The Gill Athletics Track and Field Connections Podcast

Coach Emeott's East Kentwood HS (MI) team will be competing for their 9th D1 state title this weekend to go with a national championship as well. To maximize the leadership potential of all team members, East Kentwood does not have team captains, but instead utilizes layered leadership. In his book, Beyond the Finish Line Emeott covers how a focus on transforming lives instead of outcomes has led to incredible results for his teams.

NOTE: This episode was originally released in August, 2025.

If you've got a topic to share, contact David Mitchell to find out how. 

Last week on the show, we heard the journey of TJ Lawson at IMG Academy — so this week we had to get the other Lawson.

In this episode, Bill Lawson, Head Track & Field Coach at IMG Academy, joins us for a wide-ranging conversation that starts in rural Illinois and stretches all the way to TrackTown USA, the NCAA, and now the inaugural Under Armour High School Championships.

Along the way, Coach Lawson shares how the 1968 Olympics lit the spark, why multi-sport matters more than ever, how he and Coach “Bucky” helped build Northern Iowa into a national force, what it takes to keep the edge when you move from a “mid-major grind” to a brand-name program, and how he approached the tricky (and rewarding) line between being Dad and being Coach while TJ was being recruited.

And yes… we talk about the barefoot Hayward Field kids races too.

🎙️ In this episode, we cover:
🔥 Growing up in Carthage, Illinois + falling in love with track through the 1968 Olympics🏁 The recruiting hustle before cell phones, social media, and instant results🧠 Developing athletes (and coaches) — plus the mistakes you only learn by doing👟 Multi-sport development and why “open mind” wins long-term🦆 Oregon, Kent State, and what “never settling” really looks like👨‍👦 Parenting a high-level athlete: letting TJ choose his path (and why that matters)🏟️ IMG Academy today + the Under Armour High School Championships coming May 29–31

If you enjoyed TJ’s episode last week, this one is the perfect companion — the full father/son coaching story, from both sides.

👉Dive into nearly 400 episodes featuring insights from coaching legends such as Boo Schexnayder and Dan Pfaff, Diljeet Taylor (BYU) and Beth Alford-Sullivan, as well as superstar coaches Petros Kyprianou (Illinois), Althea Thomas (Vanderbilt) and many more! Find uson Twitch.tv, YouTube, Apple Podcasts, Spotify and more!

🎙️ Create Your Own Podcast Episode:
Reach out to Mike Cunningham for instruction on how to create your very own Gill1918 Project episode, which airsTuesdays through Sundays. Find YOUR voice on the Gill Connections Podcast Network.

📲 Stay Connected:
Want to get in touch with our host, Mike Cunningham? Follow on Twitter (@MikeCunningham) and Instagram (@MikeCunninghamTF), email at [email protected],or text to 217-898-3038. We love hearing from you! 🎧👍

Grateful to Rekortan for hosting a Coaches Speaker Session at the 2026 Penn Relays. Recorded on Friday during the Coaches Hospitality, Rekortan invited coaches and Rekortan teammates to share their running and coaching experiences to give value to the audience. Gill Athletics is grateful for Rekortan's trust to record these sessions to bring them to you in our Gill1918 Project podcast format. There are six speakers in all, you can find them on the Gill Connections podcast published on these dates:

5/3 Greg Scholars -AP RANCH

5/9 Bella Whitaker- ON

5/10 MaryBeth Price -Rekortan

5/16 Bill Lawson - IMG Academy

5/17 Kevin Quadrozzi - ON

5/23 Guy Thomas - Rekortan

🌟Explore Our Library: Dive into over 350 episodes featuring insights from coaching legends such asBoo Schexnayder and Dan Pfaff, Diljeet Taylor (BYU) and Beth Alford-Sullivan, as well as superstar coaches Petros Kyprianou (Illinois),Althea Thomas (Vanderbilt) and many more! Find us on Twitch.tv, YouTube, Apple Podcasts, Spotify and more!
🎙️ Create Your Own Podcast Episode: Reach out to Mike Cunningham for instruction on how to create your very ownGill1918 Project episode, which airs Tuesdays through Sundays. Find YOUR voice on the Gill Connections Podcast Network.

📲Stay Connected: Want to get in touch with our host, Mike Cunningham? Follow onTwitter (@MikeCunningham), email at [email protected], or text to 217-898-3038. We love hearing from you! 🎧👍

🌟Explore Our Library: Dive into over 350 episodes featuring insights from coaching legends such asBoo Schexnayder and Dan Pfaff, Diljeet Taylor (BYU) and Beth Alford-Sullivan, as well as superstar coaches Petros Kyprianou (Illinois),Althea Thomas (Vanderbilt) and many more! Find us on Twitch.tv, YouTube, Apple Podcasts, Spotify and more!
🎙️ Create Your Own Podcast Episode: Reach out to Mike Cunningham for instruction on how to create your very ownGill1918 Project episode, which airs Tuesdays through Sundays. Find YOUR voice on the Gill Connections Podcast Network.

📲Stay Connected: Want to get in touch with our host, Mike Cunningham? Follow onTwitter (@MikeCunningham), email at [email protected], or text to 217-898-3038. We love hearing from you! 🎧👍

🌟Explore Our Library: Dive into over 350 episodes featuring insights from coaching legends such asBoo Schexnayder and Dan Pfaff, Diljeet Taylor (BYU) and Beth Alford-Sullivan, as well as superstar coaches Petros Kyprianou (Illinois),Althea Thomas (Vanderbilt) and many more! Find us on Twitch.tv, YouTube, Apple Podcasts, Spotify and more!
🎙️ Create Your Own Podcast Episode: Reach out to Mike Cunningham for instruction on how to create your very ownGill1918 Project episode, which airs Tuesdays through Sundays. Find YOUR voice on the Gill Connections Podcast Network.

📲Stay Connected: Want to get in touch with our host, Mike Cunningham? Follow onTwitter (@MikeCunningham), email at [email protected], or text to 217-898-3038. We love hearing from you! 🎧👍

Nationally known T&F announcer David Mitchell recalls some painful moments from his 20+ years as a high school coach that led to the creation of a systematic way to “Honor the Baton” and develop a team culture that prevents most relay issues before they ever get the chance to cause headaches for coaches! This episode replay from July, 2025 has a special addition to it discussing ways we might avoid controversies like the recent one regarding a disqualification in high school track that had a very significant impact on an entire team.

If you've got a topic to share that will benefit youth T&F, contact David Mitchell here.

This week on The Gill Connections Podcast, Mike Cunningham is joined by TJ Lawson, Assistant Director of Track & Field at IMG Academy.

TJ shares his journey from growing up around Hayward Field, competing as a near–8,000 point decathlete, and ultimately finding his calling in coaching and program leadership after injuries reshaped his athletic path.

The episode pulls back the curtain on IMG Academy—what it is, what it isn’t, and how culture, academics, and athlete-first thinking drive everything they do.

⚙️ Episode highlights:🌲 TrackTown USA roots and barefoot all-comers meets🏀 Why basketball came first—and why track recruiting changed everything🧠 Coaching fundamentals from middle schoolers to national-level athletes🧪 Creating pressure and buy-in before championship season
🎓 Why IMG is not a diploma mill (and sends athletes to the Ivy League)🎯 Smart recruiting and scholarship strategy
🏟️ Building the Under Armour National High School Championships from the ground up

⭐ If you enjoy the episode, leave a review—it helps amplify coaches’ stories.

👉Dive into nearly 400 episodes featuring insights from coaching legends such as Boo Schexnayder and Dan Pfaff, Diljeet Taylor (BYU) and Beth Alford-Sullivan, as well as superstar coaches Petros Kyprianou (Illinois), Althea Thomas (Vanderbilt) and many more! Find us on Twitch.tv, YouTube, Apple Podcasts, Spotify and more!

🎙️ Create Your Own Podcast Episode:
Reach out to Mike Cunningham for instruction on how to create your very own Gill1918 Project episode, which airsTuesdays through Sundays. Find YOUR voice on the Gill Connections Podcast Network.

📲 Stay Connected:
Want to get in touch with our host, Mike Cunningham? Follow on Twitter (@MikeCunningham), email at [email protected],or text to 217-898-3038. We love hearing from you! 🎧👍

Grateful to Rekortan for hosting a Coaches Speaker Session at the 2026 Penn Relays. Recorded on Friday during the Coaches Hospitality, Rekortan invited coaches and Rekortan teammates to share their running and coaching experiences to give value to the audience. Gill Athletics is grateful for Rekortan's trust to record these sessions to bring them to you in our Gill1918 Project podcast format. There are six speakers in all, you can find them on the Gill Connections podcast published on these dates:

5/3 Greg Scholars -AP RANCH

5/9 Bella Whitaker- ON

5/10 MaryBeth Price -Rekortan

5/16 Bill Lawson - IMG Academy

5/17 Kevin Quadrozzi - ON

5/23 Guy Thomas - Rekortan

Grateful to Rekortan for hosting a Coaches Speaker Session at the 2026 Penn Relays. Recorded on Friday during the Coaches Hospitality, Rekortan invited coaches and Rekortan teammates to share their running and coaching experiences to give value to the audience. Gill Athletics is grateful for Rekortan's trust to record these sessions to bring them to you in our Gill1918 Project podcast format. There are six speakers in all, you can find them on the Gill Connections podcast published on these dates:

5/3 Greg Scholars -AP RANCH

5/9 Bella Whitaker- ON

5/10 MaryBeth Price -Rekortan

5/16 Bill Lawson - IMG Academy

5/17 Kevin Quadrozzi - ON

5/23 Guy Thomas - Rekortan