Aug 21, 2017
“...and it may mean you may never win.”
What if one of the best basketball coaches in the world told you that doing what you think is best for the culture and the program is more important than winning an NCAA title? Would you be willing to let go of the fallacy of winning for creating a culture that matters?
This is exactly what Roy Williams told Jenny Levy in 2012. Jenny took what Roy told her to heart and changed her focus from chasing championships to a culture of connection. Two NCAA Championships later, Jenny my have discovered the real “Way of Champions”.
Listen in to hear her amazing story and the lessons she learned from some of the greatest coaches of our time.
Bio
Jenny Levy is third in NCAA Division I history in career wins, a
two-time national champion and a two-time National Coach of the
Year. She enters 2018 with a career record of 312-109, including
66-30 in ACC play, in 22 seasons.
She has led the Tar Heels to nine appearances in the NCAA Tournament semifinals, including six in the last nine years. Her 30 NCAA Tournament wins are fourth in NCAA history.
Levy is the fourth coach in women's lacrosse history to win an NCAA championship as a player (with Virginia in 1991) and as a head coach. She is the eighth coach to win multiple NCAA titles.
The only head coach in UNC women's lacrosse history and among the collegiate game's most noted figures, Levy built the Tar Heel program from scratch.
Levy has guided Carolina to 19 NCAA Tournament bids, nine NCAA Tournament semifinal appearances, three Atlantic Coast Conference titles and the 2013 and 2016 NCAA titles in her 21 seasons. She has been a mainstay on various NCAA, IWLCA and US Lacrosse national committees. She also is a four-time ACC Coach of the Year.
She is a 1992 graduate of the University of Virginia with a BA in rhetoric and communications and was a member of the U.S. National Team in 1992-93 and again in 1995. Levy (then known as Jenny Slingluff) played at UVa from 1988-1992. She led the Cavaliers to the 1991 NCAA championship, scoring three goals in the title game and five in the semifinal, leading to her selection as the tournament's Most Outstanding Attacker.
A two-time first-team All-America, Levy was named the 1992 NCAA Attacker of the Year. In 2002, she was named one of the top 50 players in ACC history.
She married Dan Levy of Baltimore, Md., in June 1998. Dan is a 1993 UNC graduate who played lacrosse at Carolina for four years, starring on the 1991 NCAA championship team. The couple has three children - Ryan (born in Jan. 2002), Alec (born in Sept. 2003) and Kathryn (born in July 2006).
Subscribe to the Way of Champions Podcast on iTunes
Show Notes
6:00 Jen’s Journey began with realizing the curse of knowledge
13:30 “Sustainable Success” happens with family – It isn’t the
winning, it’s the atmosphere
19:00 How “Living up the the History” plays a role in building a
champion culture
24:45 You need to recruit people who fit your culture not change to
be like the people you recruit
29:30 Jen explains when parents should “step in” with their child’s
coach
38:45 Creating a champion culture is personal, a process, and takes
time
43:30 “You have to be okay doing what is best for the program and
it may mean you may NEVER win”
48:00 Jen’s advice to young coaches – do this first to transform
your career
55:15 Jen explains what will force her to stop coaching…
Get in Touch
Twitter: @UNCWLAX
Instagram: @UNCWLAX
Website: www.goheels.com
Camps: CarolinaLacrosseCamps.com
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