Podcast
Youth Inc. with Greg Olsen
Hosted by Youth Inc. · EN
Youth sports in America are at a crossroads — and Greg Olsen is here to lead the conversation forward. As a former NFL All-Pro tight end, youth coach, and father of three, Greg brings unmatched passion and perspective to Youth Inc, the podcast redefining how we think about sports, parenting, and the next generation of athletes.
Each week, Greg sits down with top athletes, coaches, scientists, entertainers, and everyday sports parents to explore what’s working, what’s broken, and what’s next in youth sports. From mental health to coaching culture, specialization to equity, no topic is off-limi
50episodes
Episodes
Newest firstAll episodes
he Pitching Ninja on Arm Care, Pitch Counts & Youth Baseball
Yesterday00:46:40Summary readyThe Pitching Ninja joins Greg Olsen for a deep dive into everything youth baseball parents and coaches need to hear — from managing pitch counts on tournament weekends to why he thinks baseball has become too expensive and too specialized. Rob Friedman breaks down how he'd build a young pitcher from scratch, why multi-sport athletes make better pitchers, and the aerospace discovery that changed how we understand pitch movement forever.🔗 RESOURCES📖 Rob Friedman's book "Unhittable" — https://pitchingninja.com/pages/book🥷 Follow Pitching Ninja — https://x.com/PitchingNinja📩 Youth Inc. Newsletter — https://www.youth.inc/newsletter🌐 youth.inc — https://www.youth.inc
SummaryJon Gordon: The #1 Mistake Parents Make in Youth Sports
1w ago00:39:55Summary readyBestselling author Jon Gordon (The Energy Bus, Training Camp, The Carpenter) joins Greg Olsen to unpack what he got wrong as a sports parent and the frameworks he wishes he'd known sooner. From the "two hats" rule that transforms the car ride home to the seven commitments that separate great teams from the rest, this is a playbook for any parent or coach who's ever struggled to find the line between pushing kids and supporting them.Greg and Jon dig into why positivity beats negativity without ignoring reality, how to connect before you correct, the brainwashing power of daily practice habits, and the parenting regret Jon wishes he could go back and fix.🔗 LINKSSign up for the Youth Inc. newsletter: https://www.youth.inc/newsletterFor more, visit: https://www.youth.inc/Follow Jon Gordon:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jongordon11/X: https://twitter.com/JonGordon11Books & Speaking: https://jongordon.com/
SummaryIs Youth Sports Destroying Your Kid's Self-Identity? | Dr. Paul Conti
2w ago00:43:56Summary readyGreg sits down with Harvard and Stanford-trained psychiatrist Dr. Paul Conti to talk about the mental side of youth sports — how failure shapes kids' brains, why pre-game anxiety isn't always a bad thing, and what parents and coaches get wrong about confidence, identity, and self-talk.Dr. Conti breaks down the shame reflex, explains why what you see on the outside of a kid isn't always what's happening inside, and shares the reframe that turns post-game frustration into forward momentum. Greg gets personal about his own parenting blind spots with his three kids.🔗 RESOURCES📖 Dr. Conti's book "What's Going Right" — https://www.amazon.com/Whats-Going-Right-Powerful-Optimizing/dp/1538776049🌐 Dr. Conti's website — https://drpaulconti.com🏥 Pacific Premier Group — https://pacificpremiergroup.comOur newsletter: https://www.youth.inc/newsletter
SummaryBONUS MOTHER'S DAY EDITION: IG Influencer Nicki Marie's Best Youth Sports Takes
3w ago00:09:59Summary readyWhat sport should your kid play? How do you keep it fun and avoid burnout? Shelby Bumgarner sits down with Nicki Marie (@nickimarieinc) — mom content creator with 1M+ followers on Instagram and 2M+ on TikTok — for her unfiltered youth sports hot takes.They talk about the youth sports landscape in 2026, what Nicki wants her kids to play, her friendship with Kylie Kelce and their shared field hockey background, and advice for sports parents navigating it all. Happy Mother's Day!
SummaryInside the League Changing Women's Volleyball w/ Courtney Thompson & Lexi Rodriguez
3w ago00:37:58Summary readyLearn more at https://www.youth.inc/lovbGreg Olsen sits down with two of the most important voices in women's volleyball for back-to-back conversations on the rise of League One Volleyball, the state of the women's game, and what it means for the next generation of girls coming up through club and college.First, Greg talks with two-time Olympic medalist and LOVB Head of Player Experience Courtney Thompson about her journey from club gyms to Olympic podiums to building the architecture of America's first-of-its-kind pro volleyball league — one that connects youth clubs directly to the pro game.Then, Greg sits down with Lexi Rodriguez — All-American libero, former Nebraska standout, and one of the brightest young stars in the LOVB Pro league — about her path from junior club volleyball to going pro stateside, the responsibility that comes with being a role model for girls watching, and why she believes American volleyball is just getting started.This episode kicks off the year-long partnership between Youth Inc. and League One Volleyball, including the launch of The Courtney Thompson Show — a flagship monthly interview series hosted by Courtney, featuring LOVB players and coaches.Learn more at https://www.youth.inc/lovb
SummaryThe Emotions of a New Youth Sports Parent with Barstool's KFC
4w ago00:42:53Summary readyKevin Clancy — better known as KFC from Barstool — went viral last week with a video about his eight-year-old son Keegan's baseball journey, and the reaction from parents across the country told him everything he needed to know. In this episode, KFC sits down with Greg Olsen to unpack the full story: putting his kid on a travel team where the competition was elite but the fit was wrong, watching his son lose confidence and nearly walk away from the sport entirely, and the tryout his ex-wife convinced him to attend that changed everything. They get into the real tension every sports parent faces — competition versus confidence, pushing versus backing off, and knowing when your kid needs to be the star versus when they need to be the role player. Greg shares coaching advice he's carried for years, KFC talks about wanting to step into coaching as a divorced dad looking for every extra minute with his kids, and they both get honest about the part of youth sports nobody warns you about: it's always the parents, never the kids.Greg also kicks things off with This or That and wraps with listener questions.Subscribe to the Youth Inc. newsletter: https://www.youth.inc/newsletter
SummaryESPN's Chiney Ogwumike on What Parents Get Wrong About Youth Hoops
Apr 2100:46:32Summary readyGreg kicks things off with a new round of Youth Sports This or That before sitting down with ESPN analyst Chiney Ogwumike for a wide-ranging conversation on raising young athletes, the WNBA's explosive new era, and the remarkable sibling story behind one of the most unlikely stat lines in sports: she and her older sister Nneka are the only siblings in major American sports history to both be drafted #1 overall.Chiney shares the blueprint behind the Ogwumike household — starting with gymnastics (yes, at the same Houston gym that trained Simone Biles), a long driveway, a dad nicknamed "Playoff Pops" who flew in from Nigeria for every big game, and the $1-per-rebound strategy that turned her sister into a rebounding machine at age 11.She and Greg also dig into what top college coaches like Dawn Staley and Geno Auriemma are actually looking for when they walk into an AAU gym (hint: it's not what most parents think), why she wasn't good at basketball until she was 14, and the case for raising specialists over stars.Plus: the WNBA's "janky to fancy" transformation, $250M expansion fees, how NIL is reshaping the international pipeline, and why Chiney believes today's young players face more pressure than any generation before them.Greg closes the episode by answering listener questions from the Youth Inc. community.
SummaryDerek Anderson: From Sleeping in Project Housing to Winning an NBA Title
Apr 1400:39:30Summary readyWhat happens when a kid has every excuse to fail and chooses not to? Derek Anderson grew up without parents, raised himself in Louisville project housing, and became a dad at 15. He still made it to Kentucky, the NBA, and a world championship. In this conversation with Greg Olsen, Derek shares why he requires parents to attend his practices, how coaches are the first business leaders kids ever meet, and what he's seen working as a mental health counselor with NBA players through the Players Association. Whether you're a parent, coach, or just someone who cares about the next generation, this one is worth your time.Subscribe to the Youth Inc. newsletter: https://www.youth.inc/newsletter
SummaryWhy a 3x Olympic Medalist Won't Put Her Kids in Gymnastics | Dominique Dawes Interview
Apr 700:47:00Summary readyThree-time Olympian and Magnificent Seven gold medalist Dominique Dawes sits down with Greg Olsen for one of the most honest conversations we've ever had on Youth Inc.Dominique opens up about the emotional and physical toll of elite gymnastics, the coaching culture she grew up in, why she started the Dominique Dawes Academy to do things differently, and why she doesn't want her four children to go through what she went through — even though it made her a champion.They also cover the pressure of representing her race as one of the first African American women in Olympic gymnastics, what it means to develop the whole child, and why she believes gymnastics is still the best foundation any young athlete can have — just not the way it used to be done.Plus, Greg answers listener questions.Learn more about the Dominique Dawes Academy: https://www.dominiquedawesacademy.comSubscribe to the Youth Inc. newsletter: https://www.youth.inc/newsletter#YouthSports #DominiqueDawes #Gymnastics #GregOlsen #Olympics #USAGymnastics #YouthGymnastics
SummaryThe College Sports Problem Hiding in Plain Sight | IMG Academy CEO Brent Richard
Apr 100:36:46Summary readyIMG Academy CEO Brent Richard joins Greg Olsen to break down what's really happening at the intersection of youth sports and college athletics. Beyond IMG's world-class boarding school and development platform, Brent dives into the supply-and-demand crisis squeezing high school athletes out of college roster spots — from extended eligibility and the transfer portal to why Olympic sports are more financially viable than headlines suggest. They unpack the Add More Athletes campaign, why families are reclassifying at record rates, and how the NCAA's inability to enforce rules is creating a system where age and experience trump development. This one gets into the business, the economics, and the policy — and it's a conversation every sports parent needs to hear.Sign up for our newsletter at https://www.youth.inc/newsletterFor more, visit https://www.youth.inc/
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