#340: Richard Anderson – Vestavia Hills HS | From Fired Football Coach to National Track/Field Coach of the Year

#340: Richard Anderson – Vestavia Hills HS | From Fired Football Coach to National Track/Field Coach of the Year

🏆 From small-town Alabama to the USTFCCCA Boys National Coach of the Year, Richard Anderson’s journey is anything but ordinary.

In this episode, Coach Anderson shares:

🏃 His unlikely path into track & field after years as a football and baseball coach

🏗️ Starting a program from scratch with no facilities—just painted lines, dug holes, and pure determination

🤝 Building culture at a 265-athlete program where distance runners, throwers, jumpers, and sprinters learn to support each other

🥈 The sting of four straight runner-up finishes—and the joy of finally breaking through to a state championship in 2025

📚 How coaching education and mentorship shaped his evolution from “football coach who did track” to “track coach, period”


💬 “If you don’t have joy in what you’re doing, don’t do it. That’s what I tell my staff, that’s what I tell my kids, and that’s what I remind myself every single season.” – Richard Anderson


🌟 Explore Our Library: Dive into 300+ episodes featuring insights from coaching legends such as Boo Schexnayder and Dan Pfaff, Diljeet Taylor (BYU) and Beth Alford-Sullivan, as well as superstar coaches Petros Kyprianou (Illinois), Althea Thomas (Vanderbilt) and many more! Find us on YouTube, Apple Podcasts, Spotify and more for your listening pleasure.


🎙️ Create Your Own Podcast Episode: Reach out to Mike Cunningham for instruction on how to create your very own Gill1918 Project episode, which airs Tuesdays through Sundays. Find YOUR voice on the Gill Connections Podcast Network.


📲 Stay Connected: Want to get in touch with our host, Mike Cunningham? Follow on Twitter (@MikeCunningham), email at mcunningham@gillathletics.com, or text to 217-898-3038. We love hearing from you! 🎧👍



Avsnitt(803)

#108: Gill1918 Presents Sydnee Walker “My Path to NCAA D1 & Beyond” Powered by Coach O

#108: Gill1918 Presents Sydnee Walker “My Path to NCAA D1 & Beyond” Powered by Coach O

Sydnee started at a small high school in GA competing in the shot put and discus. She shares the steps on her path to becoming a 2-time Junior Olympic national hammer throw champion and then a top-10 ...

3 Feb 11min

#348: Lucky Huber-Univ of South Dakota | 40 Years, Olympic Journeys & Building a Championship Culture

#348: Lucky Huber-Univ of South Dakota | 40 Years, Olympic Journeys & Building a Championship Culture

Few coaches in America can tell a story like Lucky Huber — and even fewer can say they’ve spent 40 years at one university, coached an Olympic medalist, transitioned a program from DII to DI, and buil...

2 Feb 1h 50min

#107: Gill1918 presents Brenton Emanuel "Recruiting in Today's NCAA Part 2"

#107: Gill1918 presents Brenton Emanuel "Recruiting in Today's NCAA Part 2"

Back in the fall of 2025, Coach Marques Lowe (Gill podcast alum!) and the Vipers Track Club hosted a Central Illinois Pre-Season Coaches Clinic. To increase the value to other coaches, he has allowed ...

29 Jan 19min

#106: Gill1918 presents Brenton Emanuel "Recruiting in Today's NCAA Part 1"

#106: Gill1918 presents Brenton Emanuel "Recruiting in Today's NCAA Part 1"

Back in the fall of 2025, Coach Marques Lowe (Gill podcast alum!) and the Vipers Track Club hosted a Central Illinois Pre-Season Coaches Clinic. To increase the value to other coaches, he has allowed ...

28 Jan 18min

#105: Gill1918 Presents 3-time Olympian Shannon Rowbury “Ask an Olympian Anything Highlights” Powered by Coach O

#105: Gill1918 Presents 3-time Olympian Shannon Rowbury “Ask an Olympian Anything Highlights” Powered by Coach O

Originally recorded as a live interactive webinar called "Ask Olympian Shannon Rowbury Anything", this episode is a compilation of a few of the many great highlights as Shannon shared wisdom from her ...

27 Jan 14min

#347: Joseph Tooks-Bloom Township (IL) HS | From Blazing Trojan to Transformational Track Leader

#347: Joseph Tooks-Bloom Township (IL) HS | From Blazing Trojan to Transformational Track Leader

What happens when a kid who raced his principal in 5th grade grows into the head coach of the Blazing Trojans? In this episode, Mike sits down with Joseph Tooks, the energetic and intentional girls’ h...

26 Jan 1h 49min

#104: Gill1918 presents JC Lambert "Coaching the Throws and the Weight Room Part 2"

#104: Gill1918 presents JC Lambert "Coaching the Throws and the Weight Room Part 2"

Back in the fall of 2025, Coach Marques Lowe (Gill podcast alum!) and the Vipers Track Club hosted a Central Illinois Pre-Season Coaches Clinic. To increase the value to other coaches, he has allowed ...

22 Jan 17min

#103: Gill1918 presents JC Lambert "Coaching the Throws and the Weight Room Part 1"

#103: Gill1918 presents JC Lambert "Coaching the Throws and the Weight Room Part 1"

Back in the fall of 2025, Coach Marques Lowe (Gill podcast alum!) and the Vipers Track Club hosted a Central Illinois Pre-Season Coaches Clinic. To increase the value to other coaches, he has allowed ...

21 Jan 19min

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