Off Duty Ads

The Off Duty ADs foolishly think they can answer the question, "What's the most important thing an AD does?".  They also talk about the possible end of Ryan's AD career, our continued non-footprint in Alaska, listener email, thanking event organizers, sidetrack into Office Space quotes, being an educational leader or an operational manager, trying to identify a single most important job, focusing on the purpose of the job, building strong relationships as a leader, trying to find one thing to be great at, picking up dog poop, naming Ryan's son, being a Huckleberry, Val Kilmer and Sam Elliott, Tommyknocker Brewery in Idaho Springs, Colorado, and expensing our travel costs to unsuspecting sponsors.

Amazed that they've lasted an entire year, the Off Duty ADs reflect on the beginning of their podcast and their past 50 episodes.  They also talk about how ADs do nothing in the spring, collecting spring equipment, Mark takes some unnecessary shots at South Dakota, Mike yells at the kids on his lawn, Ryan hates Survivor loved ones, recap their first recording days, review their experience in a German restaurant in Omaha, the popularity of You Gotta Minute, Ryan and Mike hold a brief intervention for Mark, offer a well-deserved apology to longtime listener Billy Fitz, their faces on some shirts, Mike makes a big announcement, Ryan takes us back to his field, ADs working magic in the spring, the Year of Tom continues, Laughing Sun Brewery, and their inability to record a short episode.

The Off Duty ADs celebrate Year One by answering emails and responding to articles about volunteer coaches, financing your athletic department, assaulting officials, and policies about fan ejections.  They also discuss Mike's and Ryan's low week as fans but listen to Mark gloat, skipping school for RBI Baseball, The Simpsons softball team, Iowa Western's draft success, participation fees, booster clubs, Go Fund Me coaches, Brett Favre, increased penalties for angry fans who cross the line, logistical problems to ejecting fans, nit-picking at a league championship, Frank Drebin, and a connection between Columbus, Ohio, and Scotland.  

The Off Duty ADs (minus one) talk about a magazine article devoted to the seven signs of a struggling coach.  They also discuss the AL Garbage Division, professional sports in Ohio, funny "you gotta minute" moments, research done by a longtime listener, the umpire shortage, coaches' quirks on the sideline, our lengthy episode lengths, scheduling requests, focusing on the wrong things, keeping your philosophy up to date, Super Mario Bros, cough medicine, the real life Bad News Bears, New England IPAs, and finishing an episode without Mike.  

The Off Duty ADs talk about alcohol, tobacco, and substance abuse violations.  They also talk about prom supervision, rare birds disrupting a lacrosse season, Mike (not surprisingly) trolls Nebraska, backyard golf, violation structures in the guys' three states, Mark suspends a girl with two right hands, the definition of the word possession, investigating pictures (or not investigating them if you're Ryan), teaching kids to be responsible, Mike is disappointed instead of mad, the guys don't have a minute for some people some time, drop-ins for helmet reconditioning, We Goin To The Ship, Ryan dabbles in dinner beer recommendations and takes some shots regarding his preference for drinks in varied glassware.

The Off Duty ADs discuss comments made by Geno Auriemma about coaches being scared of their players.  They also revisit the discussion about the umpire shortage, tell Mark's brother to put together his own beer list, try to figure out how to immediately get fields ready for antsy coaches, either agree or disagree (or somewhere in between) about how Tom Izzo's motivational tactic would fit in high school athletics, discuss one of the greatest sports documentaries of our lifetimes, and close out the episode with some classic Americana.

The Off Duty ADs talk about the steps they take to leave the office for a few days.  The also discuss Joe's beer selections, the start of the MLB season, clearing a gym, Core Values from Brainerd, 50/50 drawings, creating a call list before leaving on vacation, remote rescheduling, Mark ignoring his coaches, creating a daily schedule while gone, answer messages in volume, our secretaries knowing more than we do, permission for taking vacation days, parents upset about team selection, Ryan's baseball movie Mt. Rushmore, negative beer reviews, and ending an episode without Mike.

The Off Duty ADs are one man short but bring back recurring guest Joe from Washington to talk about the current shortage of officials.  Also, Mike refuses an invite to the Cornhusker bandwagon, Mike has technical difficulties, good basketball players magically appear in Seattle, Big Ten wrestling domination, Mark gives a youth sports update, rogue officials in Washington, making up for a lack of officials with new ideas, roadblocks for signing new stripes, dressing a new ump, you gotta minutes outside the athletic world, debating the last two heads on the Mt. Rushmore of baseball movies - not including Hardball, and Joe needs to be censored while describing his beer selection.

The Off Duty ADs continue their discussion about fan behavior and engagement.  They also discuss the lack of spring in ND, Mark's bandwagon days, youth wrestling, college admissions among celebrities, banning students from being fans at contests, the college influence on student sections, Mark plugs a post from his blog, playing referee between adults, the excellent Tom Cruise basketball scene, Elizabeth Shue's career, Ryan takes us to Ireland in honor of St. Patrick's Day, Ryan suffers through a kid's birthday party, and the Browns will win the Super Bowl.

The Off Duty ADs talk about fan behavior, engagement, and guidelines.  They also discuss well-known fight songs, Mike resumes his admiration of Urban Meyer, the state race for podcast listeners, North Dakota weather update, the need for ADs, Mike again apologies to Bill from NE, spectators in the math classroom, creeping normality, supervising empty gyms, TLC vs STP, questions about content that everyone knows you know nothing about, Tom Cruise the greaser, Mark finds Ryan a beer at Drekker Brewery in Fargo, ND, and Mike waits for an invite to the lakes this summer.

The Off Duty ADs talk about hosting major tournaments.  They also get into the firing of the ADs who couldn't beat Hickory but then discuss structural changes in South Bend, Mark calls out Joe from Washington, 90s recollections, early White Sox chatter, Baby Shark, lazy weekends that don't exist, geometry, North Dakota geography, handing out second place trophies, the importance of taking care of yourself within the rigors of the job, Bryce Harper not being signed by Billy Bean, Ryan picks a beer that nobody else can try, and Mike apologizes to Bill from Nebraska.

The Off Duty ADs talk about e-sports.  They also cover coaches' meetings (or safety meetings) over a beverage, awkward pauses, Big Ten minute including Iowa legends, Cubs and Indians, Fernando Rodney's arrows, kids playing video games, possible legitimate facts (and possibly not), including more kids in high school activities, how money with affect the growth of esports, the lack of conditioning drills in speech and orchestra, garage based storage, Chicos Bail Bonds, judging Ryan's coaching skills, and Mike leaves Colorado and may be contemplating replacing his beloved Lagunitas.

The Off Duty ADs talk about their office secretaries...or their administrative assistants depending on your preference.  They also cover the Big Ten minute, youth hockey, Mark rants, more Big Ten minute, how we don't really know what our secretaries are doing all day, ignoring our phone lines, pre-phone call meetings, bobbleheads, the year of Tom Cruise continues in a race car, Mike forgets about John C. Reilly's greatest role, Mark's non-beer selection, and last week's Twitter poll.

The Off Duty ADs talk about athletic directors having friendships with coaches.  They also talk about Mike's continued technical difficulties, west coast collegiate wrestling, The AAF, Mike's Big Ten update, Ryan's internet filter, Mark's editing skills, how crappy February is, the dangers of running distracted miles, having friendships with athletes' parents, being mentally tougher than grandparents when it comes to officiating, global thermonuclear war, and how great Ryan thinks Cincinnati is. 

The Off Duty ADs talk about policies and procedures surrounding bad weather at contests.  They also talk about Mike's meeting schedules and his need for an Assistant to the Assistant Principal, Ryan's lack of Caddyshack knowledge, how the Browns relate to the Cubs, Mike's Big Ten update, lightning and thunder concerns, the abundance of meteorologists in the stands, North Dakota topography, the polar vortex, heat concerns, Ryan status as an elite marathoner, and how athletic directors are never correct.

The Off Duty ADs talk about the list of top 20 AD concerns as published in Coach and AD magazine.  They also talk about winter coats, the Elam ending - Nick, not Jason, battery against a mascot, the modern technology of faxing, asking parents to volunteer for years then completely back off, faulty grocery store organization, a planned brewery trip in Minnesota lakes country, and the return of Mike's Year of Tom Cruise.  

The Off Duty ADs talk about game scheduling and event contracts.  They also talk about youth sports parenting, Mike's Big Ten recap segment, Megakota, Mark cleans up some spillage, Ryan changes breweries in mid-sentence, picking up opponents, single year vs multi-year scheduling, qualifying for playoffs, chasing down entry fees, When We Were Kings, Zwanzigz Brewery in Indiana, and Mark still needs to find some basketball games if anyone else has an opening and wants to play.

The Off Duty ADs talk about a retweet from Hugh Freeze detailing recruiting advice from the parent of one of his new athletes.  They also dive into the Mike Tyson/Buster Douglas 30 For 30, scheduling corresponding dates for next season, youth hockey dads, the Walker children rivalry, Denver Pale Ale from the Great Divide Brewing Company in Denver, and revisit quotes and cliches from Varsity Blues.

The Off Duty ADs recap their trip to San Antonio then discuss balancing their lives as athletic directors.  Ryan tries to find ways to fight the January doldrums, deals with water on his basketball court from six states away, and his confidence in the Browns is at an all-time high; Mike uses Jedi mind tricks to enjoy his beverages, talks about the importance of finding life balance, and starts his Tom Cruise marathon with a football classic; Mark speculates on the usage of the word bonkers, thinks AD aspirations should be in a pre-nup, and promotes the benefits of living with a chef.

The Off Duty ADs talk about student IEPs and 504s and how they relate to extracurricular activities.  Ryan tries to find the line between accommodations and FERPA, leans on receiving the right info at the right time, and is concerned about the slippery slope that may follow precedent; Mike recaps a past difficult situation, summarizes that a try-out process must be equal for all students, and knows that generic phrases are usually best; and Mark gives a quick legal background, hopes his coaches use multiple teaching methods, and hypes his own teaching ability.