Credentials Only

Tricia Cullop has a job that involves a lot of unseen work, but it would be wrong to describe her as “behind the scenes.” As head women’s basketball coach for more than a decade, she is certainly the face of the program at the University of Toledo.

The winningest coach in school history, the Rocket program has also grown to be among the national leaders in attendance annually, which is just the start of her off-court work that is part of being a head coach. In this episode, Coach Cullop explains what else is part of her job, from the academic balance for student-athletes to charity initiatives to team travel to recruiting. 

She also helps grow the game and the industry in her role as president of the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association. 

In this episode, Coach Cullop will also share some lessons she has learned from other coaches and how she handles making the big decisions that come with being the Head Coach. 

Simon Cambers studied government and sociology at university, but his professional life has seen him cross the globe as a sportswriter, spending most his time as a freelancer. Over the years, his coverage has included cricket, golf and soccer, with the most recent years being dedicated to writing about tennis. 

Being a freelancer is a different animal than simply being on assignment for a single publication. For Simon, being opportunistic has been a key to building a successful career as a freelancer. He does share that there is certainly a little bit of luck that comes into play as well.  

In this episode, Simon talks about the challenges of balancing multiple assignments for a variety of outlets during a single event, how he generates ideas to pitch to editors, his preparation for interviews and touches on what Americans should know about gambling on sports. 

Tom Eiser has handled media relations for Xavier University’s men’s basketball team since 1986. During his tenure, the Musketeers have had 33 winning seasons, 25 NCAA Tournament appearances, numerous All-Americans as well as a National Player and Coach of the Year. 

Yet, during our conversation, the Cincinnati native was quick to talk about the achievements of many other Xavier teams, including women’s soccer, men’s golf, and even football. It’s that kind of “all for one” spirit that has made Eiser the perfect fit for a decades-long career at Xavier where he serves as Associate Athletic Director for Communications. 

In this episode, Eiser talks about boosting the profile of athletes and coaches on the national stage, how the job has changed with the media landscape, what he considers some of Xavier’s greatest moments and what he emphasizes to make the media feel welcome. 

Find complete show notes at CredentialsOnly.com

Bronwyn Greer first walked into a tennis facility to talk about a food service job. Less than a decade later, she was one of a handful of females working as tournament director of a men’s professional tournament on the ATP Tour. 

A native of Canada, Bronwyn lives in Houston where she serves as the Tournament Director of the Fayez Sarofim & Co. U.S. Men’s Clay Court Championship, an ATP Tour 250 event held at River Oaks Country Club. Started in 1910, the Clay Courts is the only top level professional men’s event on clay in North America, and carries on the long tradition of tournament tennis at River Oaks, which first began hosting events in 1931. Full disclosure, HolterMedia has managed media operations for that tournament since 2009.

In this episode, Bronwyn talks about her work as a tournament director, her experience as General manager of a World Team Tennis franchise, her role at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics and her post-graduate education at Ohio University’s Sport Administration program. 

Find complete show notes at CredentialsOnly.com.