Episodes

Kristen Phillips

She played professional basketball in the WNBA, FIBA, and European Super League, being named the latter’s Player of the Year in 2009. After her playing career she spent seven years as the Associate Head Women’s Basketball Coach at Seattle University, a Division I level school.  During that time, she also earned her master’s degree in Sport Business Leadership.  As a student-athlete she had been a four-year starter and three-year captain and Defensive Player of the Year at the University of Washington, following a high school career during which she was an All-American and Gatorade Basketball State Player of the Year.

Notable guest quotes:

“I’m a cradle Catholic… We were a busy sports family and it made a real impression on me that wherever we were — tournament or going from gym to gym or baseball field to baseball field — wherever we were, however busy we were, we always made it to Mass every weekend.”

“Off to college and then overseas I always made a point to get to Mass no matter where I was.”

“A conversation started in class about euthanasia, and I remember sitting there and the longer I sat there not saying anything the more uncomfortable I felt within.  And I just thought, ‘We are called to share the gospel.  We are called to speak the truth.’  And so, after a while I just couldn’t not say anything… It’s important to speak the truth.”

“My faith was always something I tried to keep in the center.  So, always going to Mass, recognizing ‘this is my true identity’.”

“When I was overseas that was how I spent a lot of my time, was, studying the Catechism.”

“Truly once I got (to Fatima) it was one of the most profound experiences and I try to — even all these years later, I try to — put it into words.  But what I can say is that in that experience I felt that the Blessed Mother really became a real person to me.  I just felt her love in a way that I never had before.”

“I began praying the rosary daily after that and it truly just changed my life in so many ways.”

“When I played in the WNBA, they had a chapel service before each game… both teams would come together, would pray together… It was something that I really enjoyed.”

“Keep running the race.  Keep running after the Lord and trying to live your life to please Him.”

(This episode contains a prayer originally from prayers-and-poetry.blogspot.com, as seen in Play Like A Champion Today’s prayerbook for sports, God, Be In My Sport)

Brittany Bock

She was a two-time All-American at Notre Dame, reaching the Final Four three times in four years.  She went on to excel as a professional soccer player for seven years and was part of championship teams and earned the opportunity to train at the highest level with the US Women’s National Team.  Listen in the second half of the show for her powerful story, overcoming eleven surgeries, broken ribs, and concussions, all while moving to seven different states.  In addition to being a former pro athlete, she is a mentor, coach, speaker, and massage therapist.  There is also an amazing story in the second half of the show about her trip to the Holy Land last year.

Notable guest quotes:

“Growing up, even on Sundays going to Mass, we were ministers of the altar… So, big part of our life.”

“In my recruiting process… I had a lot of schools looking at me… So, when I was looking at colleges… my faith was a huge part of that.”

“My faith, I think, my soccer journey and my career, it’s like this yearning to grow with the Lord in relationship.”

“I was always drawn to players that had a deep relationship with the Lord or were seeking.  And so, through that journey, I would, in every city I went to… I would find — obviously easy as a Catholic to find — Mass in places where you go, which I’m so grateful.  But I would end up going to Mass by myself… So, I was still growing in my relationship with the Lord.”

“I was just praying, like, ‘Lord, I need You to show me, like, I want You to show me how You want me to walk with You.  And, like, open doors, or shut doors that need to be shut and open doors that You want opened.’  And so, I moved (to Colorado).”

“Ultimately, it’s that pain and that suffering that, it’s where we find Jesus even more and we are more bound, like, connected to Him at the cross and can surrender that.”

“Not that God does things to us, but He’ll use… all for good for those who love Him.”

“I started to, in this journey, as I continued to fall down, there were times when I just felt weaker and weaker and weaker and cried out to God, like, ‘Why? What am I doing wrong?!'”

“He continued to say ‘I’m right here with you.   Your scars are mine.  I have those.  I know what you’re going through.’  And so that continuous draw through the suffering and through the pain, just, as He continues to pursue our hearts, all the time.”

“Instead of taking things into our own hands it’s like, ‘God we give this to You!'”

Related link:

Brittany’s official website

(This episode contains a prayer by Fr. Brian Cavanaugh, T.O.R., as seen in Play Like A Champion Today’s prayerbook for sports, God, Be In My Sport)

Bobby Allison

A NASCAR Hall of Famer who was the 1983 champion of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series and had three Daytona 500 victories, among numerous other titles and championships. He won on 27 different tracks and had at least three wins in every NASCAR major. He ended his career with 85 victories and was named one of NASCAR’s “50 Greatest Drivers.”  He was also a seven-time Most Popular Driver Award-winner.

Notable guest quotes:

“I had nine brothers and sisters… We also had three babies who died as babies, which in those days was accepted a little bit more readily than it is in today’s world…. And we were Catholic.  We went to Mass on Sunday as a family.  My mom and dad were great Catholic parents.”

“I went to… a kindergarten through twelfth grade Catholic high school in downtown Miami.  And in… my junior high school year, the bishop built a Catholic boys school and a Catholic girls school just north of the downtown area and I switched over to Archbishop Curley High.”

“My mom was a great, great Christian… and my dad was the best Christian Catholic man that I ever knew.”

“I felt like bad situations, bad luck in racing, whatever, might be partial punishment for some misdeed that I had done.  And I felt like I was one of those people that was successful with God being merciful.”

(On dealing with the death of his son Clifford) “I spent many hours and tears and just tried to come up with some equation that would give me some peace.  I did continue to go to Mass, and I tried to stay within the sacraments… I prayed for peace for myself, peace for the family… just general prayer, and lots of it.”

“I was so devoted to my career and the racing industry that I could not put up with people — owners or mechanics — (with) any kind of negative attitude toward whatever went on.  I was there to do the best I could and if we had a bad day I would say, ‘Thank you, Lord. Things could’ve been worse’.  And when we had a good day, I tried to share that with everybody that was involved with me.”

“One special priest, when he could get a day off every now and then, he’d show up at a racetrack and give the invocation… and he was a delight to me too… we got to meet and talk and became great friends.  And I talk to him even frequently right now.”

Related link:

Official Bobby Allison website

Kerri Gallagher

The Director of Cross Country, Track and Field at Manhattan College in New York.  In July 2016 she had been named head coach of Manhattan’s men’s and women’s cross country, mid-distance and distance programs.  An elite-level professional runner, she represented the United States in the 1500 meters at the 2015 IAAF World Championships. She had finished third in the 1500 at the USATF Outdoor Championships to qualify for the World Championships in Beijing, China, among other international competition.  In her days as a student-athlete she set six school records and won four Atlantic 10 titles competing for Fordham University and was named to their Hall of Fame Class of 2017.

Notable guest quotes:

“Our faith was definitely central to my experience growing up.  We were praying regularly as a family.  We were going to Mass on Sundays and on holy days… I was very blessed to have such a great family support system.”

“Matthew 28:20.  I put that in my Twitter bio pretty recently… ‘I am with you always.’  That was just a very succinct truth that I think is currently just speaking to me and it’s just kind of grounding me in relationship with Jesus right now.”

“That was a priority for my parents to put all nine of us through Catholic school, grade school and high school.  At the college level it was our choice.  But I did decide to attend Fordham University, which is a Jesuit university.”

“God knows us better than anybody ever could, better than we know ourselves.”

“I had actually recently at that time started volunteering with the Sisters of Life in New York City and one of the Sisters that I had been working with… made some helpful suggestions to me… and one of them was to pray in front of the Blessed Sacrament, to go into a church and just sit in front of the tabernacle.”

“This was the first time I approached Jesus in complete need, without a pre-determined solution.”

“I think that was the first time I was open to a relationship with Jesus where it was two ways now.  It wasn’t just Him inviting and me blocking.  There was just this really beautiful experience of Him caring for me.”

“What athletics is about, in my opinion, is the opportunity for personal encounter.”

“Hindsight tells me that there was a very prayerful approach to a lot of what I was doing.  I just didn’t necessarily have the awareness of it.”

“We have the faith and the knowledge that God is using it for His good, if our intention is to be in line with His Will.”

“I have so much confidence that athletics is such an avenue for encounter with God.”

“I am co-leading our young adult group at my local parish and that has been such a gift in my life.”

Related link:

Kerri’s bio on Manhattan College website

(This episode contains a prayer from the South Bend Indiana Inner-City Catholic League, as seen in Play Like A Champion Today’s prayerbook for sports, God, Be In My Sport)

Samantha Kelley

The founder and president of FIERCE Athlete Inc.  She played Division I soccer at UConn and is involved in competitive rowing.  Her sports participation background also includes ice hockey as well as track and field.  She has worked for Catholic non-profits and has a Master’s in Catholic Psychology and has been pursuing certification in strength and conditioning AND theology of the body.

Notable guest quotes:

“I viewed my faith as part of what made me a good person.”

“To be given that opportunity to be that role model for young women… was such a blessing.”

“I just thought to myself, ‘How can I escape preseason?’  And I was like, ‘I can go to Mass!   My coaches will let me go to Mass’.”

“There was this girl that got up to do the readings and I remember thinking to myself, ‘Who does this girl think she is?’  But it was because she had the joy that I was seeking and it was so apparent.”

“It was the best decision I ever made.  I showed up in Florida, there was two thousand college students, and I just said, ‘Alright, Lord, you’ve got four days,’ which is a dangerous prayer.”

“It was during Adoration literally in an instant that I had a radical encounter with Him.  I encountered the true presence of Christ.”

“The Lord’s mercy is deep.  And, His love for us deep.  And He can take anyone, no matter how far we are away from Him and call them — with just a slight opening — call them to Himself and use them.”

“I was never more convinced that that’s where my mission needed to be, was amongst these women to show them the beauty of who they are as daughters of God.”

“My spiritual director encouraged me to go to a course with the Theology of the Body Institute.  And I’d say outside of my encounter with Jesus that was probably the most transformational experience in my life.”

“My mission was that every teammate would know that they were loved.  And for some of them that was inviting them back to Mass.”

Related link:

FIERCE Athlete website

(This episode contains a prayer by Gregg Easterbrook from the NFL.com and ESPN.com column “Monday Morning Quarterback,” as seen in Play Like A Champion Today’s prayerbook for sports, God, Be In My Sport)

Fr Patrick Kelly

A Jesuit priest and an Associate Professor of Religious Studies at the University of Detroit Mercy, having previously taught in the Theology and Religious Studies department at Seattle University for 13 years. He is also the author of a book called, “Catholic Perspectives on Sports: From Medieval to Modern Times,” and the editor of a book on sports and Catholic youth that was just listed as one of the top ten books on sports and Catholicism in the last decade.  He was also on the Papal Commission at the Vatican for Sport & Spirituality.  And, not only has he coached sports at the high school and college levels, but, he was a captain of his college football team and an All Conference free safety.

Notable guest quotes:

“I went to a Catholic high school and started playing sports actually at our parish.”

“I had some success (in sports) when I was in high school and in college, but in high school I thought perhaps that this could be what I would do as a profession when I got older.”

“Having that injury at such a young age when I had already gotten so much attention for sports, it did make me step back and reflect about ‘Who am I’ and ‘Where does my value come from’ and those kinds of questions.”

“I had an experience when I prayed over the story of the rich young man, I had an experience of deep peace and joy associated with the idea of entering the Jesuits — what Ignatius of Loyola would call spiritual consolation.”

“For some time I started to think that I should put behind me all the (sports involvement) … and there was a part of me, I was thinking that I was supposed to do that to live a spiritual life.  But I found out over time as I was living my life that that didn’t work because I’d been too profoundly shaped and formed as a human being through my participation in sports.”

“When I started doctoral studies I had this question, ‘What would a Catholic approach, or take, on sports as an aspect of culture be’?”

“A fully human life also needs time for recreation and play.”

Related link:

Fr. Kelly’s website

Lou Holtz

He coached 132 games in eleven seasons at Notre Dame, leading the Fighting Irish to the 1988 national championship.  After Notre Dame he coached at South Carolina.  Prior to Notre Dame he coached at Minnesota, Arkansas, North Carolina State, and William & Mary.  Along the way he also spent one season as the head coach of the NFL’s New York Jets.  He was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2008 and has been seen for many years on television as an analyst on ESPN.  This all followed his days playing football at Kent State.

Notable guest quotes:

“I was raised in a very strong Catholic household.  Both grandparents were Catholic.  My family was Catholic.  We went to church every Sunday.  And my grandmother, she went to church every single day of the year, and I mean that is not an exaggeration.”

“I was blessed because not what we had but because of what I was taught.  And I was taught to have a strong faith in God and make good choices as you go along.”

“You’re always gonna have challenges and obstacles and that’s life.  It’s how well you handle ’em.”

“What I loved about being at the University of Notre Dame: I could express my Catholic faith, I could express the faith I had in Jesus Christ and I didn’t have to worry about the Civil Liberties Union calling me and complaining.”

“During two-a-days (at Notre Dame) many times, one of the things I loved to do with our team was go over Proverbs with ’em.  There were basically 30 Proverbs… about how to get along with your fellow man.”

“To go to the team Mass (at Notre Dame) was really special… The love and the feeling our team had during that team Mass was absolutely incredible.  We would have our team Mass at Our Lady’s Chapel in the basilica, which was unbelievable.”

“When we recruited (for Notre Dame) we said, ‘I don’t expect you to become a Catholic, but I do expect you to show tremendous respect for the Catholic Mass that we have,’ and they did that.”

“The last thing we did before we went to the stadium was we went to the team Mass… It was just a feeling and togetherness that we represent the Catholic faith and we represent Notre Dame, and our football team should reflect the same values of the university.”

“The way you always make good choices is you follow three rules: Rule number one, you do what’s right… if you have any doubt about what’s right or wrong, get out the Bible… Rule number two you do everything the very best of your ability… And the last rule is care about people.”

“I’ve always had a strong faith in God, and I don’t know how anybody could get through without faith in God.”

Related link:

Lou’s book “Three Rules for Living a Good Life: A Game Plan for After Graduation”

(This episode contains a prayer from the National Catholic Coaches Association‘s “The Leadership Papers,” although originally credited in there to The Coach’s Bible.)