The Jump Around with Blake DuDonis

Quinnipiac head coach Tricia Fabbri joins me for the third episode of the "Upset" series. Nearing the end of her 23rd season at Quinnipiac, we talk all about her playing career at Fairfield before entering the coaching ranks. We also discuss that while the program is humming along now, it wasn't always that way, and she nearly quit the job.

We also discussed the program's run to the Sweet Sixteen two seasons ago and how she isn't satisfied with just making it that far anymore.

The second episode in our "Upset" series, former Lady Vol great and current head coach at Missouri State Kellie Harper joined me

The first episode of our "Upset" series where I highlight programs that could bust some brackets come NCAA tournament time, Lamar University head coach Robin Harmony joined me this morning.

A Miami (FL) Hall of Famer herself as a player, Harmony spent over 18 years coaching in Coral Gables before starting an NAIA program from scratch. After building a dynasty there, she took her first D1 head coaching job at Lamar and has the team on the brink of a tournament birth.

We talk about her background, how Lamar has gotten so good, plus a great story about one of her Miami (FL) talking big trash (and backing it up).

High Point University head coach DeUnna Hendrix joined me on the pod today. We talked about her high school HOF career, how she has grown as a head coach over her seven years in charge of the Panthers, and why she has been able to be successful.

We also talk about her missing a game this year to go to her mom's own Hall of Fame ceremony, her love of Air Fryers, and how she use to charge neighborhood kids to come to her house and watch her perform basketball moves.

Cincinnati head coach Michelle Clark-Heard joined me on the pod to talk about her stellar coaching career.

She tells me about her time as a player at Western Kentucky and the high levels of success her team had, and what eventually got her into college coaching after starting a career outside of sports.

We then talk about the programs she built at Kentucky State and Western Kentucky and what convinced her to leave both when she did.

Now with Cincinnati on the brink of their first 20 win season in over 15 years, Coach told me all about why she believes in Cincinnati and how they plan on continuing to be successful. I also get her to tell me a funny Jeff Walz story.

Towson head coach Diane Richardson joins me to talk all about her interesting journey.

We discuss her college career, specifically her qualifying for the 1980 US Track and Field Olympic team but not getting to compete due to the US protesting the USSR hosted games. We also talk about her banking career and why she eventually sold her company to get into coaching.

We also go over her relationship with WNBA star Jonquel Jones and what circumstances led to her becoming Jones' legal guardian. We then discuss her Towson program who is having one of it's best seasons in recent history.

Wright State head coach Katrina Merriweather joined me today to talk all about her program, one of the best mid-major programs in the country.

We discuss her playing career at Cincinnati and how she always wanted to be a coach and the lessons she learned during her coaching career as an assistant, including the violation of some NCAA rules that led to a pause in her colligate coaching career.

We also talk about what brought her to Wright State and how she has helped the team continue to excel after she moved from an assistant to the head coach.

Appalachian State head coach Angel Elderkin joined me in one of the more emotional episodes to date.

We discuss her coaching journey, from being an assistant to stepping back to being a GA for Pat Summitt, all leading to her head coaching job at App State.

After her second season at App, Angel was diagnosed with cancer, a topic we really dove deep into. She told me about her treatment and how she made it through, but also shared about the dark times of her recovery.

We also talk about her much improved Mountaineer squad and what they need to do as they push down the final stretch of the regular season.

A first-year head coach at her alma mater, Boston University head coach Marisa Moseley joined me to on the pod.

We talk about her getting into coaching after it wasn't her original goal, but how she ended up as an assistant coach at UConn just a few years later. We discuss the success she had as a Huskie and how that has translated to BU.

We also discuss the highs and lows of being a head coach for the first time, plus how she has adjusted to the different level she is now coaching on.

Houston head coach Ronald Hughey took some time out to talk to me about his story and his program on an early Sunday morning.

We talk about his humble upbringings and how that affected the steps he took in his career, plus what he has learned from working for C. Vivian Stringer, Gail Goestenkors, and Sue Semrau.

Hughey then tells me about his Houston program and what gave him the confidence that they would be successful, even after going 6-24 in his first two seasons. We also get into plenty more, all thanks to some uncommon honesty from him.