What 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

Three-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

IMG 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/

This week: Greg recaps a trip to LA that somehow ended with a 5:30 AM workout alongside Christian McCaffrey. Then Daniel Jones joins the show to open up about life off the field and the cause closest to his heart. Plus, listener questions and the debate everyone's been waiting for — what's the greatest youth sports movie of all time?

Kerri Walsh Jennings is the most decorated beach volleyball player in history. Three Olympic gold medals, a decade alongside Misty May-Treanor, and a competitive fire she'll be the first to tell you made her insecure. In this episode, digital host Shelby Bumgarner sits down with Kerri to trace the full arc: a childhood in the Santa Cruz mountains, a multi-sport path that built grit before it built greatness, and the fundamentals-obsessed coaches who shaped everything that followed. They get into what it really took to build one of the greatest partnerships in sports history, what it felt like to compete on the Olympic stage while pregnant, and what Kerri sees now as a parent and club founder that has her worried about where youth sports is heading.Sign up for our newsletter at https://www.youth.inc/newsletterFor more, visit https://www.youth.inc/

Shelby Bumgarner sits down with US Women's Hockey gold medalists Hayley Scamurra and Kelly Pannek. They break down what winning gold was really like, growing up as female hockey players, playing multiple sports as kids, and whether young athletes should specialize early.

Bestselling author David Epstein joins Greg Olsen to discuss the science behind what actually drives long-term athletic development in young people. Drawing from his books The Sports Gene and Range — and previewing his upcoming release Inside the Box: How Constraints Make Us Better — Epstein breaks down why trainability matters more than raw talent, how early specialization undermines the athletes it's meant to help, and the coaching methodology being adopted by Victor Wembanyama, Shohei Ohtani, and elite programs around the world. Greg and David also explore the research on reflective practice, why Norway's youth development model outperforms ours, and a phone study that should change how every parent thinks about homework time. Sign up for our newsletter at https://www.youth.inc/newsletterFor more, visit https://www.youth.inc/

Best-selling author Michael Lewis (Moneyball, The Blind Side, Going Infinite) joins Greg Olsen to talk about the youth sports industry — how it got so expensive, why parents keep spending, and what his own family's journey through travel softball taught him about the system. From coaching his daughters in Berkeley to watching the business side explode, Lewis breaks down what's really driving the youth sports machine.Sign up for our newsletter at https://www.youth.inc/newsletterFor more, visit https://www.youth.inc/

Greg Olsen sits down with Jim Craig — the goalie who backstopped the 1980 Miracle on Ice team to gold — to talk about what it really takes to win at the Olympics. Jim breaks down his journey from community college to Lake Placid, what Herb Brooks did that no other coach could, and why he believes this American team has what it takes. A must-watch for any hockey fan following the U.S. Olympic run.

Panthers legend Greg Olsen sits down with franchise QB Bryce Young for a conversation Carolina fans have been waiting for. Bryce opens up about everything — being told he was too small his entire life, what Nick Saban was really like behind closed doors at Alabama, getting benched in the NFL for the first time ever, and the mindset shift that fueled one of the best comeback stories in the league. Two Panthers icons, one incredible conversation.Sign up for our newsletter at https://www.youth.inc/newsletterFor more, visit https://www.youth.inc/

Greg Olsen is out this week, so Alec Ingold and JJ Jansen step in to hold it down. Alec — a Dolphins fullback who's all-in on youth development — and JJ — a 17-year Panthers veteran and dad of young athletes — sit down to talk about what actually matters in youth sports. They get into coaching youth baseball, the coach-parent dynamic, finding a role for every kid on the team, and why the lessons learned between the lines stick with you long after the season ends.Sign up for our newsletter at https://www.youth.inc/newsletterFor more, visit https://www.youth.inc/