In this episode of Practicing the Art of Faithful Presence, host David Wright is joined by five-time national championship-winning basketball coach of Indiana Wesleyan University, Greg Tonagel. To open, David asks Greg to share a little bit about his background with the listeners. Greg shares that he was born in Northwest Indiana and grew up on a dairy farm. The hard-working culture of farming was a foundational part of his upbringing. Basketball was also a significant part of his upbringing. At an early age, he remembers playing basketball in the barn on his family’s farm. He ultimately ended up playing college basketball at Valparaiso University. It was at Valparaiso, under the coaching of Homer Drew, that Greg learned how to be a leader and discovered his passion for coaching.

During college, he suffered an injury that left him sidelined. Greg views this moment as a blessing in disguise, as it allowed him to focus on his relationship with God. As basketball was put to the side, he had the opportunity to realign his priorities and make God more important than his personal goals and aspirations. This time in his life was when he began to make his faith his own, and it established the course of his relationship with God. It was also at Valparaiso that he met his wife, Amy, who became a great support to him and his players.

While Greg was rehabbing with his injury, he found more opportunities to encourage and pour into his teammates. Slowly, he began to see that he could begin to minister to people through a career in basketball. At the same time that Greg set his sights on a coaching career, the head coaching position at Indiana Wesleyan opened up. He interviewed on a whim, fully believing that he would not get the position due to his lack of experience. Through the interview process, though, it became apparent that Greg and the university were perfect fits for one another, and he was offered the position. As head coach, he immediately worked on establishing the type of culture that he wanted the basketball program to exemplify. 

The culture that he wanted to establish is what he calls the I am Third philosophy. He learned this philosophy from a summer camp he was involved with, Kanakuk. Simply put, this philosophy encourages people to prioritize their relationship with God and their relationships with others before their own needs and desires. Slowly, this philosophy has become interwoven into the culture of the Indiana Wesleyan basketball program. This philosophy has also attracted players who want to be a part of this kind of culture. Greg truly believes that the I am Third philosophy has turned into tangible success on the basketball court. This has also opened doors for him to share his faith with many people in the basketball community. To close, Greg stresses the importance of identification in Christ and Christ alone, stating that there is no I am Third without Jesus Christ at the center.

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