Beneath It All Podcast

Suzanne Gilreath is joined by Zae Seller, a childhood friend of hers to discuss the murder of George Floyd, the impact it had on the community of Minneapolis, Minnesota, and the acknowledgment of Black Bodies in America.

Nigel Hayes, a former Badger men's basketball player, is joined by Suzanne Gilreath to discuss his basketball journey abroad, being exposed to various cultures, and the inspiration of his clothing line called WiseGod. Also, he explained the challenges of playing basketball abroad and hearing about the death of his biggest inspiration, Kobe Bryant.

Keith Jenkins, a former student-athlete at the University of Toledo and Cincinnati, who is now an award-winning and multimedia journalist joins Suzanne Gilreath. They discuss his journey of becoming a sportswriter for sports of football, basketball, baseball and his influential relationship with his dad. Keith shares his struggle with separating his identity from the respected sport of football and struggles of embracing the journey and moments of life. He also discusses how life obstacles helped him find true value in the Now and have a thankful perspective.

Ebony McClendon, a former student-athlete at the University of Wisconsin-Madison joins Suzanne Gilreath to discuss how she went from the sport of indoor and outdoor track and field to a winter sport of Bobsledding. Ebony shares her struggle with weight in terms of expectations in both sports of Track and Bobsledding. She also discusses the challenges of getting the technique down of sliding and how she is beginning to master the skills. Ebony reveals the mistakes as a beginner she made and how those mistakes only made her stronger in the rise of her professional career in Bobsledding.

Suzanne Gilreath is joined by her teammate, Diamond Bragg. They discuss her more than a game fundraiser that she organized in high school, family members paving the way for her to pursue a career in business, and her hopes of being a CEO one day.

Suzanne Gilreath is joined by Grace Mueller of the Wisconsin Women's Basketball team to talk about her battle with mental health. She expresses the importance of having comfort and understanding from coaches, athletic trainers, and sports psychologists because it has helped her throughout the years of her college career. She advocates for coaches and staff to have training on how to address or approach an athlete that is dealing with mental health issues.

Suzanne Gilreath is joined by Montee Ball recognized as one of the best running backs in Badger history. They discuss his past battle with alcoholism and depression that put a stop to his professional football career, his fund that he started, and how he hopes his story will help others including current and future athletes.

Suzanne Gilreath is joined by Samad Kawi, a first-year walk-on with the men’s basketball team at the University of Wisconsin- Madison majoring in Kinesiology. They discuss the uniqueness of the body, how diet is essential to a healthy life, and the importance of self-research and much more.

Suzanne Gilreath is joined by Madison Cone, a Wisconsin football player, whos shining on the football field and ensuring that he finds a community apart from his sport as an African-American Student-Athlete at a Predominately White Institution(PWI) like Wisconsin. They sit down to talk about their experience growing up and how they both are continually searching to find inclusiveness beyond their sports teams and have become better leaders and advocates.

Part 2 coming soon!!

Suzanne Gilreath is joined by Rashard Griffith, a former men's basketball player at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Rashard decided to leave college at the age of nineteen to pursue his professional basketball career in the NBA for two years and Internationally for multiple countries for fifteen years. Suzanne chats with him about inspiring the youth, coming back to college to receive a higher education, and about his humbling experience while living in different parts of the world.