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Why Listen:

There are so many reasons to listen to today’s interview. First of all: Sports. Jake is the first person I’ve interviewed who has had a career in sports leadership. He is currently the Director of Player Development at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, and we talk a lot about the NFL, coaching in professional football, and what this industry is like. Second: TV. Jake is a dynamic personality, and has been featured on shows such on both the Discovery Channel and Scout Media Network. This interview offers a behind-the-scenes look at what it’s like being on TV, and about extending one’s personal brand. Lastly: motivation. I found Jake and his story very uplifting - his perspective on failure, on pushing oneself, and on pursing a personal goal with relentless, are all informative and inspirational. If you enjoy this episode, be sure to check out: BTU #74 - Nate Boyer: Army Green Beret to the NFL, BTU #245 - Marine Corps to MMA & the UFC (Liz Carmouche), BTU #329 - Active Duty Army to the NFL (Alejandro Villanueva), and BTU #196 - Active Duty Army to UFC Contender and Discovery Channel Show Host (Tim Kennedy).

About Jake:

Jake Zweig is the Director of Player Development at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, He started out at the Naval Academy, after which he served as a Surface Warfare Offer (qualifying in 6 months rather than the typical 18-24 months) before transferring to and becoming a Navy SEAL team officer for six years. His career has included work as a Football Coach at the University of Maryland, the Catholic University of America, the University of New Hampshire, Bryant University, the University of the Incarnate Word, and the University of Findlay. He has also worked as a TV Host for both the Discovery Channel and the Scout Media Network, with involvement with the Dude, Your Screwed program and this History Channels Hot Shot. He holds an MBA from the University of Michigan.

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Partners:

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Selected Resources: 

• About Jake

  • LinkedIn

  • Illinois Athletic

  • The Travel Wins

  • Instagram

  • Discovery GO

  • Twitter

  • Bleacher Report

• Related episodes

  • BTU #74 - Nate Boyer: Army Green Beret to the NFL

  • BTU #245 - Marine Corps to MMA & the UFC (Liz Carmouche)

  • BTU #329 - Active Duty Army to the NFL (Alejandro Villanueva)

  • BTU #196 - Active Duty Army to UFC Contender and Discovery Channel Show Host (Tim Kennedy)

Transcript & Time Stamps:

4:00

Joining me today from Champagne, Illinois is Jake Zweig. Jake Zweig is the Director of Player Development at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, He started out at the Naval Academy, after which he served as a Surface Warfare Offer (qualifying in 6 months rather than the typical 18-24 months) before transferring to and becoming a Navy SEAL team officer for six years. His career has included work as a football coach at the University of Maryland, the Catholic University of America, the University of New Hampshire, Bryant University, the University of the Incarnate Word, and the University of Findlay. He has also worked as a TV Host for both the Discovery Channel and the Scout Media Network, with involvement with the Dude, You’re Screwed program and this History Channels Hot Shot. He holds an MBA from the University of Michigan. 

Is there anything else you’d like to add?

A lot of people don’t know that I grew up doing ceramics. I’ve been doing that for a lifetime and it’s been a hobby that I’ve really enjoyed. 

When I was at Michigan in business school, they didn’t want to allow me to take a Ceramics class. Finally, they let me take a Ceramics 101 class. About three weeks in, an instructor came in and pulled me aside. He was really impressed with my work. I ended up doing 20 hours of ceramics credits during my MBA program. 

When I was working at the University of New Hampshire, the program was cash strapped. The Offensive Coordinator’s sister worked at a production house in Los Angeles. She gave us an opportunity to be featured on some of their programs. That experience showed me that media can be used as a vehicle to increase the quality of recruits at our program. 

I’m not a fake person - I’m very genuine. The way I am on TV is the way I am in real life. I look to use those appearances as a way to further my goals and bring value to football programs I’ve worked for. 

16:30

What drove you to pursue an MBA?

During my sophomore year at the Naval Academy, There was an instructor that advised me to get my MBA after getting out of the military. So it was always in the back of my head that I would go to business school after getting out. 

I loved being in the military and thought I might stay in until I retired. But I had a bad experience at a duty station where there wasn’t very good leadership. So I decided to get out and go to business school at the University of Michigan. 

After graduated, I was working in corporate America. I was making more than $200,000 a year. But then I was offered a Graduate Assistant job for $7,000 a year. And I’ve never been more happy. I’m not motivated by money. I want to do what I’m passionate about. 

During this time, I received a job offer from Oprah Winfrey’s company but I turned it down to continue working in college football. To this day, I don’t know if that was the right decision. But at the time, I just wanted to stay focused on football coaching. 

24:20

Where did this goal to be a coach come from?

My college roommate says that during our freshman year, I wanted to either be a national championship football coach or a Congressman. I’ve shifted that slightly in that my goal now is to be a US Senator rather than a Congressman. 

25:35

What advice do you have for people that want to work in sports? 

Everyone focuses on the college football coaches that are making a ton of money. But those are far and few between. The reality is that the business is a grind. It’s difficult to get into and you really have to work hard to move your way up. I still haven’t got back to the salary I was making in 2003. But I love my job. I love working every day with young adults. 

I talked to truck driver a couple months ago that wanted to be a Navy SEAL. I asked him if he was willing to write his life off for six years because that’s what it would take. You’ll be gone from home 330 days of the year. Ultimately, he decided not to do it. 

A lot of times what you want and what’s good for you are two different things. Every guy on our team wants to start. But that’s not always what’s best for their development or for the team. So I have to talk to them about that. 

34:30

How did you get involved in TV?

A great character for a television show is someone that will produce unexpected outcomes with a few trainwrecks along the way. That’s me. I was on Top Shot and I was given a gun that didn’t work. I was frustrated by that so I left the show. When the show went to air, it turned out to be a hit. But in the episode after I left, the show’s viewership dropped. 

TV is all smoke and mirrors. Nobody is real. After Top Shot, I got a ton of calls with people claiming I would be starring in their new show. I would tell them to send me a contract to prove that they were serious. A few months later, I got cast on a Discovery Channel show. 

43:50

What’s the hardest part about coaching football?

In my case, I came into college football at age 34 with no coaching experience. That has been difficult. There are 32 teams in the NFL with 20 coaches each. There are 128 Division I college football teams with about 12 coaches each. So there really just aren’t that many positions available. 

46:30

What is your day-to-day like?

I get up at 5am and go to the YMCA to work out. I go to work after that and usually practice is 7-10am. After that, I have meetings with various players. I also help run the executive leadership program for the entire university so I usually do that in the afternoon. I pick my kids up at 5pm for wrestling practice. After that, I go back to work for a couple hours in the evening. 

My goal is to instill values and attributes in our players that will carry them through the rest of their lives. 

51:20

Can you tell us about your relationship with Doug Zembiec? 

I wrestled for two years at the Naval Academy. During my first year at the Naval Academy, I was at Marine Corps training with Doug Zembiec. I had heard that he was a wrestler too. So we really bonded over that and kept up with each other throughout our careers. He was killed in Iraq in 2007. I was at the Catholic University of America and one of the coaches there had lost his son in the Middle East around the same time. That really changed my perspective. 

I got out in 2001 and got called in 2002 asking me to come back in. I said no and to this day, it’s a big regret for me. 

But my relationships with Doug was very important to me. My oldest son is named Zembiec Douglas Zwig. I wanted to honor him by doing that.