GMTM Sports

Flag Football is among the fastest-growing sports in America. For females, the sport has seen a huge growth in participation in the last few years with some states and colleges making it a school-sponsored sport and more looking to do so in the near future. For males, flag football is growing as well, with more athletes choosing the fast-paced, non-contact version of the sport over tackle football.  The growth of flag football is not just domestic. Flag football teams are being assembled all over the world and USA Football, the recognized U.S. national governing body of the International Federation of American Football, selects  U.S. National Teams to compete domestically and internationally.  

Now, USA Football is hosting a Digital Combine on GMTM to aid in the selection of the 2023 U.S. Men’s and Women’s Flag Football National Teams. As part of the free online event, athletes from all over the country can participate for a chance to represent the United States.  

--https://gmtm.com/virtuals/623/u-s-flag-national-team-adult-flag-football-digital-combine

After competing for the French National Team at the Sydney Olympics, Myriam retired from Synchronized Swimming to attend business school. She worked for Accorhotels in marketing and sponsorship in France, Thailand and Australia and eventually resumed her sporting career to compete for the Australian National Team in the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing. Following her second retirement, Myriam combined her business and sport knowledge to return to sport and worked in high performance and sport management in England and in the U.S for several years before founded Athletes Soul. ​  In this podcast, Myriam and Joey go through some of the ways Myriam was empowered as a female athlete and ways that we can continue to make sure others like her are as well.

Connor is co-founder of GMTM Sports, an athlete social network designed to connect organizations to the talent sources they need for recruitment and success. Andrew began his fencing career at an early age, went to Penn State, and later joined Team USA to compete in the Tokyo Olympics. He's headed back again with his eyes on podium and his future career when fencing isn't an option.

What are Virtual Tryouts via GMTM doing to help Volleyball Canada? The top-level sports organization is responsible for sourcing the best talent in the country and placing those athletes with coaches and programs to help them grow their skill level. Viktoria is one of those placed athletes, she describes her experience with the program and Carolyn dives deep into her role as a NexGen Coach.

-> https://gmtm.com/organizations/247034/volleyball-canada

-> https://twitter.com/CarolynOdwyer

About Andrew...

A life-long Star Wars fan, Mackiewicz turned his love of light sabers into a career as a successful fencer. Mackiewicz reached the podium at his first Cadet World Championships, earning silver at age 16 and going on to qualify for his first Senior World Team out of high school before winning back-to-back NCAA titles for Penn State. The 2020 Olympian now has his sights set on Paris while also looking ahead to a future career in the entertainment industry.

About Will...

Will Pluff was hired in 2007 and enters his 15th season on the Utica College football coaching staff, including his 11th season as the defensive coordinator. Since 2007 he has helped guide 32 defensive players to Empire 8 All-Conference recognition and is now a free agent in the DMV area.

In 2016, the Pioneers matched a program-best 7-4 overall record and made their second ECAC Bowl game appearance in the last three years. Utica has won at least five games in five of its last seven seasons. The 2016 season featured three victories against nationally ranked opponents (Ohio Northern, Cortland, St. John Fisher). 11 Pioneers earned All-Conference recognition following the regular season, including first team linebacker Juwan Wilson. Wilson capped his career ranked second on the College’s all-time list in career tackles. The Pioneer defense set a new program-record with 17 interceptions and their 24.0 sacks were tied for fourth on the College’s single season list.

In 2015, Pluff helped guide defensive end Nick Woodman to his third straight all-conference honor.  Woodman was one of 19 finalists for the Cliff Harris Award as the nation’s top defensive player, while earning All-American status. Following his collegiate career, Woodman became the first player in program history to earn an invite to an NFL rookie mini camp where he competed for a roster spot with the New York Giants.

In 2014, Coach Pluff helped guide the squad to seven wins, including Utica’s first ever postseason appearance.  The Pioneers went 7-4, including a school-record five wins in the Empire 8, as they finished third and earned an ECAC Bowl bid. The 2014 edition of the Pioneer defense set a new program record with 42 pass break ups. 

Originally from Buffalo, NY and a Kenmore West graduate, Will Pluff arrived at Utica College in 2002 for the football program's second varsity season.  A four year letter winner and three year starter, Pluff capped his playing career as the defensive captain of the Pioneers in 2005.  In his final season playing he captained the program to its first winning season while earning a spot on the Empire 8 All-Conference team.

Pluff earned a History degree from Utica in 2006 and his master’s in Education in 2011. He is the son of Bill and Linda Pluff and brother to Andrew.  He currently resides in South Utica with his wife Joanne Pluff ‘08.

Check Coach Aaron out on GMTM - https://gmtm.com/virtuals/45/respect-honor-academy-training-page

And Aaron's Twitter - https://twitter.com/CoachAaronRHA

Check out The Big Guy on Social - https://solo.to/wearebigguys

Other Audio Podcasts - https://anchor.fm/gmtm-sports/

Follow David on Twitter -> https://twitter.com/AL_Recruiting

Follow David on YouTube -> https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCf8TwCkWdBKt3pIaWd5PDZQ/videos

Coach Hines has a unique perspective on being a High School Football Coach. He shares his background and the outlook he brings to work with him every day.

How is the United States staying competitive on the international stage? Investment in talent transfer. The US has no shortage of talent but rather so many sports opportunities that finding athletes from across the country who might excel at nontraditional Olympic sports like Bobsled is a huge challenge. Jen, the Associate Director of Sports Performance at the USA Olympic & Paralympic Committee talks with Joey Grant the CEO of GMTM about how they are leveraging databasing tools and virtual combines to combat the problem of talent identification nationally to bring back gold internationally.