This week on the Student of the Game podcast, Brad Noll talks with his former college basketball coach, Joe Pechota. Joe is the head men's basketball coach at Siena Heights University in Adrian, Michigan. With years of experience coaching at various levels, Joe Pechoda is known for his dedication to practice and his ability to impact the lives of his players. Brad and Joe discuss the importance of mastering the fundamentals and falling in love with practice. Coach Pechota shares his experiences coaching college basketball and how the lessons he learned on the court can be applied to running a small business or working a nine-to-five job. They also discuss the challenges of transitioning from Division II to Division I and the importance of teamwork and individual roles within a team.

Quotes

• “As a former player, the most important day is game day. That's a player's day. But practices are something that I take a lot of pride in. Not only how we prepare, but how we teach every single day in practice as well.” -Joe Pechota [04:53]

• “Parents of young athletes and young kids, a lot of times try to remove adversity from their kid's lives. I think that's foolish. Adversity is the best teacher. ” -Brad Noll [12:13] 

Guest Social Links

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/coachjpechota/?hl=en 

Guest Bio

Joe Pechota is in his 12th season as the men's basketball coach at Siena Heights University (SHU), with an overall record of 118-191 and a WHAC mark of 80-141. The 2018-19 season was the team's most successful under his guidance, finishing 17-13 overall and 12-8 in conference play. Pechota has coached notable players, including NAIA All-America Honorable Mentions Keith Jordan Jr. and DeMarco Dickerson, as well as achieving recognition for seven All-WHAC selections, one WHAC All-Defensive, and seven Academic All-WHAC honorees.

Before joining SHU, Pechota spent seven seasons as the head coach at Brescia University, where he led the team to two consecutive Kentucky Intercollegiate Athletic Conference finals and coached six players to NAIA All-America honors. His coaching career also includes time at Indiana-Purdue-Fort Wayne, Ferris State, and Alma.

He holds a Bachelor's degree in Physical Education from Concordia (1995) and a Master's degree in Sports Administration from Central Michigan (2001). Pechota is married to Angelina and has two daughters, Emma (23) and Claire (8).

Timestamps

[01:09] Coach Pechota’s background and experience as a college basketball coach

[02:58]  Falling in love with practice 

[04:21] Pechota's role and approach to coaching at IPFW 

[07:40] Embracing discomfort and personal growth 

[09:32] Balancing the excitement and challenges of Division One basketball

[13:22] Players taking ownership of their practice

[14:31] Adversity as a great teacher

[17:03] Applying preparation in business 

[20:59] Leading oneself before leading others 

[25:47] Teaching kids the truth about roles and failure 

[33:55] The Champions Compass

[35:52] Pechota shares his definition of winning in the game of life

[43:09] Grind and grace

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