The Underdog Podcast

After a 23-year coaching career, winning more than 85% of his games and 3 National Championships, Urban Meyer is arguably one of the greatest college football coaches in history. In this episode Coach Meyer talks about his leadership philosophy E+R=O, how he would address the world if it were his team during the pandemic, and having an Above the Line mentality.

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Currently the defensive coordinator at UC – quickly rising to the top. Former OSU player – born and raised in the 937! Huber Heights Wayne – won a lot of games in high school be was raised by a military father.

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After blowing out his knee the last game of his senior year, Ryan Kelly didn’t know what the future had in store.  Two things he did know was that resilience and character would see him through!  Having the foresight to maximize his opportunity, Ryan is now one of the youngest and greatest leaders in his profession.  Football fan or not – you’ll love this episode!

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In 1972 a little boy was born and immediately put up for adoption. This week’s guest might have the most dramatic and heartwarming story we or anyone else has ever had the pleasure of sharing. Our guest, Deland McCullough was adopted and raised in Youngstown, OH. 

Football wasn’t just a thing to Deland, it was the thing that allowed him to escape all hardships he was facing.

In true underdog fashion, Deland wasn’t the star athlete from the beginning. He worked hard and had passion. Heck, he even enrolled in the Navy because he wanted out of Youngstown so badly. His break came when he was recruited by Miami University, more specifically, Sherman Smith (remember that name, it will hold great importance later). 

Deland continued to be the underdog fighting hard to earn his position which ultimately leads to a record-breaking career for him at Miami.  

He met adversity yet again when he went undrafted in 1996. He joined the Cincinnati Bengals and in true Deland spirit was fighting for his position until an unfortunate knee injury resulted in several surgeries. He recovered and joined the Philadelphia Eagles, but never saw any regular season playing time. He made his last attempt in the Canadian league with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers before retiring as a player.

He had no idea who his father was when he started his coaching career in 2000, but always stayed in touch with his mentor, Sherman Smith.

He finally reconnected with his biological mother in 2017, only to find out that his father was his mentor, Sherman Smith. Yes, the same Sherman Smith who recruited him out of Youngstown, OH. Can you imagine his disbelief? 

Now a very humble running backs coach for the Kansas City Chief’s, he leads with control and confidence. He is very invested in the people that make up his teams. Success comes in many forms, but for the NFL the crowning achievement is the Superbowl Championship, which Deland can name proudly add to his resume. 

He is also a proud husband and father of four young men; One of which is following in his footsteps and making his way at Miami University. We are so grateful for the opportunity to share this story with you, Underdog Nation!

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Our guest this week is former GM of both the Cincinnati Reds and Washington Nationals. Currently, Jim Bowden is an MLB Analyst and Insider for CBS Sports HQ, writer for The Athletic, Talk Show Host for SiriusXM’s MLB Radio, and Fantasy Alarm.

Born and raised in Massachusetts, Jim shares how his love of sports and a little bit of luck landed his first job with the Pittsburgh Pirates. 

In his words, “getting rid of my mouth and getting a third ear” is what led to his success. Early in his career, he was challenged with tasks outside his skill set or knowledge base, but he figured it out by asking questions with an authentic desire to learn. The hours, days, weeks, even years that lead to his first go-round as GM was spent doing just that, learning.

Jim has been able to sustain his success because he is always preparing for plan B. He was one of these first GMs to leave baseball and switch to the broadcasting side of the sport offering fans a unique perspective on the game.

He even dishes on a few very unique family traditions he and his sons have completed every year for the last couple of decades.

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Our guest this week, Joe Oliver needs no introduction to all of our baseball fans and of course Reds nation!

Joe had one of the most pivotal at-bats in the Cincinnati Reds history, clinching Game 2 of the World Series ultimately leading to the 1990 World Series victory!

Joe caught over 12,000 documented innings between the major and minor leagues, not to mention all of the countless practices and pull pen sessions.

After his 19-year career, Joe took 13 years off to raise his children and be a family man. Joe talks about everything from the culture of the 1990’s Red’s team to coaching and his professional future.

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Our guest this week is Merril Hoge. Some may know him for his time in the NFL as a running back for both the Pittsburgh Stealers and the Chicago Bears. Or for his 20+ year career as an ESPN announcer, but we’ve come to know him as our daily inspiration. If you follow him on social media, you will understand.

He spent almost 8 years in the NFL before his career came to a screeching halt. Improper care of a head injury forced him into retirement. Although his love for the game continued as an on-air analyst for ESPN, his life was forever changed.

Now he uses his platform to inspire others through times of adversity including another difficult time in his life, kicking cancers ass.

We are sure this episode will inspire you to take advantage of the life you should be living.

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For those of you who don’t know him, we promise you won’t be disappointed! Gary Owen’s life has provided him with a ton of content to say the least. His comedic approach to overcoming adversity is something we should all lean on right now!

Follow Gary on Social Media:

Instagram: @garyowencomedy

Twitter: @garyowencomedy

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Our guest this week is head football coach, Chuck Martin. 

With the odds stacked against him, Coach Martin left a success team at Norte Dame to take over an 0-12 Miami University program in 2014.

Coach speaks to his decision informing host, Kyle Decker and Calvin Blackmon (both former Miami Redhawks football alum) that there is a fine line between courageousness and foolishness. Although financially he took a hit, three things that went into his decision:

1. Miami’s tradition – the Cradle of Coaches & the opportunity to turn around one of proudest programs in the country

When he started preparation for his first season it was the hurtles off the field that were most apparent. No one was talking to each other. He spent the first 1-2 years working on structure with weekly meetings and coming together on a central goal.

Coach Martin himself was a two-sport athlete and admits that he played because he loved the game and looks for that same passion in his coaching staff and new recruits.

When it comes to adversity, he embraced the unpredictable pandemic by challenging his coaches to figure out how to support the athletes. He encouraged his coaches get creative with Zoom meetings. Focusing on safe workouts at home and community service. They started a reading program and pushed the team to get out of their comfort zone by connecting with those in isolation at a local retirement community.

He also jumped right into recruiting.  

The 4 things Coach Martin looks for in a recruit:

1. Find kids that want to play

We think these four points go beyond the gridiron. Thank you, Coach Martin!

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Our guest this week is Megan Duffy head coach for Marquette University women’s basketball team.

She reminisces about high school days with our host, Calvin (they both attended Chaminade Julienne Catholic High School in Dayton, OH).

Her love for the game started young. Her high school coach put her in situations regularly where she wouldn’t always be able to find success allowing her to grow her leadership skills and develop her grit.

Her senior year her team was number one in the nation and she tore her ACL. This devastating injury opened her eyes to the mental side of the game. 

She ultimately went on to play college ball at Notre Dame and continued to work hard at not only her skill but her leadership. 

She was recently named Big East Coach of the Year. She is now coaching young women on and off the court on how to leave their MARQ.

Apologies for the sound quality issue. We had a failure with our main recording and had to resort to the zoom recording audio.

Follow Megan on Social Media:

Twitter: @CoachMeganDuffy

Follow The Underdog Podcast on Social Media:

Twitter: @UnderdogPod

Instagram: @underdog_pod

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