This episode of SANDCAST: Beach Volleyball with Tri Bourne and Travis Mewhirter features USC Beach Volleyball head coach Dain Blanton and his most recent star, Maddie White. Coming off a fourth straight NCAA Championship, now heading for an astonishing fifth, USC is, per usual, the team to beat in 2025. On this episode, we chat about:
- The growth of the sport at the NCAA level, and how recruiting has changed to a national and global level
- The benefits of college athletics, and how it has changed the game forever
- Dain Blanton’s experiences at the Olympics, and the dynamics of team leadership.
- How the landscape of beach volleyball has evolved, particularly in terms of player development and the increasing competitiveness of the sport.
- The differences between the college model and professional beach volleyball.
And, as always, much, much more.
SHOOTS!
***
Get 20 PERCENT off all Wilson products with our code, SANDCAST63. https://www.wilson.com/en-us/volleyball
Introducing Balltime, the AI platform making breaking down film and statistics EASY (FINALLY!). Use our link for a discount and give it a try!
Want to get better at beach volleyball? Use our discount code, SANDCAST, and get 10 percent off all Better at Beach products!
We are FIRED UP to announce that we’ve signed on for another year with Athletic Greens! Get a FREE year’s supply of Vitamin D by purchasing with that link.
We have a new book! Playbook of Champions: The habits, routines, and stories of Olympians, Champions, and world-class athletes. If you listen to the show – which, if you’re reading this, then you are – then this is the perfect book for you, as it is a distillation of the best golden nuggets from our first five years of the podcast. Check it out on Amazon!
We now have SANDCAST MERCHANDISE!! Rock the gear of your favorite podcast today! https://www.sandcastmerch.com/
If you want to receive our SANDCAST weekly newsletter, the Beach Volleyball Digest, which dishes all the biggest news in beach volleyball in one quick newsletter, head over to our website and subscribe! We’d love to have ya! https://www.sandcastvolleyball.com/
Check out our book, Volleyball for Milkshakes, written by SANDCAST hosts Tri Bourne and Travis Mewhirter: https://www.amazon.com/Volleyball-Milkshakes-Travis-Mewhirter/dp/B089781SHB