More Than A Club

PLL Champion and superstar Matt Rambo joins this show to hang with two of his old coaches. Matt played for Coach Leahy at La Salle College High School and worked with Coach Kupp with The Dukes Lacrosse Club. The guys share stories around Matt’s early career and learn more about his current life playing professionally for the PLL Whipsnakes & Philadelphia Wings in the NLL. Topics discussed include a focus on fundamental skills, Matt’s historic career at University of Maryland, celebrating the differences of teammates, coaching high school athletes, and more. 

Taylor Wray, current Head Coach at Saint Joseph's University joins this episode. We hear what a Division 1 lacrosse program is doing right now while working under strict COVID-19 guidelines. Taylor shares his Canadian background in hockey and lacrosse and his unique path to playing college lacrosse at Duke University, then playing professionally in the National Lacrosse League. Topics discussed include the Canadian National Team, the benefits of box lacrosse, traits that college coaches value in potential recruits and team members, and more.

The guys are back for second season, now recording from NXT’s new headquarters in Conshohocken, PA. In their first full episode since March, Marty and Bill discuss our full-time lacrosse organization’s return-to-play during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Ian McGinnis joins as a featured guest to update and inform us about all things safety and mental health.

Hosts Bill Leahy and Marty Kupprion return for season two of More than a Club!

In this two part episode, Marty and Bill wrap up their first season of the podcast. To lead things off , a phone conversation recorded on April 2, where the guys catch up about their new normal while COVID-19 derails our beloved spring lacrosse season and much more. The rest of the Episode 12 was recorded back in February, with reflections on the first season and highlights from each of the episodes.

John Peruso, President of Next Level Video joins the podcast as our expert guest. John shares the ways that players, coaches and parents can use video content. A former high school coach as well as an entrepreneur, John and the guys chat about how film is used by coaches and their teams. Other topics discussed include making highlighting films, how college coaches use film in the recruiting process and other resources for lacrosse players to take advantage of video content.

John McEvoy, current Head Coach and Assistant Director of Admissions at Malvern Prep, joins this episode. An old friend of Bill Leahy's from his playing days as a Captain and All-Pro with the Philadelphia Wings, John shares stories from his playing career and takes us through his various stops as a young coach before his long career at his alma mater, Malvern Prep. Topics discussed include Coach Mac's "mortal sins", helping kids deal with adversity, building a nationally-ranked program, and reminding lacrosse coaches that this is a game and it should be fun.

In this episode, Marty and Bill spend time with a leading licensed clinical and sport psychologist, Dr. Mitchell Greene. Dr. Greene works primarily with athletes pursuing high performance goals, or coaches and athletic departments looking to educate their student-athletes on mental health and performance enhancement strategies. Topics discussed include mindfulness in sports, working with athletes of all ages through sport psych, tips for coaches and parents, and the unique mindset that sports requires.

Learn more about Dr. Mitchell Greene at https://www.greenepsych.com/

In this episode, Marty and Bill are joined by two young leaders in the world of youth sports safety, Ian McGinnis and Ellis Mair. Ian currently serves as the Director of Health and Participant Safety at NXTsports. Ellis co-founded Go4Ellis, the largest open marketplace for finding Athletic Trainers and finding per diem work. Topics discussed include their background in athletics, concussions, being or working with an injured athlete, taking care of your teammates, and significant advice for parents, coaches and program administrators.

Ian’s podcast recommendation: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/how-adolescent-boys-need-for-friendship-affects-their/id1027430378?i=1000456002711

Ellis’ website recommendation: https://www.atyourownrisk.org/

Chris Bates, current Head Coach at the Episcopal Academy and former Philadelphia Wings All-Pro joins this episode. Coach Bates takes us through his lacrosse career from playing at Dartmouth to coaching at both Drexel and Princeton. Topics discussed include teaching accountability to young people, playing box lacrosse, Shootout For Soldiers and more on his time coaching at the high school, college and professional levels.