] Speaker B: There you go. [00:42:04] Speaker A: It's exactly avenue to go back in. Hey. With pitchers command because I thought about this a lot where just an eye level tweak or where they're looking is going to clean a lot of things up for. For pitchers I think on that where it may just be their eye level or where they're looking which will clean some things up without having to make any mechanical adjustments at all. [00:42:26] Speaker B: Yeah, yeah, absolutely. Two things here that like what we do with pitchers and it takes. One of them takes. Actually both might say take some time because these guys get in here if you're not a returner. They're setting the things that they've done. I took from Nate. Yes. A long time ago. He's got that four plate progression. We barely throw it 60ft because like what we try to get them to understand is our job is to take you out of what you're being comfortable with. Even if you're having success at 60ft, maybe you're not. You still are comfortable with that. I want to take you out of that because we want you to understand what each distance and each thing does. Like how do you get it to translate to 60 and sometimes like you iPad, you know, different eye things. Different, you know, different eyesight deals, different starting points. I'm a big, big believer in what we took from Nate. Yes. I give him all the credit. I mean he's a genius. We changed some things with it maybe just a little bit. Not, not like revolutionary, just, just ways that we do it. But I think it's really helped change. And once again I'm saying this, it's not us. We didn't take this. I think it helps really change Some guys, because we can get some guys that don't stay behind the ball long enough. Let's put you at 65ft. You know, guys that don't spin it as well enough because they're start ball. Let's put you shorter. Just get it to land at this height. All right, now let's go back to 60 real quick. Throw up the same one. But the one thing that we do that we add in from a starting point piece that I feel has been beneficial as I've gone to and there's probably millions of people that do this, I'm big on taking and obviously there's, there's tons of different places that you can buy these from that are already colored out. But I go to Target, Target or Walmart and buy a Styrofoam, big old Styrofoam rectangular pads. I'll put a plate on it, cut it in half, tape it up with colored duct, duct tape. And we use those for the. So like if I got a guy that we want to work on landing, landing a slider that day, we, our, our term is always hey, throw it on side to get it to land, throw it inside the arm side to get it to extend. Then we can work on, you know, the height and you know the vertical pattern of that. Later on we put those colored plates out there. So like if somebody struggles of holding onto that a little bit too long to get it to land, I'll put that colored plate on their arm side. So the other piece is the white portion of the plate. Just throw over that colored piece. And we use that a lot even in the four plate progression. Like if we've got a guy that's a split guy, a change guy, right handed arm and he's staying to middle arm and can't ever get it in the zone long enough, we're going to flip it to the other side of the plate. You're going to throw it at 65ft. Here's the height of it. I want you to throw it to the green plate on your glove side and then let it do its work. Just getting those guys to understand what. But once again you have to announce the why with it of why we're doing it prior to. We got some guys that really hesitant on it to begin with. Oh, this is dork. But what I got this color played out here. All right, now let's take it out. Well, it's almost set for them now obviously granted none of that stuff is going to be out there on game day and they got to go out and compete. But just some of the things that, that I, that we had done to help with it. You know, we'll take the dummies, the hitting dummies, and we'll tape up different level. All right, so hey, man, here's the knee for you. So you're going to throw it arm side, right above the color of the knee. All right. Arm side, second play, get it to land. Getting a few rep was it. And then put it back at 60. And some guys that'll help right away. Now it's the re. You know, the reminders daily. But just things that we've done. We throw with a softball a ton of. That's the one where guys don't want to do it. But it's like, hey, if you guys can understand that softball might actually feel a tad lighter because of, you know, the. What is the diameter or the circumference, whatever it's called. I'm not good with that stuff. And it's only 7 ounces. But if we can get you to stay behind that softball, it's going to want to run out on you real early. You can really just arm speed, stay with it below the head with your, you know, your partner, stay behind it, prevent it from running out. Then put the 5C, you know, the 5 ounce back in your hand just. But you gotta find ways to help each guy with that. So you know, everybody. It's a, it's a different individual deal. [00:46:36] Speaker A: Jerry Weinstein was big on that with breaking balls, throwing a softball to get their fingers over the top of it. By the way, we stole the multiple catchers from Nate Yetski. [00:46:44] Speaker B: It's unbelievable. [00:46:45] Speaker A: That same talk he gave at the convention the one year I think he was still at Oregon State. And I stole the multiple catchers immediately for east to west and then north and south. And then add the triangle in with like I stole that. We added that in immediately. [00:47:01] Speaker B: You get, you get guys like him and Jerry where it's unbelievable. Yeah. I mean it. You know, we actually. And I'll real quick. One thing that helped us and I didn't give any credit because. And I, and I and I told him Hayden Stravinsky, that was the catcher at LSU when they want it. Finally got a chance. He's pioneer league nights with the Astros. You know, obviously he's around. Yes. Ski every day. Well, Hayden and a guy but most of them Amani Larry, that started I think second base last two years. Well up until last year at Mississippi State. Both are from, you know, one went to Airline High School one went to Parkway. So they worked out with us every day this year. They helped a ton. But the one thing I would tell you, Chervinski was able to bring just some of his knowledge. He called our pitchers all the time to stay in shape, but they love throwing to him just from a presence standpoint. Hey, I got a guy that, you know some of those things that he was able to build off it as well. Like some of the best coaches you're going to get are guys like that that have been. And those two guys being around us from a high level standpoint, what they were able to do for our team this year, it was. It was ridiculous. [00:48:09] Speaker A: First national championship in any sport for you all. Correct. [00:48:12] Speaker B: First even appearance as well. And what's crazy is the amount of six, like basketball has had three final four runs. Men's basketball, you know, baseball in 22 and in 12 or a game away from playing for it or at least, you know, being able to get in there. I think LSU, Shreveport in 12 would have had to beat. So if they would have beat was on what it had to beat Rogers State. I think once we would have had to beat southeastern twice in 22 if we beat LC State. But yeah, for how successful and that's how tough it is, some are fortunate, they're not more fortunate than others. Like this place is designed for it to be successful. And obviously there's been a ton of resource advancements here over the last few years for every sport. But. And you'll see everybody taking off right now. But yeah, even appearance period out of all that. And you look at basketball, they've been to 22 straight opening rounds. I mean to go 22 straight times. And I think here it's been 20 or less 21 years. It's like 18 of the last night or 18 straight 19. It's bad that I'm messing my math up on it right now, but to not have one like. So one thing I said after we won it, they asked me a question. I'm so freaking happy for the alumni and so are they of this place because what they've done to put us in position. But this is the first, as far as I, you know, as I believe the most historic program going into this year at the NAI level with the amount of success that they had to not won one. That's how tough it is. And then to be able to finally do it this year, the support and the overwhelming appreciation and excitement that our alumni have had, that's what I like outside of Being so proud of these guys. I'm so proud for this program. The coaches, the players and their support's been unbelievable. So happy for them. It's like it's not even, I can't even talk about that enough. [00:50:08] Speaker A: Your roster size looks like it's fairly average, correct? [00:50:10] Speaker B: I mean, yeah, I'd say so. [00:50:12] Speaker A: Is that about the right size for you? Is that typical? [00:50:15] Speaker B: Anywhere from, you know, we went a little less this year with the amount of guys that we had coming back. This year we're going to go a couple more like we're anywhere from the 38 to 42. So I tell most about 40. We're 38, I think going into the year. This year we're at 39. Right now we have no choice but to go a couple more based off one of the positions that we, we have to fill or like we're going to be good but like we have to like, I mean there's no fans or buts about it. So. Yeah, that's, that's about it. There's. We're not, we got 41 lockers in that, in that locker room, which is a weird number, but when they put them in that's what fit. So we're not, we're not going any more than that. [00:50:55] Speaker A: And mostly juco guys, correct? [00:50:58] Speaker B: Yeah, and then some four year guys. Trace, you know, we've had a couple high school, really good high school kids but the thing for them is, it's unique here is the, the living situation. They can live wherever they want. So they're going to be living with a bunch of older dudes that have experience with being away from mom and dad. They're going to be overwhelmed a little bit. The patience piece, you know, you tell them in the recruiting process which it's a no brainer for high school kids to come here with the price of school that we've already got. And if they're an in state kid from tops to academic money, before we even have to give them anything, they're already getting money back in their pocket and everything's taken care of. So it's a no brainer for high school kids, but it's just that first year they're going to have to have some skin where it's thick to be able to. Not only is it already a transition piece for high school kids to go into college and play, it's completely different. Speed of the game, maturity, whatever. It's just these grown animals that they're around out here. I mean and our guys don't like they do a really good job. Like they're wild animals. I tell them all, like, these guys are, like, in a good way, but these high school kids, they've all let, like, they've tried to stick it out, but, I mean, I don't. [00:52:13] Speaker A: Every school is unique with that. You got to figure out what works for you and what works for your roster with your school and all that. Like, every. That's the beautiful thing with all the different schools we have is everybody's situation is different with what's going to fit 100%. Do you do any team building with guys in the fall? Because, I mean, you're going to have a lot of new faces every fall. Do you do any team building stuff or is it just let's get out there and do it during practice and. And that stuff we. [00:52:44] Speaker B: We do. But it's nothing. Like, it's all based here. We've done some things. So like two years ago, one thing that we put in, we did a little bit different this year. Like, two years ago, what we did because we were so new, which I don't think it matters how new you are or not. You're always gonna have new faces. We did like a. And it involved them getting to know guys, and then they'd have to teach the rest of the team who the guys were. And then they had to do some sort of like, sing a song and dance. And then there was winners and whatnot. And it was fun because it. What it did, it allowed you to get an understanding for who is comfortable with who they are. Would they break out of their scan? But everybody did it. And then I think it really, before we got out on the field, allowed these guys to feel comfortable. They're okay with messing up, not worried about. Because you know how new guys are. Everybody sizing everybody up from returners to transfers. They didn't care by that point this year, I kind of left it up to the returners, to which we had so many of them to really from. Like, we tell them that locker room is what you guys have now. What like, from the locker room. Our guys spend a ton of time here at the field, so I think that takes care of a lot of what we're trying to do with them. They all live right by each other. So whatever they do over there obviously, is another deal. But we have a unique deal that I think gets our guys around each other, even if it's for 30 to 45 minutes at a time. We're around each other at the field, where we have everything that we need down here from the clubhouse to the indoor to the field to, you know, the laundry to the showers. We're fortunate. Our schedules are unique here. We have close to 12,000 enrollment. Now, that's not all on campus. Very big master's program. So there's a lot online. So what it does for us and what I'm getting at with part of that building piece is our guys can construct their class schedules where they can take anything online, first or second, seven weeks or all 15 weeks. Same thing they can do in person. So we have guys will do all online or they'll do one class for seven weeks, two online, the full 15, and one the second seven weeks. So it allows us to have a shorter practice in the afternoon, but get all of our individual and group work done through groups where they're around each other all morning, going in and out. And I think from a building standpoint, it puts them around each other down here where they get to know each other so quickly. And then we can kind of judge what we need to do from here on out with. With anything else that we need to add. But I would say this year you give the credit to the returners. They did such an unbelievable job of getting this group. We talked about being one unit all the time. Well, they formed one unit real quick. And I think that's another piece that formed the building process of us being able to go execute on the field so well together. [00:55:37] Speaker A: We talk about fail forward moments on here. Is your. Your arm injury, is that a fail forward moment for you? Is that probably your biggest one because it allowed you to get into coaching earlier? [00:55:45] Speaker B: Yeah, absolutely. [00:55:47] Speaker A: Any other ones? [00:55:52] Speaker B: You know, the only thing that's always been weird and I. And I wonder so. And I get this job because of it. I go from Tennessee Wilson to SIU for six weeks, for six months now. I really enjoyed it there. I still talk to Lance all the time. I still talk to Ben Brewer who's at Southern Miss. I talked to Nick Magnifico who's the recruiting coordinator at South Alabama. And you look at the success of that staff like there's really. Lance put together an unbelievable staff and he's had a ton of success. I still tell the story like I got a call about this job on the. I had my. Me and Lance were the only two left in the office. My wife had just got hired on. She was an athletic trainer there. We're 45 minutes away from where she grew up with one kid and another one on the way where we were nine hours away. @ Tennessee West. And if I come here, I'm now nine to ten hours away. I get it all about this job, and it's just him and I. Last day of winter break, sit in the office. And I laughed right away. Stephen Baker calls me. Hey, lsu, Shreveport wants to know if you're. You're interested. I like to go. No, Like, I'm not thinking about leaving this place. I enjoy it. I just got here. Why would I do that? I still remember right before he hangs up the phone, all right, well, whatever. The ad is going to get a hold of you. Click. I'm like, gosh dang it. Hour later, I get an email. Brad, can you talk? And I'm like, all right. It's just the talk. So we talked that day. And I right when I pick up the phone back, I'm like, I'm on speakerphone and there's. I can hear like four or five other voices in the background. Hey, we're just going to go ahead and get this out of the way. Can we interview you? And one thing leads to another, and I'm not excited about it at all. All right. I come down here three days. First day, I'm like, you got to be kidding me. There's no. I'm not coming here. Like, one thing led to another, ended up being great. But I would say from a standpoint of like, I, why did I have to go to siu? All right, maybe I don't leave if I'm at Wesleyan based off what we just did. And I probably wouldn't want to just like I did at siu halfway through the year, a little bit tougher at small college to find, you know, what you want that you think is qualified to work for you and with you at winter break as a full time, you know, and Lance fills my spot with, you know, the former head coach at Missouri is a pitching coach, Tim Jameson. So I would say that's another moment. Still wonder to this day, the only thing that I can say, and once again, we do not win it. Josh Gibson, first team All American, arguably one of the best players in the country, who's having a ton of success in the Frontier League right now, was signed to go to siu. His dad played derrier. His dad was college roommates with that with what just was the Pirates manager who was let go. That was his, you know, that was his roommate. Josh does not come here. If it wasn't for the connection with siu, myself and Lance Rhodes getting us on the phone and ended up being two classes short Maybe that's why, you know, you look at how things line up. But a lot of good that came out of that situation. But still, you know, those two. Those two in particular, probably, who knows? [00:59:02] Speaker A: Jud to join the abca. [00:59:05] Speaker B: I'm sorry. [00:59:06] Speaker A: To join the abca. [00:59:09] Speaker B: Gabe Sandy, Florida Marlins. I had just taken the job at Aloha High School as a head coach. Still helping him out a little bit. Now it's a little bit of a different role. And it was, hey, man, you. You. You got to go. We go every year. You got to be there every year. And right away I went and Alola found a way to pay for me and my assistant to get out there. And, you know, it can get tough sometimes being able to go every year. And I say that with wanting to go every year, go as much as I can, probably not as much as other. Obviously, I'm going to 100% go again this year. One of the things that affects us, and I know this wasn't the question we got to get. We start so early with the weather we have. [00:59:53] Speaker A: We run into it a lot with. With guys when the D2 and NI. It's when the season starts. [00:59:59] Speaker B: And the thing about it is we're allowed those outside competition dates. Well, to play those in the fall, everybody's got to be eligible. Nobody, like, depending on where you're at, we have to use the fall to get our guys eligible for the spring. Now we have a good portion eligible, like we always play. Bipsy, we played them two years ago with 15 guys and got drilled. You know, we go out here with an army of 40, and 25 of them are in shorts and a T shirt. The other 15, we got nine position players, five pitchers. So I said, we can't do that again. And we've never had, you know, 15 to 20. So the issue is, though, with the ABCA, we got to make sure that they're in shape and not all of them are when they get back. Well, we saved one of those dates for the second week when we get back in January with Bipsy to play before we're allowed to open up. And we go out there and play as many innings as we can that day, but, you know, some. Once again, we're starting, and I'm gonna go this year, but January, I think January 23rd is the. For you're allowed The. The. The third Thursday in January is where you let us to open up. Well, that this year, it's January 23rd, so, you know, we got tabor coming in. I think the 25th and 26th. And you know, that gives us, you know, 20 some days to get ready. But I mean, you know, sometimes you just got sucking and just go and not worry like your guy, you're gonna be fine. Like everybody else is doing the same thing. But, you know, you got as a coach through your head because you want to be as prepared as you possibly can and keep progressing throughout the year. [01:01:32] Speaker A: As intense you are. Do you have any routines, evening or morning routines that you feel like help you or get used? I'm like you. Like, I have to use things to get me centered in and not always decompress, but I'm extremely intense at times. And so I have to find some things to help shut this off at times. [01:01:55] Speaker B: The first thing for me is obviously, no matter how long this gym workout is, which you can't outwork a bad diet, which my diet's been atrocious for a while. Still go. I got, I got to go to the gym and if I do it, it's the first thing in the morning. Yesterday was the first time that I did anything in a gym that wasn't in the morning because I was able to go on our hot indoor. I couldn't go yesterday morning because of something, so I went in here and lifted for 35, 40 minutes in our indoors. Got old weights in there, whatnot. But if I don't go, like, it's best that I go before I get in the office. Just, you know, from all the things that it does for you then on game day, everything has to be done hours in advance. When we're at home, before we play, if we're on the road, everything's done in the hotel charts. Like lineup. Like I tell these guys all the time, one, if you forget a uniform, you're not taking somebody else's in plan. But when you add on to it, I'm not rewriting right in the lineup either. So just remember that. Like my line on game day, if we play at 6 o' clock here on say a Friday night, I have everything posted in the dugout by probably 10, 30, 11, along with my lineup. I've got the lineup in that dugout with the game ball on it. I got everything up in the press box. And then I just sit here and watch other games throughout the day. If it's the next day when we play early, I get here earlier. It's all written. I don't want to be rushed in anything that I do. And I absolutely hate double headers, especially on the road where now you got to go figure out what you're going to do. You got 20 minutes to ride it. You sit down. If I write bad, I want because my, my handwriting so very, it's, I wouldn't call it OCD and just got very routine. But there's the most he did to that. [01:03:35] Speaker A: I just think you have to give yourself time. I was the same way. I never wanted to feel rushed, so I would get there, you know, if it was a noon, I was there at 5:30 in the morning. If we played at noon, like I. [01:03:48] Speaker B: Was 100%, like, I. There's nothing worse than being rushed with something that you've been preparing to go out and do all week. Yeah. Yeah. Then I'm, I'm a mess. If that's, Nobody wants that. Yeah. [01:04:02] Speaker A: Or some final thoughts for let you go. [01:04:05] Speaker B: No, I just, I, I, I appreciate it. I, you know, I appreciate being able to get on here and you know, whether it's telling some things about myself or my story, but more so just the, the amount of appreciation that I have for what you guys do, what it's allowed to do. And I think you guys have kind of spearheaded along with any eyeball and whatnot. There's so many different avenues now that help tell the story of college baseball that I think have shown the world of sports. Look, football, basketball is probably like, people are going to always think that it's above baseball collegiately, does so much more for its sport, which starts with you guys, than any other sport at any other, you know, whatever it is. And I can't tell you how much we all appreciate it. It's such a small network, small thing. And then just, you know, you, you know, the first thing that you said today is, you know, coach of the national, coach of your whatnot. And so one thing I'm getting ready to, you know, I've thought about it. I haven't done a lot of like, public, you know, tweets or whatnot about our year and whatnot because it takes me so much with what I want to say. It's like I, I eventually will praise these guys even more than I have. But like, the one thing I've been thinking about, and I'll end with this, is every year you're gonna have a new roster. You know, I tell these guys, a lot of you guys are gonna be gone and as long as we're fortunate enough, we're still going to be here with a new, having to, you know, this year was so unique and so special. It's gonna be, have the same Thing with this next group, maybe not the same success. You might have a chance to play for one again. But 59 or no, not. I've been wanting to just that I'm going to. As these things keep coming out, just tell our guy. And they praise me, too. It's like, guys, I want you guys to understand all of these things that keep coming out about this program that's kind of gone away from you. And now the coaches are getting awards and whatnot. I want you to understand that these are your awards. We. You guys have allowed us to coach you, but you've also allowed you guys to grow so much as one unit because teams are hesitant to, like, open up. And that's just the level of appreciation that I have for these guys. They. They were so special. If you could have been here in the dugout and watched them. We had, on any given day, 50 youth players on our field every game, before and after they signed. More stuff this year than I've ever seen my kid and his. Like, I. It's. People look at me like I'm crazy. The amount of youth kids that I allowed in our dugout around our guys, that's how much I trusted them this year. You know, with the things that you typically think that they might hear around them or whatnot. Mumble underneath their breath. I'd go out the next game to watch my kid, and all of a sudden there's jewelry all over. Like. Like, where. Where did you. Oh, your players got jewelry Slide again. Well, come on, man. You're 8 years old. My kid's asking me for a sliding mitt. But that is the impact that our guys had on everybody around him this year. And the one thing that will tell you and leave you with, we always talked about your job is to impact and elevate everybody around you while trying to be the best version of yourself. And by golly, if they didn't do that this year at a level that I might not never see again, that tells the story of why they were able to do what they did this year. [01:07:32] Speaker A: Thanks again for your time, Brad, and congrats, man. [01:07:34] Speaker B: That's awesome. [01:07:34] Speaker A: Unbelievable story. Historic, so. It's awesome, man. Appreciate it. [01:07:38] Speaker B: Thank you. Appreciate you very much, man. Thank you. [01:07:41] Speaker A: The elite coaches I get to interview have some commonalities. They may have different personalities, but all are willing to make sacrifices to make their program great. Coach Neffendorf is another one of the great college coaches we have. Excited to see where you can take the elite Shreveport program. Congrats to everyone involved in this historic season. Thanks again to John Litchfield, Zach Hale and Matt west and the ABC Office for all the help on the podcast. Feel free to reach out to me via email allbrownleadabca.org Twitter, Instagram or TikTok at coachvabca or direct message me via the MyVCA app. This is Ryan Brownlee signing off with the American Baseball Coaches Association. Thanks and leave it better for those behind you. [01:08:24] Speaker B: Keeps on turning and your life is not for your name and you know that way Yep Wait for. [01:08:35] Speaker A: Another day. [01:08:40] Speaker B: And the world will always return as you your life and you know that way Wait for another day.