Today I’m joined by Brett Gardner!
Brett transferred to the University of Virginia this fall to finish up his eligibility after competing for NC State.
On this episode Brett discusses how he felt about a second place team finish and 32nd individually against a stacked field at the Gans Creek Classic which will be the scene where Nationals will be held later this year.
He also shares some hot takes about food and more.
While at NC State Brett won an ACC title in the 3k steeplechase and placed 8th in the 5k in 2025.
He also placed 16th at the NCAA championship in the steeplechase in 2025.
He holds personal bests of 8:29 in the 3k steeplechase and 13:36 in the 5k.
Brett will look to help Virginia fight for an NCAA title in November.
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Brett’s instagram- https://www.instagram.com/brettpgardner?igsh=YnE4bWlkMGtqeTZj
Today I’m joined by Iowa distance star, Marissa Ferebee!
Marissa is currently a senior in high school and will run for Arkansas next fall.
She’s had a quiet start to her season because of a long track season but will defend her NXR Heartland title later this year and will be a key piece for her team as they try to qualify for NXN.
Last year Marissa broke the Iowa State record with a time of 16:30, becoming just the second ever high school girl from Iowa to run under 17 minutes for the 5k and placed top ten at Nike cross Nationals.
In this episode we discuss some adjustments she’s made her training, how she went from a middle of the pack runner to one of the best in the country, her commitment to Arkansas and much more.
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Today I’m joined by the newest addition to the BYU cougars, Thomas Boyden!
Before transferring to BYU Thomas ran for Stanford where he had a very successful career. While there he ran personal bests of 7:41 in the 3k, 13:21 in the 5k, and 28:06 in the 10k.
He also placed 9th in the ACC cross country championships last year and 4th in the 3k at indoor ACC’s.
Last year Thomas was accepted into UCLA law school but he will put it on hold until he’s finished up his running career.
He’s one of the top transfers this year and will look to help the BYU men become repeat champions at the Cross Country national championship.
In this episode we discuss how Thomas has managed to get through injuries, his law school aspirations, decision to come to Stanford and much more.
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Thomas’s instagram- https://www.instagram.com/thomas_boyden?igsh=dmtveDR5dG1zajJ4
Today I’m joined by Oregon commit Quentin Nauman!
Quentin took the track world by storm last outdoor season where he went on an absolute tear throughout the entire post season.
At the Iowa State Meet he won four State titles running 8:57 in the 3200m, 3:59 for the 1600m, 1:49 for the 800m and 1:47 for the 800m in a relay.
He went on to win the mile at Hoka Festival of miles with a time of 3:58 and a 54 second last lap, in arguably the most stacked high school boys mile race of all time. Finally, he went to Nike Nationals where he won the national title in the mile.
Clearly he’s an incredibly accomplished running and he’s still got his senior year of high school left before he goes to the University of Oregon in the fall to continue his career.
This season he will look to continue his momentum and qualify for Nike Cross Nationals for the first time.
Today I’m joined by SouthLake Carroll high school senior Caden Leonard!
Last year Caden completed the triple crown in Texas by winning the cross country state title and both the 1600 and 3200 in outdoor track. He also placed 3rd at Nike Cross Nationals last year and will go into this season as the number one returner. But the path won’t be easy, as high school distance running is as stacked and competitive as ever.
Caden holds personal best’s of 4:02 in the mile, 8:47 in the 3200 and 14:19 in the 5k.
Next fall he will move from Texas to North Caroline where he’ll run for The University of North Carolina Chapel Hill.
In this episode we touch on a little bit of everything including Caden’s upbringing in the sport, his commitment to UNC, the upcoming season and more.
Tune in to hear about how one of the best high school runners in the nation is approaching this cross country season.
Today I’m joined by Cooper Lutkenhaus!
Cooper just did the unthinkable at USA’s and shocked the world.
He ran a 1:42.27 800 as a 16 year old and placed 2nd to qualify for the world athletics championships in Tokyo where he will represent the U.S.
I talked to Cooper a couple weeks back leading up to the meet and after his historic high school season.
During the high school season he was dominant in every race he ran and set the high school national record for the 800 as a sophomore.
During our conversation before USA’s Cooper told me “I’m just going into that race just trying to do the best I can, stick to my race plan. Who knows, maybe that’s to qualify for the semifinals, that’s a big goal I have. But going into the race, I wanna have fun with it. It’s my last race of sophomore year.”
Little did he know he would end up running a huge personal best and make the team.
Tune into this conversation to hear Cooper’s thoughts before he ran what will go down as one of the most historic races a high schooler has ever ran!
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Cooper’s instagram- https://www.instagram.com/cooper.lutkenhaus?igsh=NzJ2MDc2bWI3bGpl
Today I’m joined by Brock Kelly for his second time on the podcast!
Brock has been living life to the fullest recently as he finished up his collegiate running career, ran Grandma’s marathon and traveled to Switzerland.
Now that Brock is done with school he’s focusing on full time content creation and working on growing his brand OE Athletics.
You’ve probably seen Brock on instagram reels where his series “The Daily Mile” really took off. What started as him documenting swimming a mile everyday while he was injured has turned into much more and it’s something a lot people really resonate with.
In Today’s conversation we discuss what the past couple months have been like for Brock and how his goals in running have changed now that he’s not in the NCAA, along with many other topics.
If you enjoy the episode be sure to leave a five star review on Spotify or Apple Podcasts because it only takes a few seconds.
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Brock’s instagram- https://www.instagram.com/bkelly5192?igsh=eDZoaXN5d2t6MHRw
Today I’m joined by Christian Jackson!
Christian runs for Virginia Tech where his primary event is the 800.
This year at the ACC championships he clocked a 1:44.83, getting the win and breaking the meet record.
He went on to win the East regional 800 which qualified him for nationals. Last week he traveled to Hayward field to compete against the nations best and placed 7th.
After ACC’s I sat down with Christian to discuss his season and this is that conversation.
Tune in to hear the thoughts of one of the nations best before nationals.
Christian is just getting started with making his mark on the sport.
On this episode we discuss Christian’s journey to becoming one of the best in the NCAA, how he adapted to more intense training once getting into college and more.
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Christian’s instagram- https://www.instagram.com/chrissjaxx?igsh=cGFiMjNzbHB3ODNp
Today the Wake Forest sophomore sensation, Rocky Hansen returns to the podcast!
Rocky was an incredibly accomplished runner in high school and wasted no time before he started mixing it up with the big dawgs in the NCAA. This past indoor season he helped his DMR team qualify for nationals by splitting a 3:50 1600 as the anchor leg. Then at nationals he ran the 5k where he placed 3rd and ran a personal best of 13:12.
His success continued on into this outdoor season where so far he placed 6th in the ACC 1500m final and won the East regional 5k which qualified him for nationals. Later this week he will look to get his first NCAA title in Eugene, Oregon.
This conversation is a very fun and insightful one as it revolves a lot around how Rocky and his teammates at Wake have been able to see so much success right out of high school and his thoughts before nationals.
If you enjoy the episode please share it with a friend who might find it interesting and leave a comment!
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Today I’m joined by Matti Erickson!
Matti runs for The University of Oregon and just put on a masterclass in tactics to win the 800m national championship at NCAA indoors with a time of 1:46.4.
He also won the Big Ten title in the 800, helping build his momentum going into nationals.
Before the conference championships Matti wasn’t even qualified for nationals but he stayed focused and was able to squeeze in with the 15th spot.
In this episode we discuss how he stayed composed in races and didn’t lose confidence when he wasn’t qualified for nationals and much more.
The story of Matti Erickson is a special one.
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Matti’s instagram- https://www.instagram.com/mattiericksonn?igsh=NTV2NXFjMjBzcnkw
Today I’m joined by Grant and Aidan Matthai! They attendUW-Lacrosse where they run D3 cross country and track and they have played a pivotal role in establishing one of the most dominant programs in D3 history.
This past fall Grant and Aidan finished 1st and 2nd on their team, respectively, to help bring home the cross country national team title! This was an especially meaningful title because the year before they lost the team battle by just one point.
Most recently they competed at indoor nationals where Grant won the national championship in the 5k and Aidan placed 4th. Then they opened up their outdoor season with a fast 5k where Grant ran 13:56 and Aidan ran 14:06.
Grant and Aidan also have a YouTube channel where they document their lives and running journey which we touch on in this episode. When you listen to Grant and Aidan talk you can clearly see how dedicated they are to the craft and how much they love the sport.
If you enjoy the episode please consider sharing it with a friend who you think might like it!
The Sinclaire Johnson interview is here.
Sinclaire just placed 2nd at the U.S. indoor championships in the 1500 and earned her spot on the world indoor team. She’ll compete later this year at world indoors!
Last year Sinclaire ran 3:56 in the 1500 and cemented herself in history as one of the greatest U.S. 1500m athletes ever but fell just short of the Olympic team, placing fourth at the trials. Her season wasn’t without adversity as she faced injury shortly before the trials started but still have it her all.
In this episode we go over the emotional roller coaster of placing 4th at the trials, her expectations for world indoors and much more.
Sinclaire was a part of Bowerman track club when she first when pro, the ran for Union Athletics club but recently announced she’s now being coached by her soon to be husband Craig Nowak. We go over how this transition has been so far and what the key to a smooth transition is.
If you enjoy the episode please consider sharing it with a friend or you think might also enjoy it! It goes a long way in helping the podcast grow.
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Today I’m joined by 400m hurdle Paris Olympian Trevor Bassitt!
Trevor has made 3 global teams in a row, and in 2022 he won the bronze medal at the world championships.
Before becoming a pro he attended Ashland University where he ran D2 track and field where he was able to develop a lot as a person and an athlete.
Despite putting up a lot of consistent results Trevor is an unsponsored athlete.
In today’s podcast he takes me through the journey of what it’s like to be unsponsored and have the underdog mentality, his 400m season opener where he ran 45.6 and more.
Trevor also shares about his faith and how God has played a role in his running journey.
This is one for the books!
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Trevor’s instagram- https://www.instagram.com/trevorbassitt30?igsh=MTRrbTRndjVmeXptbw==
Today I’m joined by Bullis senior Colin Abrams!
Last year Colin was the runner up in the 800 at New balance indoor nationals and set the junior class national record with a time of 1:49.71.
Just a few weeks ago he anchored his teams sprint medley relay with a 1:51 to help them secure the U.S. high school national record! But most recently he went up in distance and ran a 4:17 mile at the milrose games.
Colin is commited to run for Stanford next fall and is making the most of the final year of his high school running career.
In this episode we dive into what it’s like being a part of so many historic relays, how Colin and his teammates make each other better in practice, his commitment to Stanford and more.
Sit back, relax and enjoy!
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Today I’m joined by Virginia Tech’s George Couttie!
George spent a year running D2 for Charleston before he transferred to Virginia Tech last fall where he’s coached by Ben Thomas who also coaches Olympic champion Cole Hocker and many other prestigious athletes.
This past cross country season he led his team to nationals with a win at regionals and went on to place 14th individually at nationals and helped his team place 26th.
But he didn’t stop there because after that he ran at the European U20 cross country nationals after NCAA’s where he placed 2nd to earn a silver medal.
But the crazy thing is that 2 years ago at D2 nationals he placed 46th.
As you’ll hear throughout the episodes George attributes many years of consistent work to his success this season.
If you enjoy the episode please take a couple seconds to leave a five star review and share it with a friend who you think might like it!
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Today I’m joined by the most underrated All American in the NCAA, Dylan Schubert!
Throughout the past couple years Dylan has dominated his conference while running for Furman University by setting countless records and winning titles in a lot of different events. But he’s also made his mark on the national stage.
Over the years at cross country nationals he placed 11th in 2022, 24th in 2023 and most recently 3rd in 2024. He also saw a lot of success on the track last year where he won the East regional 5k and went on to compete at nationals. Not to mention just a couple months ago he set a personal best of 13:17 in the 5k.
Throughout this conversation we dive into some mistakes Dylan has made and how he’s been able to consistently improve and get to the top of the NCAA.
This cross country season wasn’t easy and it included having to do some significant time cross training on the bike but he grinded it out and showed up when it mattered most.
Dylan is also a coach for Blue Collar Endurance Training so we dive into that and what lessons he has learned from coaching his own athletes.
If you enjoy this episode please share it with a friend who you think might like it and take a couple seconds to leave a five star review because it goes a long way in helping the podcast grow!
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Dylan’s Instagram- https://www.instagram.com/schuby43?igsh=MThoYW5ldHV3OHl6aw==
Blue Collar Endurance Training Website- bluecollaret.com
Today I’m joined again by Nathan Green for episode 2 of our series The Life Of an NCAA Champion!
Nathan just ran 3:50 in the mile for his first race of the year and got the win over a stacked field. That time of 3:50 now puts him at #4 all time on the NCAA all conditions mile list.
In today’s conversation we go into what it takes to win fast races, hear about the start of Nathan and his former teammate Kieran’s piano playing journey and much more.
Listen all the way to the end to hear one of the funniest stories I’ve ever heard on the podcast!
What is the Life Of an NCAA Champion series about:
Whenever someone wins a national title you might find yourself wondering what the X factor was. Was it the team culture? Was it the workouts? The high mileage? Are they just talented? This series will help shed some light on answers to these questions and will help you get to know one of the coolest guys on the college running scene.
This is a series featuring Washington’s Middle distance star Nathan Green who won the outdoor 1500 national championship in 2023. It will follow his 2025 indoor season as he goes after another NCAA title. Every other week we will release another episode that will go over insights into his life and the ups and downs of his training. Nathan holds school records in the 3k (7:40), 800m (1:46), 1000m (2:18), and the 1500 (3:32). Not to mention he placed 5th in the 1500 at the U.S. Olympic trials last year.
Someone from Washington University has won the 1500 outdoors/mile indoors 5 times in a row and one of those people was Nathan Green in 2023. This series is an inside look at the best middle distance program in the country that has never been seen before.
Please join me as I document what might be one of the greatest seasons in college running history. All I ask is that you please share this episode with a friend so more people can gain value from Nathan’s experience or have a little laugh from some funny stories that are told and please take a few seconds to leave a five star review on Spotify or Apple Podcasts because it really helps the podcast grow.
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Nathan’s instagram- https://www.instagram.com/nathanrgreen?igsh=MWM2eHJndTFzazhlag==
Today on the podcast I’m joined by Ali Ince!
Ali is a freshman at the University of Oregon where she runs cross country and track, and has been having an outstanding year so far.
In high school Ali was an elite runner while also playing basketball. She was the new balance indoor nationals 800m champion and held personal best including 4:35 in the mile and 2:03 in the 800.
At cross country nationals she placed 104th as a true college freshman and she had never been to a national cross country meet in high school. After cross country season she went on to run 4:32 in the mile at Boston university.
In this conversation we go into her experience at Oregon so far and tackle the question of what has made her so successful as true freshman. She shares that she wasn’t even planning on running cross country this year but ended up gaining more fitness than she thought she would and helped her team place 5th at nationals.
If you enjoy listening all I ask is that you please leave a five star review and share this conversation with a friend or two because it really helps the podcast grow!
My instagram- https://www.instagram.com/runningincircles.podcast?igsh=MWtwN2Fma2V5NHI3MA==
Ali’s instagram- https://www.instagram.com/ali_ince24?igsh=MWEyOGp5ODEycGR1dw==
Introducing episode one of A behind the scenes look at what it’s like to chase D1 NCAA titles!
Whenever someone wins a national title you might find yourself wondering what the X factor was. Was it the team culture? Was it the workouts? The high mileage? Are they just talented? This series will help shed some light on answers to these questions and will help you get to know one of the coolest guys on the college running scene.
This is episode 1 of The Life of an NCAA Champion with Nathan Green.
A series featuring Washington’s Middle distance star Nathan Green who won the outdoor 1500 national championship in 2023. It will follow his 2025 indoor season as he goes after another NCAA title. Every other week we will release another episode that will go over insights into his life and the ups and downs of his training. Nathan holds school records in the 3k (7:40), 800m (1:46), 1000m (2:18), and the 1500 (3:32). Not to mention he placed 5th in the 1500 at the U.S. Olympic trials last year.
Someone from Washington University has won the 1500 outdoors/mile indoors 5 times in a row and one of those people was Nathan Green in 2023. This series is an inside look at the best middle distance program in the country.
In episode 1 we discuss what the past year has looked like for Nathan and how rebounded from 10th in the NCAA to go place 5th at the Olympic trials and much more!
Please join me as I document what might be one of the greatest seasons in college running history. All I ask is that you please share this episode with a friend so more people can gain value from Nathan’s experience and take a few seconds to leave a five star review on Spotify or Apple Podcasts because it really helps the podcast grow.
My instagram- https://www.instagram.com/runningincircles.podcast?igsh=MWtwN2Fma2V5NHI3MA==
Nathan’s instagram- https://www.instagram.com/nathanrgreen?igsh=MWM2eHJndTFzazhlag==
Today I’m joined by Chloe Thomas!
Chloe had one of the most underrated cross country seasons this year and is looking to Continue her momentum into the indoor season.
She won the Big East Championship individually leading her team to 3rd place, won the NorthEast regional meet, placed 9th at nationals and ran a 15:17 5k for a UConn school record a U23 Canadian record.
In this episode we discuss her plans to race the Canadian circuit in hopes for a trip to the Tokyo World Championships during outdoors, the value of community and competing for a less talked about school in UConn.
If you enjoy the episode please share it with a friend and take a couple seconds to leave a five star review on Spotify or Apple Podcasts! This really helps me out and helps the podcast continue to grow!
My instagram- https://www.instagram.com/runningincircles.podcast?igsh=MWtwN2Fma2V5NHI3MA==
Chloe’s instagram- https://www.instagram.com/chloethomas_17?igsh=MXBnaTdza3dwMHps
