Things can be deceiving from the outside looking in and you’d be shocked to find out how many people who look like they have it all together are actually falling apart. It’s a façade that gets harder to keep up with each passing day and one that eventually comes crashing down. No one embodies this more than the big-time athlete. They’re superhuman or so it seems but truth be told, they’re just as vulnerable as the next guy, maybe more vulnerable in some instances. 

“I attribute most of my anxiety and depression to trauma, childhood trauma, not head trauma as much.” – (10:11), JB

My guest today is JB Copeland. He’s a guy who seemed to have it all just right and everything going just righ and within an instant, that all changed. JB was on the fast track to gridiron success coming out of Texas. He landed at the University of North Carolina and that’s where his life began unraveling. From head trauma that forced him to retire from football to the recreational drugs that defined him after he left the team, all the way to his time as a youth pastor, JB has a story to tell. It’s one that will shock and inspire you all at the same time while helping you get moving in the right direction. 

“I think I was like in a state of delusion to where it was everyone else’s fault but me.” – (15:05), JB

If you’ve fallen and think there’s no way you can stand again or begin walking down a path of redemption, this episode is the one that tells you that you can. It’s an open, honest conversation where we discuss hard truths, family issues, and the beauty of healing and one you can’t afford to miss!

“I wish I could go back and play in the mind frame and state of mind that I am now.” – (18:32), JB

“When I could be me and I realized my father could accept me for me, everything changed.” – (37:41), JB

In This Episode

• (1:16) – JB discusses football at North Carolina and retiring due to head trauma.

• (2:22) – Failed drug tests also contributed to him leaving football. 

• (5:12) – JB is introduced to drugs during his junior year and the rest is history.

• (6:20) – Danny discusses the 72-hour cocaine bender.  

• (9:35) – Correlations between concussions and panic attacks. 

• (10:40) – Rehab helps JB deal with his trauma. 

• (11:40) – The scholarship situation opens up father wounds. 

• (12:20) - JB arrives at UNC and immediately gets put in the program.

• (14:27) – AD removes scholarship and JB feels his life is over. 

• (15:20) – Taking responsibility for his action helps JB immensely. 

• (16:00) – Coming to terms with who he is during rehab.

• (16:52) – JB discusses making amends to UNC. 

• (17:51) – The big game against LSU and the positive moments. 

• (18:20) – Remember the good points because they matter too. 

• (20:17) – Possible return to UNC to talk to the youngsters. 

• (21:00) – JB becomes a youth pastor in his hometown, following in his fathers’ footsteps.

• (21:41) – His wife disapproves with his decision to pastor.

• (24:24) – JB admits he is not doing his best at the church, living a double-life as a pastor and a drug addict. 

• (25:26) – The first panic attack hits and JB is unsure of what’s happening. 

• (28:47) – JB admits he doesn’t know God. 

• (29:19) – JB discloses what God told him. 

• (31:37) – Danny gives credit where credit is due.

• (35:53) – The letters his father sends him and the counselors’ reaction. 

• (36:52) – JB and his conversation with God prior to group discussions. 

• (37:30) – His father leaves ministry and it changes their relationship. 

• (38:50) – The Inner Child Healing Moment. 

• (40:13) – Laughing is what healed him. 

• (42:18) – The joy he found at rehab through the friends he made. 

• (46:50) – Hell on Earth and Heaven on Earth.

• (49:07) – The value of working out and how it helps JB. 

• (51:12) – True apologies are the best.

• (53:00) – JB attributes healing to his wife. 

Resources & Links

Off The Cuff

• https://www.offthecuff.fm/ 

• https://www.youtube.com/c/OffTheCuffwithDannyLoPriore 

• https://www.instagram.com/1and1otc/ 

• https://www.instagram.com/dannylopriore/ 

• https://www.tiktok.com/@1and1otc

JB Copeland 

• https://www.instagram.com/jb_copeland/