Youth sports are supposed to be about the kids. But somewhere between travel teams, private training, exposure, money, playing time, and adult expectations, it can become hard to tell whose experience it really is. Frank Decembrino, founder of Clubhouse Baseball Academy and longtime leader of the Bo...

Expectations Can Steal the Joy of Youth Sports When does “I want to get better” become “I have to get better or I’m falling behind”? Mental performance consultant David Durand joins Rhett Parker to talk about the pressure surrounding young athletes and how quickly sports can become tied to identity,...

What does a Division I head coach actually look for when recruiting your kid? University of Washington Head Baseball Coach Eddie Smith has recruited and coached players across nearly every level of college baseball, including stops at LSU, Notre Dame, Virginia, Tulane, Utah Valley, and Lower Columbi...

Parents get called “crazy” in youth sports all the time. But what if a lot of that behavior comes from parents trying to navigate a system they don’t fully understand? Former competitive figure skater and youth sports parent Alyson Stemas joins Rhett to talk about raising a competitive young golfer,...

Parents spend years driving to practices, sitting through tournaments, paying for lessons, and helping their kids chase their dreams. But somewhere along the way, how many parents start losing themselves in the process? Bill Hoopes, longtime softball coach, tournament director, author, and founder o...

Expectations can inspire young athletes. They can also quietly steal the joy that made them fall in love with sports in the first place. Most parents don’t set out to create pressure. They simply want what’s best for their kids. But when winning, rankings, playing time, scholarships, or even the mon...

Craig Bishop: What Parents Say They Want vs. What They Actually Chase What do parents really want from youth sports? Most of us would say development. But when the pressure of competition sets in, do our decisions tell a different story? In this episode, Rhett Parker sits down with longtime coach, p...

Girls are quitting sports at twice the rate of boys by age 13 , and it’s not because they don’t love the game. In this episode of Surviving Youth Sports , Rhett Parker sits down with Coach Breanne Smedley , former collegiate volleyball player, high school coach, mental performance coach, and founder...

What if the pressure we feel in youth sports has less to do with our kids and more to do with ourselves? In this episode, Rhett Parker sits down with Jonathan Carone, founder of Healthy Sports Parents, for an honest conversation about the hidden emotions that shape so many youth sports decisions. Fr...