In this powerful episode, former college basketball star and Friends University Hall of Famer Joe Mitchell opens up about marriage, faith, loss, and life after the game. Joe shares how grief, parenthood, and purpose shaped him into the man he is today — from walking away from WSU, to finding love, to helping kids build emotional intelligence through mentorship and his new daycare. This one is filled with truth, healing, and perspective.
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0:00 – Coming Up! 3:19 – Intro
Chapter 1: Basketball, Family & Coaching
4:26 – Joe talks about his wedding 6:16 – Biddy Basketball & our friend Bryce Laviest 10:43 – Joe shares about his parents and their influence 12:04 – What inspired him to start coaching and the toxicity in sports 17:07 – When he fell out of love with basketball and family pressures 18:29 – How athletic his parents were 20:43 – Grieving his mother’s passing in 2021
Chapter 2: College Life & Love
22:20 – Parenthood, college ball, leaving Ohio & WSU for Friends University 24:32 – How he met his wife in college 25:11 – What he’s learned about being a husband 28:47 – The challenges of an interracial marriage → “I got more backlash from Black folks” 34:40 – “Society wants us so divided”
Chapter 3: Basketball, Emotion & Growth
37:03 – “I stopped playing pickup ball because it’s so toxic” → The psychology behind it 41:22 – Fighting with a best friend over basketball 42:09 – The secret to being a great player 43:28 – The truth about why he left WSU 51:00 – “If I never left WSU, I never would’ve met my wife” 51:40 – Life of a college star athlete → “I was a mini celebrity at Friends” 54:27 – “Our society isn’t emotionally intelligent” & the Michael Jordan crying meme 56:50 – The pressure of being in the spotlight as an athlete
Chapter 4: Culture, Music & Perspective
1:00:00 – His love for Rod Wave 1:03:09 – Joe thinks Drake won against Kendrick 1:09:50 – “Bryce Laviest pushed me to be who I am”
Chapter 5: Purpose, Youth & Legacy
1:13:56 – Joe’s thoughts on the school system 1:17:13 – Helping inner-city youth and mentoring through his job 1:25:01 – “You have to be regulated to regulate the child” 1:27:34 – The secret to helping kids stop fighting at school 1:30:00 – Starting an emotionally intelligent daycare with his wife 1:35:45 – Joe on what keeps a marriage going 1:37:44 – Outro
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