Ballers with Babies: Recent Episodes
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I'm Mark Willard and I'm excited to bring you the "Ballers with Babies" podcast, where I interview the top names in sports about the intersection of sports with family & parenting life. I’m thrilled to have the opportunity to go a little deeper and humanize these stars of sport. With each guest, we’ll get to hear where they came from, how they achieved success, and how they blended that with their family life at home. We’re all tired of canned answer interviews. I promise that each episode will give you something you've never heard before.
George Wrighster joins Ballers with Babies.
Find George's podcast here: https://unafraidshow.com/
Actor and comedian Rob Riggle joins Ballers with Babies to discuss family life, his latest projects, and more.
On this week's episode of Ballers with Babies, Jim Leyritz discusses his experience playing for so many different teams while trying to keep his family together, how he overcame mistakes and found a new purpose in life, and what the current Yankee squad filled with homegrown talent compares to the mid-90s teams.
Jordan Palmer joins Ballers with Babies and shares why he turned out to be a better coach than player, his model for successful parenting, and whether or not Josh Allen and Sam Darnold are ready to start.
Former NBA player and European basketball star Casey Jacobsen joins Ballers with Babies and shares what it was like playing and raising a family in Europe, what it was like going back to Stanford to complete his degree, and why he thinks Lebron made the right decision coming to the Lakers.
On this week's episode of Ballers with Babies, Matt Chatham shares what it was like playing for Bill Belichick, memories from the Janet Jackson Super Bowl halftime snafu, and what it's been like transitioning from playing football to now covering it.
Brady Quinn joins Ballers with Babies and discusses why he feels his NFL career ran short, if he still has animosity towards USC for the "Bush Push" and what it was like playing with Tim Tebow.
Willie Roaf joins Ballers with Babies and discusses the challenges of parenting after a break-up while also being a professional athlete, how he’s matured since his NFL playing days, and shares his thoughts on Terrell Owens skipping out on the Hall of Fame induction.
Olden Polynice joins Ballers with Babies and shares what he learned from his playing days in the NBA, what it was like being traded for Scotty Pippen, and his advice for DeMarcus Cousins.
In this week's episode of Ballers with Babies, former NCAA basketball coach Steve Fisher joins to discuss life after coaching, how he recruited the "Fab 5" at Michigan, where he see's the future of college basketball heading, and what it was like coaching Kawhi Leonard.
Actor Omar Epps joins Ballers with Babies to discuss his new book, "From Fatherless to Fatherhood."
Dahntay Jones, former NBA player, joins Ballers with Babies. Among topics discussed include why he initially wasn't interested in playing for Duke, what he thinks of Draymond Green, how he came to discover Al Harrington is his cousin, and where he thinks Lebron James will sign in free agency.
On this week's episode of Ballers with Babies, Paraag Marathe joins to discuss his role running the 49ers - from blocking out the noise and the critics, managing a full workload with two young kids, what's it like negotiating NFL contracts, and what he learned from the great Bill Walsh.
Jeff Pearlman, New York Times best-selling author and sports writer joins Ballers with Babies.
Former NFL defensive back and Super Bowl champ, Toi Cook, is this week's guest on Ballers with Babies. He shares the role coach Jim Mora played in his first son being born, whether or not he regrets playing football, the issues he has with the NFL concussion lawsuit, and why he's not a fan of early sport hyperspecialization.
On this week's episode of Ballers with Babies, former MLB infielder Kevin Youkilis joins the show.
Topics include: What he’s been up to since retiring: his new brewing companyThe best years to develop children in sportsHow he was impacted by being told he wasn’t good enough at baseball growing up… athlete hater adrenalineWhy he uses meditation and breathing to become a parentThe role of religion in his lifeThe differences in how he was parented vs how he parentsThe story of how his college coach told his dad he would become a millionaire somehowWhy he such a big advocate of supporting charitiesThe reason he decided to finish his career playing in JapanWhat makes good beer Stick to Sports: What he likes and dislikes about analytics in baseballHis feelings putting the Yankee uniform on at the end of his careerWhat it was like facing Ohtani in JapanHis favorite nickname
On this episode of Ballers with Babies, Rodney Peete shares what it’s been like raising a family with the cameras on them, how to make the best of the transition from pro athlete to retirement, what concerns him most about this generation’s kids, and his thoughts on this year’s NFL Draft.
Ephraim Salaam joins Ballers with Babies and among the topics discussed include: the reason he waited until after football to have kids, why he won’t let his kids play football, and what he thinks NFL teams do wrong when evaluating players before the draft.
Former NBA player Jim Jackson joins Ballers with Babies and shares his experience playing for 14 different NBA teams, not knowing about his son for the first 5 years of his life and then building a relationship with him, and what he would do if he could make one change to the NBA.
On this week's episode of Ballers with Babies, Gotham Chopra shares what it's been like working with some of the greatest athletes in sports history - Tom Brady, Kobe Bryant, and now Lebron James - who all have managed parenting at the same time.
On this week's episode of Ballers with Babies, Caron Bulter shares how he survived a tough upbringing and what he's up to in his post-NBA career.
Nick Hardwick joins Ballers with Babies and shares how he was able to lose so much weight post-football career, whether or not concussions have impacted his life, what it meant to protect Phillip Rivers, how difficult the Chargers move to LA has been for him.
Former NFL quarterback Ryan Leaf joins Ballers with Babies and discusses his growth as a person, getting involved in sports broadcasting, why athletes and military veterans face similar issues post-career/post-service, his thoughts on athletes coming out about mental health issues, and if he thinks Baker Mayfield will excel at the pro level.
On this week's episode of Ballers with Babies, Ryan Wendell shares what it was like playing for the Patriots, the worst parenting advice he's ever received, and how he's adjusting to his post-NFL life.
Jill Arrington joins Ballers with Babies to share her path to success in a male-dominated industry.
Curtis Conway joins Ballers with Babies and shares what it was like having Muhammad Ali as a father-in-law, why football is an important outlet for those in poor communities, why he struggles with spoiling his kids, and how to combat burnout in youth sports.
Marcellus Wiley shares why he almost quit football at age 12, what it was like growing up in Compton, how his family deals with the spotlight, the reason he became a Clipper fan, and why he thinks the Chargers made the right decision coming to LA.
Rob Ryan is this week's guest on Ballers with Babies. He shares how he's managed coaching and raising a family, what it was like having a dad as an NFL coach, why he's better looking than his brother Rex, and coaching under Bill Belichick.
Matt Leinart is this week’s guest on Ballers with Babies. He discusses his dominant run coaching his son, Cole, in flag football, why he retired, why he still believes football is a great game for kids, Sam Darnold leaving for the NFL, and more.
Former NFL linebacker, Kirk Morrison, joins Ballers with Babies. He shares how football helped shape his parenting style, realizing his dream of becoming a Raider, the best organizations in the NFL, how he used an alter ego to differentiate the person he was on the field from off the field, and why he thinks players are misunderstood by fans.
Matt Barnes joins Ballers with Babies and shares what it’s like having twins boys, how he’s different on and off the court, the situation with Derek Fisher, why he’s so close to Draymond Green, and what his plans are now that he’s recently retired.
Baltimore Ravens running back Danny Woodhead joins Ballers with Babies and shares how he's managing 4 kids under the age of 6, how being undrafted motivated him, and what it was like playing for BIll Belichick.
Former PGA golfer and current broadcaster Arron Oberholser joins Ballers with Babies and discusses the importance of avoiding burnout, letting your kids make their own decisions, what it was like playing golf with Tiger Woods throughout college, and why so many millennials are dominating the PGA tour.
Ryan Hollins joins Ballers with Babies and shares what it was like having kids young, playing basketball overseas, how he got the nickname "Booty Call" and why he believes every player should look out more for their own brand.
Former MLB pitcher Jim Abbott joins the Ballers with Babies podcast to discuss his life off the field, if he had any hesitancy having kids due to being born with only 1 hand, his thoughts on the current state of baseball and more!
On this week's episode, Mark Schlereth discusses the struggles athletes endure finding purpose post-football, how he got into the food business, and why he still believes football is a safe sport for kids to play.
Kenyon Martin joins Ballers with Babies and gives us a peak into how he raises his kids, the importance of getting an education, and what retired life looks like for him.
Keyshawn Johnson joins Ballers with Babies to talk family life including his parenting style, his knack for identyfiying talent at a young age, why he pulled his son out of Nebraska. In the final segment, Mark and Keyshawn "Stick to Sports" and discuss whether or not Sam Darnold is the real deal.
On the pilot episode of Ballers with Babies, former NBA player and current Los Angeles Lakers broadcaster, Mychal Thompson joins the show to share his experiences raising his 3 sons. He is the father of basketball players Klay Thompson, and Mychel Thompson, and baseball player Trayce Thompson.