Episode #52: Kristina McSweeney

In this episode of the Significant Coaching Podcast, Matt Rogers sits down with Kristina McSweeney, the uber-talented Head Softball Coach at South Dakota State University. Coach McSweeney shares her unique coaching philosophy, the powerful lessons she's learned throughout her career, and her deep passion for junior college sports. Her experience in building strong, competitive programs and developing not just athletes but well-rounded individuals shines through in this conversation.

Whether you're a coach, athlete, or someone looking for inspiration, this episode offers valuable insights into leadership, player development, and the importance of fostering a winning culture.

Tune in for an engaging discussion that will leave you inspired and ready to make a significant impact on and off the field!

To learn more about Coach McSweeney and her work at SDSU, visit her staff page.

Transcript

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Welcome back to the Significant Coaching Podcast. I'm your host, Matt Rogers, and today we have an incredible guest joining us. I'm excited to share my very enjoyable conversation with the uber talented Christina McSweeney, the head softball coach at South Dakota State University. Coach McSweeney has a remarkable track record of building winning programs and shaping not only great athletes, but great people. She brings a deep passion for developing players at every level. And her love for junior college sports has been a driving force throughout her career. Her experience in junior college athletics has shaped her approach to leadership and helped her build the strong competitive culture she's now fostering at South Dakota State. In this episode, we'll dive into her coaching career, the importance of player development, and the lessons she's learned throughout her journey. Whether you're a coach, athlete, or just someone looking for inspiration, There's a lot to take away from this conversation. So let's get to it. Here's my conversation with coach Christina McSweeney. Coach McSweeney. I'm so thankful to have you on today. What's December and January like for you as that season is looming? December and January are prepare prepare film. Right now, definitely thinking about some time to be spending with our families, but and letting the girls have a time. Away from Brookings and be able to work on some things that we told them. But I cannot say prepare more, but, lots and lots of preparation, lots and lots of time spent looking into what is to come definitely in the spring of 2025. That's awesome. And I think as coaches we forget how important that time away is and to give the, to give our athletes a chance to breathe and think about other things. So I love that's a huge approach for you. I'm going to start off the ball here a little bit. Can we talk junior college a little bit? Yes, we absolutely can talk to your college. I have such a special place in my heart for junior college. I am a seminal state Trojan through and through. I can't even. If you talk about someone else day for me, I'll get emotional. But yes, junior college love, love it. I love it. And I figured that was the case cause you had such an amazing career there, all American, it was the jumpstart of your career. I'm, I've been doing this for a long time. I was a college coach for a long time. So for me, I now teach kids how to get recruited. I teach coaches how to recruit and it's amazing how many coaches get a job and they really don't have a plan on how to recruit. So for me, junior college was always that place where Kids that didn't have great grades go or kids that weren't mature enough and weren't ready to leave home that maybe could stay closer to home. But the longer I've done this, the more there's a huge depth of the type of kid that needs junior college. And probably it's going to be better off having a year or two of junior college. What was that decision like for you and why did you make that choice? That's such a great question with a very loaded answer. So my brother my older brother he was a baseball standout in Miami and played for Gulliver and was this big time recruit coming out of Florida didn't get the opportunities he wanted. And so we had a family friend tell us about Seminole State and Tony ended up going there had an incredible career there. I was at about two years behind him two and a half years behind him. And originally I was thinking about staying close to home and playing at an NAIA in Miami. And my dad came home from work one day and was like Christina, I've decided that I don't think that's a great idea for you. You're going to go to junior college. And I'm like, what? I'm like, dad, it's April. There's no way. He's here's the head coach's number. You're going to call him. And I'm like no. And he's no, you are. And my dad, this Cuban male, we're from a very Cuban family. When dad says you're going to do something, you're going to do it. So I am shaking in my boots, call Mark Dicus and leave him a voicemail. My name is Christina Siqueiras. I'm very interested in playing at Seminole state. My brother played there. I'm from Miami for what I would love to visit with you. He calls me back and he's is this a joke? And I'm like, no, sir, it's not. And he's no, sir. He second sentence was like, no, seriously which one of my friends put you up to this? And me, this 18 year old girl. Yes, this 18 year old girl. Yeah, I'm like, Sir, no, my brother played there under Lloyd Simmons. I'm trying to market myself at this point. My dad's in front of me and he's like giving me, the dad eyes tell this man what you're supposed to say. And I'm like Long story short, that's how that started and how I got to the junior college route. I was a great student. I had a couple offers out of high school, but not anything spectacular. And so my dad was like, you need to get out of Miami. You need to go to this place. It was a great experience for your brother. You're going to go to. So after some conversation with coach Dicus at the time I show up to Seminole, Oklahoma after recruiting myself to Seminole State. And I was the only out of state kid at the time. Yep. That's great. Obviously you have so much sympathy and empathy. For that kid who can really play and nobody knows they exist and they just want the opportunity, right? Absolutely. Absolutely. It's, it is for me and it's what I tell, every camper that comes through our camps or any recruits that I talked to, I'm like, look, everybody's process is completely different. And, for me, junior college worked out and it was, What I needed to be the best version of myself. I needed to get away. I needed to go to a very structured program. I needed to be with a coach that got the best of me and all the credit to Mark Dykus for everything that. The person in the player that, and the coach that I am today, but but yeah, chance, and I think you said it best, it is the chance, it's the chance to go and develop and it's the chance that you take to say, I really want to play college softball, or I really want to play a college sport, I just need a chance and yeah I have a very special place in my heart for that. You are correct. I love that coach. Yeah. My big concern sending an 18 year old to a JC, especially honestly, or even an hour or two hours away, is oftentimes those JC's don't have housing on campus. If they do, it's often small. It's not the robust residential life that you have at South Dakota State with a director of residential life and RDs and nurses and tutors and things like that. How do you see junior college from that standpoint in terms of the advice we give to that family with an 18 year old that's thinking about going to junior college out of state? What is the difference that you see between a junior college, two years of housing and living on campus compared to what they're going to get at a great place like South Dakota State? And that's a great question because I think junior colleges have really come a long way since the however many years we will keep that a secret that I played, but they've come a long way. My sophomore year was the first year that's Seminole State had on campus housing. My first year I was I had just turned 18 in June. My dad dropped me off. We lived in apartments about a mile and a half away from campus. I had to figure out how was I going to get to class? How was I going to get to practice? How was I going to get to the things that I needed to get to, food options, the cafeteria, because that's, those were the only options at the junior college. And I will tell you, I grew up very quickly. I missed my family a lot, but I grew up so fast. I made a tremendous jump from the day my dad dropped me off to my first year after junior college. My parents say it all the time. I just came back a different person. It's like I figured some things out. And I know that. The generation of parents are different because I'm a parent myself. So I understand how hard it would have been to drop my 18 year old daughter off with no car in a small town, thousands of miles away from me. But, my dad looked at me and he was like, cause my dad was the one that took me naturally. He just looked at me and he was like, Don't blow this opportunity. This is going to be hard. You're going to have hard days, but don't blow it. My mom was more emotional when I left, but for me and for my case, I was playing for my family. I had a name in the back of my jersey that meant so much to me and my dream was to play college softball and the opportunities I had when I was playing were not near the opportunities that there are now, but the junior college, I think my parents. And my family were very comfortable with Seminole because They already knew it. My brother lived it. My brother did really well. My dad trusted the people that were there. And they had such a great experience with Tony that for me, it was like, you're going to, but yeah, different is the correct word to use different in so many ways. Just the experience academically that I had at Seminole state, although it was fantastic, completely different than the four year. That I had at Barry. And even the experience that my, my current student athletes get here at South Dakota State. With South Dakota State being an R1, R2 institution, like their opportunities here for internships, research, it's insane. But I will say the academic preparation that the junior college gives, like you mentioned, the kid that needed a little bit more for me was awesome. I can't even say enough about it. I love that because as a dad, I'm thinking about my 15, almost 16 year old daughter who wants to play in college. She's a volleyball player. And I'm an old school dad with a new school heart. So part of me is I'm going to use the phrase that you, that your dad used, this is going to be hard. We've, tell me if I'm wrong, but we've lost that focus. Of why we go to college. It's to learn how to overcome. It's to learn how to deal with obstacles. It's to learn how to deal with conflict, and I think it's more important than getting a degree is learning how to deal with all those challenges you face. How do we approach that now in the world of NIL NLI just blew up, nobody, we're going to get into that in a little bit. Nobody really knows where all this is headed. We've got all this. Money being thrown at certain percentages of kids. Everybody wants a piece of it. Everybody's jumping into that portal because they the grass on the other side of the fence is obviously got to be greener. How do we get back to this is hard. You've got to learn how to deal with hard. Boy, oh, boy. And that is. That's the basis of my when I recruit younger or juniors and seniors. You said it best. I say it all the time. Your freshman fall, all you're going to deal with this change and change is hard. There's so much different going on that freshman year. You're moving out. You're on your own. Nobody's there to say, Hey, do your homework. Hey, pick your stuff up. Hey, you got to do this, that, and the other. There is none of that. You are completely, you've gone from any athlete goes from a very controlled, very, somebody's always there to help too. It's on you. And dad may come watch a practice. Mom may come watch a practice and might give you some input. You'll go to your hitting coach, your pitching coach, your defensive coach, and maybe get some help. extra reps. Now you have a full time coach that you have to impress on a daily basis. So hard is exactly the word that college athletics is now. It comes with a multitude of other different adjectives that we can use to describe, but it's hard. And if anybody says it's not hard, I don't know what they're talking about. It is hard. There are hard moments as a coach. There are hard moments as a player. There are hard moments as families and parents, because inevitably. Your daughter, a student athlete, a player that you coach is going to have a hard day or a hard week, and balancing that hard and understanding that you're going to grow from those moments. I wouldn't say that's been lost, but I think people forget that your college athletics is hard. Point blank period, and it's become harder for so many other reasons. So many outside things you talked about, NIL, social media so many distractions that come outside of just everyday competition, where you have to show up every day, do well in school, do well in practice and be a great teammate and a great person. Yeah, overcoming hard is different than when I played, but Those hard moments still happen. You're going to miss home. You're going to have a bad day in class. You're going to have a hard practice. You're going to be sick and not feel good one day and want to be home. Like those moments are what make college athletes so special to me. It's not only are they dealing with the everyday student deals with, All those things. But on top of that, so yeah, hard is exactly what it is. And I feel like reminding families that it is hard is important and saying, listen, your freshman fall, it's going to be hard. Yeah. Yeah. Just assume that's the hardest thing you've ever done. Correct. It's the hardest thing they've ever done. Granted, there are things curveballs that life throws that some people go through that others don't, going through that as an 18 year old 17 year old 19 year old, there's no preparation for it. And that's what I tell them all the time. You cannot prepare for this experience. It is something you have to live through and you're going to call home and you're going to have a rough day and you're going to need. support. And I usually tell parents because I always do a parent meeting during official visit. And I always tell them they're going to call one time and they're going to cry. And they're going to say, I don't know if I can do this. This is so hard. And I tell the parents to always say, give it some time, talk to your coach, get some support. But you're going to be okay. This is hard, but you can do it, and I always prepare our parents for that because it's inevitable. It's always going to happen. There's going to be a moment of that. But it's getting through that hard that these college athletes turn into incredible human beings. And you hit it on the just hard is it is. It just is, but it's so Powerful. Yeah. College athlete, and I was one too. I wasn't a very good one. I was, I would have cut off a finger to have a 10th of your career. And I'm talking to university presidents about this. We're really talking about how, where is education going, especially where's higher education going. There's changes that have got to be made. We're in that we're in a different century now in a different world. And. We almost have to focus all of our energy on teaching adulting and how to be an adult. And nothing does that better by being an athlete on a campus. Because there's so much that's thrown at you on top of your ego and what you expected to be and what you thought it was going to be and learning to get over that, what I call the governor of, everything's telling me I need to slow down. Everything's telling me that I need to stop when I've got to, I've got to learn how to fight through those illnesses and those doubts to get over that hump. So how do you go about that? Every coach has their core values, their core philosophies. We all call it something different. Are there things that, that you're talking to your young women about right now, before you guys even really play a game about this is who we are. This is our identity. This is how we're going to be together. What are some of those things that you're sharing with your team? That is a Teaching them adulting is definitely something that we do here and that looks so different. Some of the things that we really harp on is, Using our resources at South Dakota State. For example, I am big on, if I know they're struggling, there is no stigma here of seeing somebody. I'm always the one that's listen, go check out our counseling department. Go hang out there for an hour. They're going to listen and you're going to be able to say things maybe to them that you may not want to say to me and that's okay, they're going to give you coping mechanisms for things that I can talk about my experience and how I coped, but you're going to cope different. Everybody's different. So for us, we do a pre assessment. We obviously do the NCAA assessment for mental health, but I am such an encourager about it. Seeing someone and talking through some things. I have seen drastic just improvement in the overall stability of my student athletes by just saying, hey, this is where you need to go touring the facility, showing them where they need to go, introducing them to the people that are there to help them and telling them it's okay. So let's say they have to be late to practice because they have a mental health session. No problem. No questions asked, so for me, one of the major factors for me, for them to be successful is for them to know that not being okay is okay. And you can't get better without being able to look at yourself in the mirror one day and saying, you know what I need to go talk to somebody, or I'm not okay today. And if I'm not okay today, how can I get okay tomorrow? Or how can I get okay in a week or two? So teaching, Our student athletes that there might be a day where you know what softball is really not important. You're important and preaching to them, getting the best version of them and putting themselves first has been something that we really talk about a lot. Making sure the person is constantly being preached and not only the athlete. Josh and I, my associate head coach, we are. Adamant about before any session that we start in small group or in team, team is a little bit harder, but as we walk through, we do it, but just saying, how are you? How is your day before we even start doing any softball stuff? That way there is a sense of, if it was a bad test or if it was just a bad day, they might say, coach, I had a rough day today, but I'm ready to go. But as a coach, I have to be in tune with where they're at emotionally, because if they're not okay, emotionally, I'm not going to get the best version of the athlete. So that is something that we just harp on as much as humanly possible. We talk about that relationship building, for us, that is how we coach. We build relationships by forcing them to understand that we, yes, we are your coach, but we're also a support system. We are your first line of defense. I tell parents all the time, I don't ever want a parent to leave their daughter with me and say she's unapproachable or she's not going to get back to her or she's not going to check on her all the time. So I, we have some checks and balances here at South Dakota state. Our players meet with a coach on a coaching staff once a week. Yeah, we talk just, we could talk a little bit of softball or we cannot. We always open it up to them like, hey, what do you want to talk about? And if they don't really come up with anything, I give them a guided kind of guided notes for their meeting, for them to prepare. One of the questions was who is your collegiate idol? And we just talked about somebody you looked up to and why did you look up to that person? Non softball. So doing that has helped. me not only get to know the person, but see where their eyes are, see the things that they're thinking about. But helping them understand that this is more than just is a four year commitment to a place and to a program that is about the person and not just the athlete. For us, that is our building block and that's where we start. And then from there, everything else falls into place. We have a standard of excellence in the classroom and community service is where they have just grown tremendously. We we We do over a thousand hours in the fall, so I'm really to know that Yeah, great. They do 30 hours. Yeah, 30 hours a person here in different areas and Brookings. But they learn so much and those experiences are what they hold onto. And I feel like when you talk adulting, giving back and learning about themselves and learning about being bigger than yourself is so important. Just again, it's such a big part of adulting is learning humility and empathy. I love it. I love it. I want to just touch on this real quick and then move on. I could do an hour with you just talking about mental health. Yeah, I want to talk a little bit about communication because you touched on it. I find that the teenagers I'm working with, especially the ones that live in my house, Teaching them how to communicate and giving them the freedom to be able to say I need help Yeah, that's what is what you're really talking about because They might want to have that conversation with you But you're saying go talk to this person who's unbiased who's not going to come back at me He's not going to come back and tell me what you're talking about That conversation is going to be private, but she's going to help you talk to mom and dad Maybe you're struggling with sharing what you need to share with them, they're gonna help you have that conversation with me.'cause there might be things that you wanna share with me and you just don't know how to approach it. Is that the centerpiece of that for a teenager? I think yes. I think with, and you talked about your 15-year-old. I have a 15 and a 14. Plus two other ones. So I completely understand where you're going with this. I feel and I don't know about your children, but like my personal biological children will, they're more comfortable texting me. Then they will come in to talk to me like they are more they would more be more apt to send me a text like Hey mom, i'm having a rough day than they would to just tell me Like i'm home on the couch and they're downstairs in the basement like just come upstairs and let's talk about it so So I think for me I think this generation likes having what you said an unbiased place where they can unload whatever they're thinking about and be told like, Hey, if you want to talk to your mom about this, I can be there with you if you need me, but maybe start the conversation like this. I think the start of the conversation is where they struggle. Once they started, It's usually great, but it's like they don't know how to start a conversation and I don't know if that's maybe we could talk about a lot of things, but but I think it's the starting of the conversation and the confidence to say you can go and talk to them and they're going to love you regardless. And I'm very big on that with my players. It's look, there's not a thing you can tell me that's going to hurt my feelings. As long as you tell me in a, in the correct setting, we can talk and you can say whatever you need to say, whether it's. Hard or it's going to hurt my feelings or hurt another coach's feelings or whatever. There needs to be a space for them to be able to come in and say, you know what coach, like anything. And that way they're able to have the confidence in the future to go in and talk to a boss and say, you know what? Like I had a baby and I'm struggling right now. I need two extra days. If you don't practice that when you're 18 to 22, when are you going to do it? Yeah, it's such a it's such a hard thing for kids. Because they don't understand. We want to get to the point where we can go to work as a coach and a player. We want to talk softball. We want to talk hitting. We want to talk philosophy. We want to talk strategy. The reason you came here, we want to have those assistant coach conversations with you as a player. And I think this is where I failed as a coach. I understood it, but I didn't understand the depth. I needed to take it where I can't talk to you about those things yet because your brain is you're that puppy chasing rabbits still, every school jumps on the road, you want to go chase it and I've got to get you focused on your security as a human being, I got to get you focused on your mental health, I've got to get you, you focused on the fact that failure is okay, we're going to, Hall of Famers only hit one out of three, right? So there's so many things that I got to get you through so we can do what you came here to do. And that might take a year. That might take a year and a half, right? Yep. Yep. And I would say like to young coaches, that is the lesson that I learned over time. I am not even close to the same coach that I was when I coached in junior college. I was. Probably not my best version because as a young coach, I wanted to win, like the precedent was I was this 25, 26 year old young female head coach. And I wanted to make a statement and I wanted to be, this powerhouse. And it took me. A couple years to understand that winning is great and winning is awesome, but winning is not at all cost and not going to take precedent over my players. And I am thankful to every single player that I've ever come in contact with that has also helped shaped me into the coach I am today. Because Christina, when I first started so many years ago to the woman, the coach, I am today not even close and I made mistakes and I will 100 percent stand here today and say I was not great, but I feel like because of those experiences and how I've grown as a person and how society has changed. I am in my best self right now. I think as coaches, we just grow too. We do. We do. Yeah. Winning, you learn that winning is a byproduct of all those things we've been talking about. Yeah. Yeah. You don't win until you solve some of those things and who you are as a coach and help your kids solve who they are as individuals and how they're going to be a part of that team. A billion percent and winning is exactly what you said. It's a byproduct. That is a bonus. You recruit these players, you spend two years, max two years. Some a year, just depending on their recruiting process, getting to know them and their families, then they get here. And the things you talk about, they face failure, they face change, they face all these things, as a young coach, you don't realize that you don't think about it. But then when you have your own child and you become a parent, you learn. That these things matter. And for me to get the best version of my entire team, I need great help, mentally healthy, mentally, physically healthy human beings to get the best product. Now, can I push them? In practice, if they're okay, a hundred percent, but learning that push can't always be when I want it. It needs to be when the athlete is ready. Yeah. And it's exactly what you said. There are times where I'm like, I need to be able to teach you this and you need to learn this, but sometimes. It's not the right time and timing is what I've learned the most of. Absolutely. I, every time I coaches a season, coach a team, I do a yearbook at the end and I write a letter to the team. And I remember one of my quotes I wrote years ago was. Coaching is like wrestling a gorilla. You don't stop when you're tired, you stop when the gorilla gets tired. And that's coaching. You're constantly going until you get your kids to a place where you're like, okay, they're breathing. They're relying on each other. They're coaching each other. They're using their resources. I can breathe just a little bit. I can breathe. Yeah. And tell me how important, real quickly, how important, you talked about your associate head coach. Yeah. When you had a full-time assistant for the first time, how much did you grow as the head coach? I'm gonna get emotional talking about Josh now. Same way. I'm the same way. I'll get emotional talking about Josh. When I had an assistant at Seminole State when I started at Seminole State, Carlos and I knew each other. Actually I played at Seminole State when he played at Seminole State and he ended up marrying my roommate. So Carlos was my first assistant coach. We were best friends for the time he moved on. And then I had another friend that coached with me. He played baseball or he coached baseball at Seminole State and changed and then made the transition with me to Arkansas Tech. So I coached with him for many years. For, I believe four or five years and then Josh and I have been together for 10 years. I think we talk about him and I talk about we just do life together, him and I, like our families are always together. We're raising our kids together. I saw him get married and have his two babies that are an extension of our family, but I became a better coach when I had somebody. That I can trust next to me. And there is not a price that you can put on being able to say, close my eyes and say, Josh is doing the hitting. I'm not going to worry about the hitting. And on top of that, being able to say, we're going through something hard. I need you. And I'm okay to share, but my youngest son is autistic. And we went through just, and you can imagine as a being a parent, like going through a diagnosis and figuring out what was wrong and then dealing with the stigma of having an autistic child If I didn't have Josh and Sloan and him, his wife is also my best friend. So I get a two in one deal. But so like I needed their support. I needed them and they were there for me. And that helped me get through that because like you, I could have said, I can't keep coaching with a special needs child. Four kids and one of them special needs. But because I had Josh and I had Sloan and I had my parents, my mom and dad actually moved to Russellville during COVID to help. Yeah. Like I needed that support. And in order for me to be my best self and for my players to see the best version of me, I can't do that without Josh. I can't. And 10 years of coaching together. I couldn't imagine coaching with anybody else. You have the same brain. Yeah, we do. You can walk off the field and know that there's still a, somebody that's can run that program and run it the way you want it run. And with the investment that I have, jack Robert through and through. I know this is year three for me, but I love South Dakota State and Josh absolutely loves South Dakota State too. So it's like the investment that we put into this program and he matches my investment. He's. Yes, always growing and trying to be, a better coach in himself and for sure. But him and I work so well together because we love what we are and we want to show that to everybody. So yes, a breath of fresh air. I can't be me without him and his trust and what he brings to our program. He is incredible in every way. And I'm saying all this because I want all the university presidents out there that are have part time assistant coaches for their head coaches. I want them all to hear that value of paying somebody a living coach and recruit and to mentor there. There's no, there's not a value on it. There's not a price and I am blessed here at South Dakota State with our SWA Holly and our athletic director Justin Sell. They understand, and they're, we had a hard moment over that summer where I made a phone call and I was like, listen, and it was like, We're going to invest in our personnel. Christina, don't worry. You know what I mean? Like they understand his value to our program and his value to me. And I am so blessed where we work that they get it, and president Dunn and Justin sell and Holly, like they just are so incredible, but yes, There's not a price, no price to be paid. And it's without a doubt that you have an impressive, I don't know your president, I don't know your AD, but without a doubt, if, and this is a great transition because we're going to talk about some major D1 issues here. What you guys have done. If anybody thinks the South Dakota State isn't a major Division One program, they haven't been paying attention. What you guys are doing on the win loss record and all your sports, what you're doing, who you're competing against, the national tournaments you're going to the comp competing at a top five level in the country. Oftentimes your sports, you're on track to do that with the softball program. So that is really cool. It is an elite. University from an athletic standpoint, in my eyes. A hundred percent. It's elite in every single way. And a lot of it is just what you mentioned. Our president is invested in athletics. Our AD does everything possible to give us the resources that we need to win the support here, the investment of our community and our fans, bar to none. You're 100 percent right. If people don't know where South Dakota State is or who we are, you have not been watching for a little bit. That's right. Just go look at the rankings. Just go look at what's going on. Go look at some things. Yeah, it's pretty cool. It's pretty cool. All right, I'm gonna I want some parents and high school coaches, high school athletic directors. We're going to really speak to them for a second because it's so important because there's so much uncertainty. There's so much poor information out there. Take us into your athletic department meetings. Okay, and give as much as you can, obviously. Yeah. We've got NIL that's taken over Division One in a lot of ways. The NLI just blew up because most people don't understand that was a private institution that was handling all of the National Letter of Intent. So when a kid signed, it was a private institution that was organizing it and really running that side of it for the universities. They've decided to shut their doors. Alright, so we've got the NIL that's just crazy. You've got the NLI that just completely shut down. So now we don't have that center body to handle those signings and the organization of when I offer a kid and they sign, I don't have to worry about somebody poaching them tomorrow. I know that kid is mine. And then you have the portal. The big, the big elephant in the room. I, I, when the NLI shut down, I immediately called my contact, the NCAA. And I go, what are you guys going to do? And they go, I don't know. Yeah. We don't know what we're going to do. Okay. Now they've made some decisions. Things are gonna move in-house. What is those conversations like in your department from your athletic director? What are they telling you in terms of this is 20 24, 20 25. You got roster caps, scholarship caps have changed. What are those conversations like? And what are some hard facts that you can give us novices out here in the world about what to expect, what to teach our kids and our families about what that's going to look like in a year? I completely understand. And I think. I'm going to just talk you through what our stance has been here at South Dakota State and I would say My hat goes off to Justin Selle because he's so good about just being like let me take care of it Don't worry about it. Put your head down work hard. Do what you need to do for your programs Let us worry about you Those big things. So in our department meetings, it is more, he is our biggest fan. He's our biggest cheerleader. And he's I know these are hard topics. And I know that you guys are dealing with this when you're out recruiting and you want answers to these questions. He's but we need to do what's best for our institution and put together a plan that works best for us. moving forward and not fall into the trap of what everybody else is doing. And I think for me personally, that has really resonated with me because I don't worry about it. I put the trust in who I need to put the trust in our administration, which is incredible, but he is very good about telling the head coaches, listen, we know that you guys want, need, want to push some things forward and we need to push some things forward, but we are going to put our best product forward so that we can do it right, which to me has taught me a lot of just not being reactionary and thinking through processes and, Putting together policies and procedures that really will benefit the student athlete in the long run, if that's what we need to do. So I am very I guess the word is, I don't worry about it because I know that our team is doing everything they can to put an incredible product in front of our student athletes. So I tend to not, Overthink what other people are doing or other universities are doing, because I think at the end South Dakota State will do what's best for our student athletes and best for a university moving forward. But those big topics come up all the time. And we're able to talk about them freely and openly with our administration and they listen, and they try to find ways to meet us in the middle or to give us as much as the education as we need. So I would say for us we're still trying to put together what that part, what that looks like, and we've made a lot of ground. In the last, mainly I've only been here for three years. So the last three years I've seen so much growth in those big areas. I think we are close to putting together what is going to be really exciting. So I think we're close. But I think Justin and our administrative team, I think knowing that they also understand that those Big topics are important for coaches and student athletes and the attention that they put to it has really, I don't worry about it because I know he's got it. I'm going to do my job as a softball coach recruit and coach as best as I can for our university. And when I need answers to those, or I have a question, they're always great about answering. But I think for parents and for. Other coaches and for future student athletes, I would say ask the hard questions on visits. Hey, what does that look like here? Does that, is there opportunities here? I would say, and this is, I'm sure we'll talk about it, but even at our official visits this year, we had questions about what conference we're going to be in. What does that look like for us? Just with so much, realignment. And I respected the players and the families that asked me the hard questions, I gave them the same answer I'm giving you, our administration is working on all of that. And when they have a great product, we're going to give you access to that great product. But I would encourage those questions There's never a hard question that you should feel like you can't ask when you are promoting yourself for sure but At South Dakota State we're doing everything that we can to make a great product and to put an incredible product out for our student Athletes and our coaches for sure. Awesome. Love it. Now i'm gonna put your feet to the fire with questions You I know you've got answers too. Oh gosh, Okay. Do your best signing day. It was typically what? November 12th. What'd I say? Yeah. November 12th. NLI blows up. You got to sign kids for 25. You brought in a great recruiting class. How did signing work differently this year compared to last year? Didn't have any difference to be honest with you. There were some questions on Okay, since our institution Did a version of we since it's individual we made our kind of our own I did encourage our signing class to read through it Make sure that they had any questions with what we had on there We covered all the basis that we needed to make sure that we were complying, of course, but I had actually flawless, no issues with that transition, but I also did a lot of education in the front end. With my signing class. So like with my 2025 class, we meet with any class that we were allowed to speak to, obviously. So for us now, 25 and 26 our verbal commits and our signees, I try to zoom with them prior two or three times. And I'm like, okay, let's talk through this. This is what's going to be on the document. What questions did you and your families have as a group so that you guys get those answered? So I think the education that Josh and I did with these. Sinease in the front end is what limited any chaos for when all of a sudden we're like three weeks before and it's like we're done with NIO or NLI. Yeah, we're done with it. We're going to put it over here. It's a done thing. So NLI is a no longer. So we did a really good job of explaining that process and what they were going to see that was different. So I think that really helped. That is awesome because realistically we can do a lot of copying pasting to what NLI has been for 30 years, right? Yeah. That part is fairly simple. What's not simple is it's no longer a national letter of intent. It's a South Dakota State University letter of intent. Are you concerned big picture wise? Yeah. Are you concerned about where this is going to go from a poaching perspective, coaches calling your players at other schools? Are you concerned about the lack of, I'm trying to find the word here, to secure that NLI in a way you can feel like, okay, this kid committed to me, I've committed to them. We're going to go down this road together and we don't have to worry about a lot of outside sources. Are you concerned about where that's at? I have a different approach for that. And I get this question a lot. And we could talk about that with the transfer portal, because I think they're similar because they're almost about the same. I work with incredible coaches here in South Dakota state Hendo being one of them. He's our men's basketball coach. Him and I have very similar philosophies when it comes to this at the end of the day. I focus my attention on the relationships I'm building with the current team that I have right now. If a player comes and tells me, Christina, I have a better opportunity or I was contacted by coach Susie Softball, And it's a better opportunity for me and my family. I am nobody to be like, don't go do that. What I focus on is making this experience the best possible experience that they can have. I try. To not worry about stuff like that. Okay. And I try not to think about it. However, there's a big, however, there, I would be lying to you. If I told you that it doesn't cross my mind on a continual basis that it doesn't cross my mind. My current 25 class, when they're out there playing and they're having a great tournament and I am just one person. And the four, my, my coaching staff is out recruiting and I have a player that goes three for four, hits two bombs in front of a bunch of Power Fours. Does it make my stomach sink? I would be lying to you if I said no, because it does. And I can't be at 17 places at the same time. Am I, do I worry about it in the sense of, can they leave? They can can they be approached by their coaches? And I think if that's gonna happen, it's gonna happen regardless of whether I'm worried about it or not. I think at the end of the day, if they're getting what they want out of South Dakota State and their coaching staff and their experience here, I hope and pray that their experience holds them here at South Dakota State, but I want somebody that wants to play for me and for this And at the end of the day, it's like if they so choose to feel like, Hey, I got a phone call and I think this is what's best for me You know, it's hard as a coach because you pour into them, of course, and you try to make them their best self and you coach them hour after hour, but, I can't control that. So I try not to focus on the things that I can't control. I really try to do an amazing job of keeping my focus on. What I can't control and the things that I can't control, which is experience and coaching and making it everything that they want. But what is that going to look like? My philosophy would be exactly like yours. I don't think you can think any differently. My concern is I want the NCAA to be that governing body that makes us as coaches have to work with integrity, have to work with respect of our peers. You did the job of finding that great kid, developing that great kid, convincing them to come there. You saw the value in them that other coach at the Power Four did not. Or didn't put the effort in. Okay I want the NCAA to say, these are our rules here. Yeah, we're going to work this way because we're going to respect each other. Now, if that kid wants to jump in the portal on their own, and they're in the portal. And you want to make a phone call to them. Go for it. Yeah. So that's where my heart is. And maybe it's a thousand times naive, but I liked working in that world as a head coach, knowing, Hey, I worked hard to sign to develop this kid. If they come to me, they can play at a higher level or they think they can do better. Again, I was going to be that coach. It was going to do everything for them to help them get there. If they thought that's what they needed, I don't want somebody poaching my kids. I don't want somebody poaching your kids that you're developing. So I hope we get there at some point. Maybe we won't, but I, yeah. And I would hope, I'm biased with softball. I feel like the softball head coach and I have, I just, and I know it happens, but I'm biased where I would hope that if we were in that situation, in that. That coach would at least call me and say, Hey, Christina, I'm going to call so and so I'm sorry, and I feel like in self was a different, it's a different animal, but I just feel like those coaches are a little bit more upfront and honest and respect each other a little bit more but yeah, it would be nice to, I don't know. I think with the flexibility of the portal, I think. The opportunity for student athletes that you have at any institution to jump in there are just as much as the kid that you sign that's right. Yeah, I'm with you. I appreciate your thoughts on it. It's just so I don't know why it sits in my craw where we're at right now. I just there's certain things I want us to get past and get more comfortable with and have some consistency with last question about that. OK, this year your cap was 12 scholarships. The NCAA is now said 25 is where you can go as that affected your philosophy as a university. That change. No, I've continued to work as I've been working the last three years. I think that roster cap that change in scholarship whole thing. I'm going to still recruit the same kid, and if I go up against the university that can give them more or they choose to go there. That's okay. That's part of my job. I'm not going to get everybody that I want. Unfortunately, of course. And if I'm not recruiting that same kid that a maybe 25 scholarship school is going after, then I'm not doing my job at South Dakota state, if that makes sense. So what to me, What has it changed for me? Not very much if I'm being super honest. I don't know how many softball programs are really able to fund that 25 scholarship. I would say it's a bear. Yeah. It's a small pool. I'm sure. So for me, it's what I continue to tell my student athletes and the recruits that I'm going after. It's I don't know what they can do, but this is what I can do here. And this is the experience you're going to have here, but it hasn't changed our philosophy at all. Josh and I talk a lot about recruiting and a lot about the changing face of the NCAA and the things that are changing within softball and all that stuff. But, we've been firm on. We got to go out and get the best possible athlete for our program and not let those distractions distract us from what we really need to do. But I don't think it's changed. It's interesting to hear what some of those programs are going to do with that. I think that's good information for the growth of our university and our support program in the long run. So I think it's an educational piece for me, for sure. Hearing how those programs that are. Getting those opportunities are able to put that together because it's not as clear cut as it sounds. It's not as clear cut as here's 25, you have to still be within certain parameters. But for me it's business as usual. I don't, I try not to get caught up in, those opportunities for those other universities because I need to make mine my best. So what's your perfect roster size? Do you have my perfect roster size? That's a great question because right now I currently have a larger roster. And if I told you my number, you probably would get shocked. But I do have a larger roster this year, so I have 32 on roster this year, which is a little bit bigger than most universities have. For a lot of different reasons, I got to that number. When I got here, I didn't know how many student athletes were going to say my 24 class. I wasn't really on time for there was just a lot of things that I had to do to be able to get to where I needed to get. But we traveled 20 so we travel. A 20 man roster on the road. I think anywhere between 24 and 28 is good. It gives us a good number to inner squad. I'm a big inner squad person. Yeah, that's a lot of our time is spent doing things like that. 24 to 28 is pretty good with me. It has not been as, Much as I thought having 32, it's been fine. It's created a lot of competition, which is exactly what I wanted. I wanted a competitive atmosphere. So when you have, when you're able to put a bunch together and they're working really well together, it just, it's actually been pretty good. So I would say anywhere between 24 to 28 and a solid travel roster of 20 to 22, if that makes sense. How many of your kids, and feel free to not answer this if you want, but how many of your kids are on full athletic scholarship compared to stacking to get them to full, with their academics? I would say we do stack here. I would say a majority of our student athletes are in a stacked approach. I would say, since we're, like you said, we have the 12 full we have to put some things together to be able to, Give student athletes the opportunities in the, be able to compete with other universities. So I would say we stretched that 12 quite a bit. And again, don't feel like you have to answer this percentage of that 32 or on some kind of athletic scholarship. I would say somewhere between 60 to 65 percent of them probably trying to get your travel roster to full scholarship as much as you can. I would have as much as we can. Yep. And, I would say in that number, maybe even closer to 70 or 75%. That's it. That's a Josh question. He's my finance guy. But I would say our core nucleus of players. So anywhere between you got to have, like you said, your travel roster has to be on some type of financial benefits for us to be able to compete. So yeah we try to stretch that 12 as much as we can. And that goes back to your recruit, how you recruit. You're looking for those academic kids good GPAs, good test scores, prove proven commodities in the classroom that have earned the right to get a little bit of that academic scholarship to, to take some of that pressure off of you, I would imagine to build the roster you want. A hundred percent. So we look for those things and we're very upfront and very honest about, Hey, this is. This is how we're going to get there. It's a little bit, it's a little bit untraditional, but this is how we're going to get there, and then, of course, in any Coach in any university will tell you, the ability to move off campus after their sophomore year that scholarship gets to go a little bit further because of prices and they're able to manage their food a little bit different when they're not on a meal plan and all that good stuff. So when you're looking at percentage or dollar amount and stuff, you can see how it grows over time, if that makes sense. It almost gets bigger as you go. The reason I ask is I try so hard to create structure for families to understand what you're having to deal with because it's so different at every school. Outside of volleyball, basketball, football, division one, everybody is stacking and most people don't stand that, you don't, you, even though the rules have changed, you still don't have the scholarship dollars say, yeah, we're 25 kids a full ride. It just doesn't work that way outside of. Division one football, volleyball and men's women's basketball. So anytime I can give families a little bit more structure to how coaches like you are having to go about that it's very helpful for them to hear that. So I appreciate you being open to things that I know are really hard to be open about. Yeah, and I think, at the end of the day, very few percentage of female softball players get a pro experience. This is what I usually tell families. I'm like, listen, they're going to go pro in something other than softball. Now, would I love to coach 15 professional softball players? 100%. Would I die trying to get them there? 100%. But, at the end of the day, the education piece, to me, I still value that. bachelor's degree that they're going to graduate from here to me is something that they'll have forever. So how we get there may look different, but we're still going to get there. If that makes sense. Awesome. Love it. All right. I have coach. You are so great. I'm so thankful for you. I hope you'll do a webinar with me at some point where we can maybe do something where we can talk live with some families and take some Q& A and do a town hall, but we'll do that because you are so good. And I understand why you're doing so well. Would you mind doing a little rapid fire recruiting with me real quick? Alright, and this is really hard because I know you could write a book on this. So me answer some of this in 30 seconds, 45 seconds, I know it's really hard. You're on the recruiting tail trail. What are you looking for in a pitcher? Oh, a pitcher. Perfect. Things that just like height, speed. What are those things that you just gotta have? And then maybe an intangible or two. When I'm looking at a picture or I'm walking in and I'm going to watch a picture, I'm looking for mound presence. 100 percent non negotiable to me is mound presence. So I want a confident picture. Okay. I want a picture that gets on the mound, knows what she wants to throw, knows what the sequence is. I want a picture that knows the game. I don't know if that makes sense, but I, when I'm watching, when I'm watching, I don't want a picture that is reliant on somebody else making those big decisions. Matter of fact, I have a lot of respect for pitchers that will shake pitches. So if they have a pitching coach and they're like, no, I don't wanna throw that. I'm okay with that because that shows me. You're in the game. You want to throw what you want to throw and you're confident in that decision, whether it works out or not. To me, that's a sign of leadership. So non presence is a non negotiable for me. I look for ability to change planes. So whether that's up, down, left that to me, And change speed. It's precedent over the speed factor. Now, with that being said, there have been a lot of pitchers that have been successful in Division 1. 61 to 63. And then of course there's the 70 plus, so I think to me, it's the ability to manipulate the softball that takes precedent over the speed. Now, if you're an above average thrower, so somewhere between 67 to 70 or 65, the 2026 year, the 2025 year, I'm like, okay, I can work with that, like when there's a high velocity kid, you're like, okay, I can teach her how to move the ball, but those are some things I look for, intangible things. I like high energy pitchers. So I like the picture that's going to turn around and make good contact with the infield. That's going to say, Hey, me and you, or is in a softball game. I like that. Intense. I like in 10 full pictures, if that makes sense. Love that. Yeah. I always tell families when they ask why does the coach need my transcripts? We told them my grades. The transcript verifies what you tell them. Do you take a gun? Do you take a radar gun? I do. Every single coach I have on our staff has a radar gun. Because for years I would have kids call me or email me and say, I'm six foot three. And then I would go to the game and it was pretty obvious. They were only six foot one or five 11 and a half, so I want parents to understand that if you're going to put something on a profile or on a resume, or you're going to tell coach something, you better be able to back it up. Correct. And I think that is a great point. So for me if you tell me, or even summer coaches for me, like academy coaches or however, program directors, when they're like, Oh, I have a picture and she throws 65 miles an hour. I'm like, okay, I'll go watch her and then I'm going to get my own assessment because there's a difference between a bullpen and a game, if you're in a controlled setting where there's no pressure and yeah, you can hit those numbers pretty easy, but when there's a batter in the box and you can't miss middle, I want to see what that number looks like too. That's right. Yeah. We are very intentful on getting our own metrics in games. So stopwatch, we carry stopwatch, radar, all of that good stuff. Yep. You might be able to throw a 68, but if you can't hit the backside of a barn, it doesn't matter how fast you're throwing it, it goes back. Changing speeds. Throwing strikes. Correct. I'm gonna, I think I'm gonna go on the order that you probably recruit priority wise. Okay. Catchers, catcher is similar, for me. A catcher with an elite transfer is probably the thing I look for the most. And again to explain transfer, it's the time with ball in ball out, ball to the bag. An elite transfer is important to me. The ability to, Fight for strikes. So I caught in junior college. I want to be able to see a catcher that's going to fight for their pitcher and fight for pitches. And you could do that if you're an elite framer. I look for that. I look for the ability to be able to control the down ball. So how great do you block? Cause I think that is a skill that takes time. And I know that younger catchers that doesn't come easy. It's hard to get in front of a ball that's 65 miles an hour and put your body in front of it. I totally get that. And then to me that the catcher is the quarterback. So is the catcher able to take verbal cues or nonverbal cues from their pitcher and be able to call timeout and be like, Hey, let's see. Let's get back on the same page or the pitcher walks to two hitters. Are you going to be strong enough to call time out and be like, Hey, where are you at? Let's talk about some things. This pitch is missing. This pitch is not missing. But to me, a pitcher is only as good as their catcher. So if your catcher is not intentful with their pitcher, and I'm not saying you have to talk the entire game, but even in between innings, I want the catcher to go to the pitcher and say, Hey, you had a great inning. This pitch is working. This pitch is not working. I definitely look at catchers that are intentful with their pitchers, if that makes sense. I love it. Yeah. Complete sense. You find that if there's. An above average and an excellent communicator Pitcher relationship developer That's a good catcher. Do you find that's something you'll value and say we're going to teach them a quicker path We're going to teach them how to increase their pop time We're going to teach them how to deal with those balls in the dirt fray and get their chest on top of it Do you find that's really what you got to have is that great relationship builder that great leader back there more than anything else? Yes, I think The building blocks and the fundamental work of a catcher you can teach. Defense is I think something you can always teach and get better at, but I think The confidence and the soft IQ that a catcher needs to have to make your team successful is vital. It's vital. It's, it, there's not a price for that. So to me, a catcher that is vocal, a catcher that has great relationships with their pitchers and it's great in the pen and great on the field understands our cut system, like just a high softball IQ kid. I would tend to lean towards now granted an elite pop time a 165 or 17. You've got to go after that. Of course, you got to chase that. Yeah, I'm with you, but I love it. Yeah. But like the intangible of being able to catch and control a softball game is something that I very much find myself looking for a lot. I know I could just go shortstop here and then everything else. But talk just maybe a couple of things, what you're looking for from an infielder. With infield, it's a lot about specific. So if we go mid middle infield ability to create angles and to take away base hits, so how good are you? First step is really important to me. Arm strength, being able to throw from different angles again, release points. So if your arm isn't as strong, but your transfer is elite, that changes the game a little bit for me. So ability to get the ball out of your glove is really important. Middles more than corners. So When I'm looking middle infield, I also like to see a middle infield that communicates with the corner outfielders in the center fielders that are able to think through. I really like to see when middles are able to say, Hey, it's a lefty stopper and they don't need their coach to move them to manipulate a strategic defense. But mainly in that shortstop area. Just clean defensively in the sense of good feet. So Josh and I really look for good feet, good footwork, able to keep the glove in front of you, fielding balls in front and moving in the direction in which the ball takes you. So where are you moving? Corner infielders. So third base, first base, obviously first base, a confident first baseman that is able to save a lot. So I look for a first baseman that picks. I think that is a, is the size of the target matter to you? No. You're looking for picking more than having a big six one frame over there. No, I wanna, I want a good defender, so I want somebody, because if you look at it and I guess. You and I for sure would, I'm going to look at this stat now when we get done, but for me, more balls tend to be on the grounds and they are in the air. And I teach my infielders. If you're going to miss slope, if you miss high, we may not get it, but if you miss low, we always have a chance. So I want a good. Hey, defensive first baseman height is not right. And then a third baseman. I just want a no fear. No fear. Put my face in front of it. Give me that ball as fast as you can. Yeah. Yeah. I want that type of third baseman and a third baseman that can throw on the run. That's really important for me because I don't think that's talked about enough, but being able to throw. with your feet moving. Yeah, are you a believer of pick and find that angle? Or do you like them to plant and go? I am, I teach both and then I tell them pick one, pick which one you feel is best for you. If I don't agree with it, then we will revisit it. But I teach both actually. And here's the thing with outfields. So I like speed in the outfields because I like speed in general, but we look for outfielders that are able to cover a lot of grounds and are able to move in different directions. Now, I say that and in the same breath, I will say, if it's a power hitting outfield that doesn't run or run as well, I can give and take a little bit, but, outfield skills to me, I also played outfield when I was in, when I went to Barry. Just. being able to do the little things in the outfield that'll save you a step or two. So good body positioning when you're throwing to a base. If your hips are facing one way and you're throwing another way, to me, you're not putting yourself in the best position. Ability to not give up an extra base. So more often than not, you'll understand this. I see a lot of outfielders that want to show off their arm and There's a runner at first and there's a ball down the line and they're going to try to get that runner out at third and show off their arm strength. I already know that you have a good arm because I probably watched you take your warm up, but are you smart enough to know to keep that runner off second base? Yeah, keep that second runner. Yeah, so So for me it's those IQ things that, that I look for in the outfield. Ego is not the greatest thing for an outfielder when you're right. I don't care. Not that I don't care, but I've probably already assessed your arm strength. If I went to your game, like I'm watching you throw pre inning or Pre game. So I don't need to know that you can make that throw. I need to know if you're going to make a great decision and keep that runner out of scoring position. So those little things are the things that I absolutely look for. I love it. Cause a good outfielder, if they've got read the ball off the bat, really well, get a great job in positioning. They're positioning smart. They get the ball out of their glove quickly. Get it to the right infielder, get it to the right, relay. It can make up for a lot of deficiencies, correct? And hit the cutoff. That's right. Like we just have forgotten about hit the cutoff, I feel and more often than not, I'm like, we have a cutoff, hit the cutoff, they can always redirect, depending on where we are in the game, I'd give up an out for a run, just hit the, you're right, at the end of the day if good outfielders take one thing out of this, just hit the cutoff, it's going to be okay. That's right. You hit the cutoff and everybody freezes. Everybody pauses for a second. There's jobs, people from running when the ball is not being, yes, I love it. Coach, you're so good. You're I'm so thankful for you. Thank you for being a coach and thank you for your love of your kids. I've got one more question. I'm going to let you get on today. Give my audience one piece of significant advice. It doesn't even have to be about, softball, but what's one piece of advice you think families, high school coaches, especially these teenagers that are, they're going to be hearing this, give them a little wisdom. Oh, that can be a good I'm going to share a personal story. Instead of giving some advice and with this personal story, I'm going to lead into the advice. When I was a freshman at Seminole State I was the, one of the only few minority kids on the team that was far away from home and it was a hard adjustment for me. I came in thinking I was this Miami kid playing in this itty bitty town and I had a little bit of an ego coming into it. And very quickly I realized that I wasn't as good as I thought I was. And a lot of work to do. And that didn't come without a lot of tears. And I remember specifically having a really bad day, just Bad day at school, bad day at practice. My coach got upset at me that day and I could close my eyes and remember this day. I somehow make it back to my apartment and I call my dad and I'm like, call my dad. And I'm like, what a typical teenager would do. My coach hates me. This is too far away from home. I don't know if I can do it. I'm never going to play here. I just caught my dad at work and I just. Have that moment. My father answers me after I just go on this rant and I'm crying, of course, emotional. I'm 18, my dad says, Christina, thank you for calling me, but I need to tell you something. And I'm like, okay, I was hoping he was going to consult. And he's I'm going to tell you something. And he said, I am here working a nine to five. To give you the opportunity that I never had you are doing what I would have dreamt to do and what other girls your age would have would be dreaming right now to be in your position. So do me a favor. If you're going to call and complain about your perfect opportunity that you're having right now, call your mom and he hung up. And so I, it it, my initial reaction was like, Did my dad just do that to me? I called my mom right away. I taught my mom, my mom hears me out, but I'm 43 years old and that conversation changed my life. Yes. It made me the person and the woman I am today because my dad didn't say, you're right, Christina, he hates you. No, my dad forced me. He showed me that things are hard. And that even though it's hard, I was blessed with an opportunity that very few people had. And I am who I am today because my dad parented me in a hard moment. I could not imagine what he felt when I called and I was crying and I was upset and it was a bad day. I wouldn't, I couldn't imagine that moment. But him being able to say, you are not going to gripe to me about an incredible opportunity. And you're not going to gripe to me about having to work hard is why I am the woman I am today. I am very thankful that he made me call my mom because my mom did. My mom did listen and we had a good conversation. But when I go back to a hard day or when I've had hard moments as a head coach, when I've had a hard moments as a parent as all the different hats that I wear I think of that phone call to my dad and that is what's gotten me through. A lot of hard moments. It's you know what? Suck it up and get going. Find a solution. Find a solution. Don't suck on the problem. And he did call me back credit to my dad, just in case he hears this. He's a wonderful father. I have the most incredible parents. My mom is my best friend, but my dad. Just didn't give me a space for that. There was no space for that in our house. No space. My brother made the same phone call to him two years before my dad told him the same thing. So it wasn't a difference between daddy's girl and the boy. It was like, look, we're working right now for y'all to have these opportunities. Take advantage of the opportunities, buy in, do what you need to do. And then if it doesn't work out, great, but give it your best shot. So my advice to student athletes, to families, to parents, However hard it is for you to be on the other end of that phone call, empower them. Don't limit them. Give them empowering words. Give them love and support them through whatever they're going through, but empower them to get through the hard and give them the resources and have them reach out to get those resources. For student athletes, it's going to be the best four years of your life, but It might look different. There might be changes. There may not be. But just give it all you have. Pour your heart into it. Get the best that you can out of the coaches and out of the university that you're blessed to attend. And walk away from your experience saying, I gave it all I had. Because I think that in itself will take care of a lot. 100%. And I would, I have a feeling that if we had a camera in your dad's office after he hung up the phone, he was like, what did I just do to my little girl? That's how I would feel. I'm going to give you what you need, but the fact that I have to do it is soul crushing. I have a feeling that's your dad's character. Oh, 100%. And a lot of it goes back to, my raising and, we're first generation Cuban American. So we fought for everything that we've had, but my dad, I would hope that maybe it hurt his heart to tell me that I would hope he never has told me if it has or it hasn't, but but I'm thankful for parents that, That pushed me to be my best self in very good moments for sure. Hallelujah. Absolutely. Say hello to your mom and dad. I hope they're both doing well. Yes, I will. I get to see him in a couple of days, so I'm excited. Coach, thank you so much for your time today. It has been a pure joy. I've had a blast. I hope this wasn't too painful for you, but I enjoyed it. It was great. And hopefully we can do it again soon. We'll be cheering for the Jackrabbits. Go crazy and have a great year. All right. Go Jacks. Thank you. What an inspiring conversation with coach Christina McSweeney. Her insights on leadership, player development, and the importance of junior college sports are truly valuable. Whether you're coaching, playing, or just interested in the journey of a passionate leader, I hope you found some key takeaways from today's episode. I know I did. Thank you for tuning in to this episode of the Significant Coaching Podcast. If you enjoyed the conversation, don't forget to subscribe, rate, and leave a review on your favorite podcast platform. Your feedback helps us bring more meaningful content to coaches and athletes everywhere. And as always, keep striving to make a significant impact both on and off the field. If you're looking to take your recruiting to the next level, you can schedule a recruiting strategy session with me, purchase my book, or even book me to speak at your school organization. Just head over to CoachMattRogers. com to learn more. Until next time, keep striving, keep leading, and keep making a significant difference in your part of the world.