Gary Stokan | CEO and President | Peach Bowl, Inc. - One Question Leadership Podcast скачать в хорошем качестве

Gary Stokan | CEO and President | Peach Bowl, Inc. - One Question Leadership Podcast

@1QLeadership Question: How can leaders in college sports build innovative, business-savvy organizations that still protect and prioritize the long-term wellbeing and development of student-athletes? Gary Stokan, retiring President and CEO of the Peach Bowl, reflects on his 47-year career in sports and how coaching principles shaped his leadership in college football. He shares his core frameworks—TEAM (teamwork, empowerment, accountability, management), CARE (customer, attitude, relationships, excellence), and ROCKS (relationships, opportunities, competitiveness, knowledge, strategy)—as simple guides for building people-first, business-smart organizations. Stokan and 1Q guest host, Steph Garcia Cichosz also unpack his role in growing the Peach Bowl, bringing the College Football Hall of Fame to Atlanta, and navigating today’s changing landscape of NIL, the transfer portal, and playoff expansion. Throughout the episode, he stresses keeping student-athletes’ long-term wellbeing at the center while maintaining an “attitude of gratitude” and enjoying the journey. 00:00 - Introduction 01:04 - I have a very simple question to start us off: You are a basketball guy- you played, you coached, you worked with some of the biggest names in the sport during your time with Converse and Adidas. How did you get into football? 05:16 - In your tenure with the Peach Bowl, you’ve expanded the oversight and activities of the CEO; from your perspective, what is the exact role of a bowl game CEO? 07:28 - There’s a great quote from your friend Nick Saban, who said, “Gary has always understood the power of relationships in college football.” Did that come naturally to you or did you have to learn that in an earlier phase of your career? 08:49 - One project that you spearheaded was bringing the College Football Hall of Fame to Atlanta - talk to me about that process and the stakeholders you had to navigate, the opinions you had to manage. 12:21- There is tumult in college football right now - coaching contracts, NIL, the transfer portal, rev share - how will bowl games evolve to accommodate this chaotic time? 15:28 - Are there other ways we can create these real-time, behind-the-scenes, “reality tv” type of components to a football broadcast? 17:20 - As the games themselves evolve, how will the role of CEO evolve? What is the ideal resume for the next generation of bowl presidents? 19:02 - We’re not seeing the traditional pathway of coach to CEO or even longtime athletic administrator to president - it requires a different level of practical knowledge. 20:07 - How do we ensure that we keep the student-athlete at the center of everything? 23:13 - Take yourself back to the Gary Stokan who was a basketball coach at NC State. If you were to sit down with him before his very first practice, what advice would you give him with the knowledge you have today?