As much as I appreciate Dr. Doug Beal’s effort and tremendous job he does for USA Volleyball, I believe his involvement as FIVB President will only help grow volleyball in the U.S. I especially believe this could lead to a true FIVB Beach Tour stop in the U.S., particularly Manhattan Beach, that would really help the game, similar to that of golf and tennis with the Masters and U.S. Open. Continue Reading

PlayOn! Sports may become the ESPN of High School Sports. I must admit this is pretty sweet, and I  assume as technology continues to advance, there will be more of these types of networks. I am curious of the video quality as the games and matches are played. This will not only help the exposure of volleyball and have people realize how popular a sport volleyball is across the country. It is also a great opportunity to recruit for college coaches. Continue Reading

Fact 1:
The game of volleyball was invented in 1895 by William G. Morgan.

Fact 2:
The first World Championships were held in 1949 for men and 1952 for women.

Fact 3:
Volleyball was first introduced as an Olympic sport in 1964. Continue Reading

Sometimes I call myself a “Reminder” not a Coach. I feel as if I am continually reminding players of things they need to be working on to improve. It takes a lot of patience to repeat myself, repeat myself, repeat myself and I often wonder if players even hear me? If they are hearing me? Are they comprehending what they are hearing? Do I need to clarify it…again…say it differently…spell it out for them? Continue Reading

So you’ve all probably seen the recent Blake Griffin dunk…

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Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. on Leadership

By: Jeff Janssen, Janssen Sports Leadership Center

As a tribute to the great leadership of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., here are some of his words to reflect on regarding leadership. Continue Reading

Along the way, you meet good people. The people behind the Coastal Classic Volleyball Tournament are some of those good people. I met Richard Knott and Aly Pompeani through one of volleyball’s unfortunate experiences, the sudden passing of Ranse Jones.  I donated to help with Ranse’s fight and in return, got a great T-shirt.  I was wearing that T-shirt when I registered my Carolina Juniors Club Team at AAUs in Orlando when a typical Florida mid-afternoon thunderstorm came flying in. Many of the coaches were huddled under the baseball stadium when Aly introduced herself.  She recognized the t-shirt because she and her boyfriend Richard, both coaches at Grand Strand Juniors, designed the shirt and was helping to collect the funds for Ranse. Through that conversation in Orlando, Aly, Richard, and I have started one of those special friendships only volleyball can put together. People “on the outside” of our sport don’t understand why volleyball coaches and players do what we do for our sport. It’s because of bonds like these that makes our sport genuine and what we do so special. Continue Reading