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Should playing time in youth sports be equal, or should the best players play? In this impromptu solo episode, athletic director and longtime youth coach Morgan Sullivan answers a new parent's honest question about youth sports playing time and makes the case for long-term athlete development over winning at 8, 10, or 12 years old.

A first-time sports parent asked the question the right way on Instagram. The comments answered it the wrong way: "you play the game to win." Morgan explains why that mindset does real damage at the youth and middle school level, and what coaches should be doing instead: keep athletes safe, teach them, and above all keep them in the game.

He shares two real stories (including the middle schooler "ranked 13th on a 12-player team" who became an all-conference Division II player), explains why a youth coach's win-loss record truly does not matter, and pushes back on the idea that rec and travel should be handled differently, drawing on his own top-tier 11U team that rotated every player and had 11 of 12 pitch. If you want stronger high school rosters, it starts years earlier by giving every kid a good experience and a reason to stay.

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Talkin' with the AD is a podcast for athletic directors, school leaders, coaches, parents, and athletes, built around education-based athletics and the people who make it work. Hosted by Morgan J. Sullivan, athletic director, coach, and author of Coach on Leadership.

LEAD · TEACH · GROW

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• Books: Coach on Leadership · MS Education Based Athletics · Before the First Snap

Recorded with Riverside: https://riverside.partnerlinks.io/ltacqatxw6ac

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Better Youth Coaching
Mission is to improve amateur sports through education of parents, coaches, and athletes

Better Youth Coaching
Mission is to improve amateur sports through education of parents, coaches, and athletes

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