Athletor Podcast with Mike Mal

Alli St. John is the first head coach of Iowa State women's wrestling, and she says winning is the only option. Mike asks how she coaches athletes who aren't wired like her, what she took from Kevin Dresser, what gets a recruit on her radar, and how Iowa State closes the gap on Iowa.Guest: Alli St. John, head coach of Iowa State women's wrestling, two-time World silver medalistTopics: King to Iowa State, competitiveness, reading the room as a coach, nutrition and the freshman 15, doing everything elite, Kevin Dresser, recruiting red flags, 300 Division I spots, Iowa State vs Iowa, rapid fire with the Mount Rushmore of wrestling🔗 Recruitable: Your step-by-step playbook for today's recruiting process: athletorlive.com/product/recruitable

Kai Orine was a two-time All-American at NC State. Now, one year into coaching at Little Rock, he says coaching is less stressful than competing. Mike goes through the Athletor IQ numbers on Stephen Little and Little Rock's recruiting with him, and asks how you get a kid from the middle of Arkansas to believe he can compete with anyone.Guest: Kai Orine, Little Rock assistant coach, 2x NCAA All-American and 2x ACC champion at NC StateTopics: to coach is to serve, designing the singlets, Little Rock's facility, Stephen Little by the numbers, finding diamonds in the rough, the 2026-27 lineup, the myth of waiting, rapid fire with the Mount Rushmore of wrestling🔗 Recruitable: Your step-by-step playbook for today's recruiting process: athletorlive.com/product/recruitable

Two straight NCAA tournaments without giving up a takedown. Antrell Taylor, the Omaha kid who won the 2025 NCAA title for Nebraska, talks with Mike about the loss he still rewatches, being a savage in the practice room, and why college matches get won on top.Guest: Antrell Taylor, 2025 NCAA Champion, 3X All American, NebraskaTopics: progress over outcome, learning from losses, taking risks in practice, top wrestling, Greco and the body lock, hand fighting, walking forward, wrestling at home in Lincoln, the push-out rule🔗 Recruitable: Your step-by-step playbook for today's recruiting process: athletorlive.com/product/recruitable

Phil Ross broke his back at 16, got told he was done, and came back to take 2nd in Greco at Eastern Nationals that summer. Fifty years later, surgeons send him their patients. He talks with Mike about fixing backs without surgery, the 90 Days of Suck, and the year that changed how he thinks about control.Guest: Coach Phil Ross, 9th-degree black belt, master kettlebell instructor, college professor, author of Managing Back Pain For Dummies and Exercise SnacksTopics: back pain and strength training, the least invasive fix first, the 90 Days of Suck, not scouting your opponent, 9/11 and letting go of control, Too Stupid to Quit, the push-out rule🔗 Recruitable: Your step-by-step playbook for today's recruiting process: athletorlive.com/product/recruitable

Bo Bassett is chasing three world titles in one year, and he says he doesn't feel any pressure doing it. Mike goes through his Final X series against Real Woods with him, asks how a loss to one side of the body six years ago changed his attacks, and gets his take on what Virginia Tech needs to catch Penn State.Guest: Bo Bassett, world champion and Virginia Tech freshman, 2026 U.S. Senior World Team member at 65 kgTopics: the Real Woods film breakdown, training with Aaron Seidel and James Green, no fear of losing, learning from losses, Virginia Tech's lineup, rapid fire with the Mount Rushmore of wrestling📊 Virginia Tech's full 2026-27 season preview: preview.athletorlive.com/teams/virginia-tech🔗 Recruitable: Your step-by-step playbook for today's recruiting process: athletorlive.com/product/recruitable