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Jeff Butler: Leading with love is a core principle of our academy.

While our masterclasses usually feature top coaches from around the world, this article highlights the other side of the process: how that knowledge is systematically put into action to develop our future coaches.

97. Tom Black: What you seek isn’t in the winning.

Tom Black is the head coach of the University of Georgia’s volleyball team and a former U.S. Women’s National Team assistant who helped win a World Championship in 2014 and an Olympic bronze medal at Rio 2016.

96. Angelo Lorenzetti: We are at their service.

Angelo Lorenzetti is the head coach of Sir Sicoma Monini Perugia and one of the most respected volleyball minds in the world.

95. Alfee Reft: Coaching is about shaping people.

Alfee Reft is the head coach of the University of California, Los Angeles women's volleyball team and an Olympic silver medal-winning U.S. National Team assistant.

94. Practice videos: Cesar Hernández González - Nantes Volleyball

What is happening in the training gyms around the world? Today we have Cesar Hernández González reviewing 2 of his practice sessions.

93. Erin Virtue: Each recipe for success is going to be unique.

Erin Virtue is the head coach of the University of Michigan’s volleyball team and a former gold medal winning U.S. National Team assistant.

92. John Cook: Wrapping up Nebraska's practice videos

In this 'in-between' article we cover the outro we've recorded with John Cook at the end of the Nebraska practice session recordings.

91. Practice videos: John Cook - Nebraska (Part 2)

What is happening in the training gyms around the world? Today we have John Cook breaking down part 2 of a Nebraska pre-season practice session.

90. Practice videos: John Cook - Nebraska

What is happening in the training gyms around the world? Today we have John Cook breaking down a Nebraska pre-season practice session.

89. Practice videos: Milan Zarkovic - Hawaii

What is happening in the training gyms around the world? Today we have Milan Zarkovic covering his volleyball fundamentals.

88. Sanja Tomasevic: Give back to move forward.

Sanja Tomasevic has experienced volleyball from every angle—student-athlete, professional player, college coach, and now assistant coach for Vakifbank, one of the world’s top volleyball teams.

87. Practice videos: Kevin Burch - Ohio State University

What is happening in the training gyms around the world? Today we have Kevin Burch reviewing 2 of his practice sessions.

86. Russ Rose: Everything Matters

In an era where volleyball continues to evolve rapidly, few voices carry the weight of experience and wisdom quite like Coach Russ Rose.

85: Fabio Soli: Building Self-Regulating Teams (Part 2)

With Fabio Soli we continue our insightful discussion in Part 2 of our Masterclass interview.

The Practice Database is LIVE.

Discover how to navigate the new VolleyBrains Practice Database with ease! Learn how to filter practice videos by skill, country, and level, and quickly access the exact clips you need.

84. Fabio Soli: Embracing Player Creativity (Part 1)

Fabio Soli is the head coach of Trentino Volley, one of Italy's and Europe's top pro volleyball teams.

83. Practice videos: Konstantin Bitter - Allianz MTV Stuttgart

What is happening in the training gyms around the world? Today we have Konstantin Bitter reviewing 2 of his practice sessions.

82. Jerritt Elliott: People, Dedication and Excellence

Jerritt Elliott is the head coach of the University of Texas women's volleyball team, where he's running one of the highest-performing college programs in the USA.

81. Al Scates: You need to enjoy yourself.

Welcome to our Masterclass Interview with Al Scates, a legendary figure in the world of volleyball. Al's remarkable career spans five decades, during which he transformed UCLA's men's volleyball team into a powerhouse.

80. Practice videos: Nicola Negro - Minas (Part 2)

What is happening in the training gyms around the world? Today we have Nicola Negro reviewing 2 of his team practice sessions.

79. Practice videos: Nicola Negro - Minas

What is happening in the training gyms around the world? Today we have Nicola Negro reviewing 3 of his practice sessions.

78. Francesco Petrella: Between Stimulus and Response, The Space to Lead

Francesco Petrella's passion for volleyball, along with an expertise in team culture and leadership, and his experiences in the Italian Superlega, make him the perfect coach to have an interview with.

77. Practice videos: Mark Lebedew - Friedrichshafen

What is happening in the training gyms around the world? Today we have Mark Lebedew reviewing one of his practices.

76. Dan Fisher: I just want to win the day.

Dan Fisher is the head coach of the University of Pittsburgh women's volleyball team. In the last 11 seasons, he propelled Pitt volleyball into the highest national ranks.

75. Practice videos: Dave Shondell - Purdue University

What is happening in the training gyms around the world? Today we have Purdue's head coach Dave Shondell reviewing one of their practices.

74. Practice videos: Luka Slabe - NC State University

What is happening in the training gyms around the world? Today we have NC State's head coach Luka Slabe reviewing one of their practices.

73. Practice videos: Luka Slabe - Whiteboard session

What is actually happening in the training gyms around the world? Today we have NC State's head coach Luka Slabe going over his practice organization.

72. Keegan Cook: We are what they learn.

Keegan Cook is the head coach of the University of Minnesota's volleyball team. He brought his expertise over from the University of Washington, where he was the head coach from 2015 to 2022.

71. Practice videos: Liam Sketcher - VK CEZ Karlovarsko

What is actually happening in the training gyms around the world? Today we have Czech pro team Karlovarsko's head coach Liam Sketcher going over his practice.

70. Andy Inveiss: Pro Volleyball, Beyond the Fine Print.

The volleyball world is ever-changing. VolleyballWorld on an international level. LOVB and other pro leagues on US soil. The transfer portal and NIL in college volleyball. The perfect time to sit down with a renowned insider in pro volleyball.

69. John Kessel: The coach who knows why, beats the coach who knows how.

In this Masterclass with John Kessel we went all over the place...and instead of filtering out John's answers to fit our 'standard' VB questions, I kept the edit a bit more rough. Missing out on some of John's insights would be a pity.

68. Practice videos: Dan Friend - Lewis University

What is actually happening in the training gyms around the world? Today we have Lewis University's head coach Dan Friend going over his practice.

67. Practice videos: Steven Vanmedegael - Knack Volley Roeselare

What is actually happening in the training gyms around the world? Today we have Knack Volley Roeselare's head coach Steven Vanmedegael going over a full practice day.

66. Practice videos: Alessandro Lodi - VC Bitterfeld

What is actually happening in the training gyms around the world? Today we have VC Bitterfeld's head coach Alessandro Lodi going over his typical practice.

65. John Dunning: My team is a reflection of me.

In this Masterclass we feature John Dunning. John is one of only two Division I college volleyball coaches to have won NCAA championships at two different schools. And has guided his teams to 5 NCAA championships.

64. John Dunning: Only do things that show respect.

In this Masterclass we feature John Dunning. John is one of only two Division I college volleyball coaches to have won NCAA championships at two different schools. And has guided his teams to 5 NCAA championships.

63. Practice videos: Kevin Hambly - Stanford University

What is actually happening in the training gyms around the world? Today we have Stanford University's head coach Kevin Hambly going over one of their practice days.

62. Gianni Caprara: Never stop improving yourself.

In this Masterclass we feature Gianni Caprara. The current head coach of Besiktas in Turkey. Gianni has been at the helm of various top-tier clubs and national teams over the last 25 years.

61. Timeouts: Effective communication Part 3

There is always something to be learned from the highest level of matches in the world. Let’s dive into the VNL Final match-up of Poland against Team USA.

60. Kirsten Bernthal Booth: My 'why' in coaching is to help women grow.

Kirsten Bernthal Booth has been building Creighton's volleyball program for the last 20 years, developing it into one of the top programs (appearing in the AVCA’s Top 25 poll each of the last 10 years).

59. Practice videos: Alessandro Orefice - Paris St-Cloud (Part 2)

What is actually happening in the training gyms around the world? Today we have Alessandro Orefice the head coach of Paris St-Cloud Les Mariannes going over their practice sessions.

58. Jim McLaughlin: The game is the game.

In this Masterclass we feature Jim McLaughlin. Jim earned his spot in the AVCA Hall of Fame in 2021 for his contributions to college volleyball. Coach McLaughlin holds the distinction of being the only coach to win both Division I men's and women's volleyball championships.

57. Timeouts: Effective communication Part 2.

Coaching greatness can only be achieved when being effective in your communication. And there is always something to be learned from the highest level of matches in the world. So let’s dive in!

56. Practice videos: Alessandro Orefice - Paris St-Cloud

What is actually happening in the training gyms around the world? Today we have Alessandro Orefice the head coach of Paris St-Cloud Les Mariannes going over one of their practice sessions.

55. Jennifer Petrie: Be kind to yourself.

In this Masterclass we feature Jennifer Petrie, the head coach of the University of San Diego women's volleyball team. In 2022 coach Petrie was recognized as the AVCA National Coach of the Year, and San Diego set a national record with 28 consecutive wins.

54. Julio Velasco: Be a happy and energetic coach.

In this 2nd Julio Velasco Masterclass article, we focus on the mistakes he feels he made and the lessons he learned from them. But we also go deeper into Julio's favorite resources which helped him become a master coach.

53. Julio Velasco: This is an art.

Julio Velasco is a legendary figure in the world of volleyball. Over the years Julio had many roles in international volleyball, from coaching Italian top teams, the Italian phenomenal 90's National team and other world class national teams.

52. Practice videos: Lauren Bertolacci - Viteos NUC Volleyball (Part 2)

What is actually happening in the training gyms around the world? Today we have Lauren Bertolacci the head coach of Swiss top team Viteos NUC going over 2 of their afternoon practice sessions.

51. Kevin Hambly: It's all about the players. It's all about them.

In this Masterclass we feature Kevin Hambly, the head coach of Stanford's women's volleyball team. Under Kevin, Stanford has won multiple conference titles and the NCAA Championship in 2018 and 2019. Under his leadership, 10 players became AVCA All-Americans.

50. Nicola Negro: 'The game teaches us how we need to coach.'

In today's Masterclass we feature Nicola Negro the head coach of Minas. Minas is current South America's strongest club team, after having won 3 straight Brazilian Superliga's, the 2022 South American Club Championship and many more titles and cups.

49. Practice videos: Lauren Bertolacci - Viteos NUC Volleyball

What is actually happening in the training gyms around the world? Today we have Lauren Bertolacci the head coach of Swiss top team Viteos NUC going over their morning practice sessions.

48. Terry Liskevych: 'There are no shortcuts.'

We had a couple of great calls with Terry Liskevych to be able to create this Masterclass. Terry's story begins with an immigrant upbringing, an early talent for coaching and progresses through becoming the head coach of the USA women's team, collegiate coaching and many business ventures.

47. Learning Path 2: Culture by design, not by default.

In our 'Learning Paths' we'll collect valuable concepts and insights which you can find on volleybrains.com. Each learning path will feature a specific subject related to the art of coaching.

46. Practice videos: Sir Safety Perugia - Andrea Anastasi

What is actually happening in the training gyms around the world? Today we have Andrea Anastasi the head coach of Italian's top team Sir Safety Perugia going over their team practice.

45. Silvano Prandi: 'Not doing things well doesn't give me satisfaction. And without satisfaction it's useless to do things'

Silvano Prandi, 46 years ago, started to coach at the highest level. His story started in Turino, Italy. He was the first Italian coach to take the jump into professionalism.

44. Davide Mazzanti: You are born a champion.

43. Dan Friend:'No fear of failure. Go after it.'

Dan Friend is the head coach of the Lewis University men’s volleyball program since 2004. He is in his 26th season overall as a collegiate head coach. In 2015 after becoming the runner up in the National Championship Dan was nominated as the AVCA coach of the year.

42. Practice videos: SC Potsdam - Guillermo Naranjo Hernandez

What is actually happening in the training gyms around the world? Starting today we are going to add actual practice videos to volleybrains.com. With the pro coaches explaining how they are practicing and why they are doing it in that way.

41. Learning Path 1: Self-Awareness

In our 'Learning Paths' we'll collect valuable concepts and insights which you can find on volleybrains.com. Each learning path will feature a specific subject related to the art of coaching.

40. Timeouts: Effective communication.

Coaching greatness can only be achieved when being effective in your communication. And there is always something to be learned from the highest level of matches in the world. So let’s dive in!

39. Laurent Tillie:'The right attitude is everything'

In this Masterclass we feature Laurent Tillie. Laurent has been the successful head coach of the French national team for a period of nearly 10 years(2012-2021), while accumulating many world class victories.

38. Dave Shondell:'High expectations demands tremendous responsibility'

In this Masterclass we feature Dave Shondell. Dave is the head coach of Purdue University and a 2 times Big Ten head coach of the year. Together with his staff he firmly secured Purdue volleyball to be among one of the best programs in the United States.

37. Cesar Hernandez Gonzalez:"Focus on winning 3 sets. You don't need to focus on winning the match."

In today's Masterclass we feature Cesar Hernandez Gonzalez. Cesar is the newly appointed head coach of the Korean women's national team, in charge of building their new look team. Cesar is also an assistant coach and data specialist over at Turkish powerhouse Vakifbank.

36. Giuseppe Vinci:"We need to professionalize volleyball."

In this masterclass we don't feature a current volleyball coach, but to not call Giuseppe Vinci a 'volleybrain' would be a blatant error. Giuseppe was the CEO and founder of Volleymetrics and currently the Market Director at Hudl.

35. Davide Mazzanti:"Respecting yourself and those around you, that is the key."

In this Masterclass we feature Davide Mazzanti. Davide is the head coach of the Italian female national team since 2017 and guided them to obtain the European Championship gold medal in 2021, on the home court of that other European powerhouse, Serbia.

34. Tore Aleksandersen: "Knowledge is power."

In today's Masterclass we share the experiences of Tore Aleksandersen, Norwegian head coach of the German powerhouse of Allianz Stuttgart. For more than 20 years Tore has been developing himself into the coach he is today.

33. Anders Kristiansson:"Dare to challenge."

In this Masterclass we feature Anders Kristiansson. Anders was inducted into the Volleyball Hall of Fame in 2017. He became famous for making the 80's Swedish Men's National Volleyball Team one of the best in Europe and in the world.

32. Dani Busboom Kelly:"All of my players need to have a great experience, I take that very personal"

In today's Masterclass we feature Dani Busboom Kelly. Dani is the Louisville Cardinals head coach and was awarded the AVCA Coach of the Year award last December. Louisville finished their 2021 regular season with 'zero' defeats and went on to play the National Championship semi final.

31. Glenn Hoag:"It is my responsibility to help my sport to grow"

In this Masterclass we feature Glenn Hoag. Glenn has over 2 decades of experience in coaching pro teams, he is the head coach of the Arkas Spor team since 2010, but for sure Glenn is best known for being the head coach of Canada's Senior Men's national team.

30. Hugh McCutcheon:"It's about committing to a standard of competitive excellence."

Last week we highlighted Hugh McCutcheon's recent TedTalk, this week we'll cover our conversation we had with him. Hugh is of course known for coaching both the USA Men's as Women's teams for an extended period between 2005 til 2012.

29. On the court: Championship Behaviours with Hugh McCutcheon

I listened to Hugh McCutcheon's Ted Talk in the autumn of last year, I was driving home, I remember I was nodding my head...a lot. I also remember that when I entered our home that my wife and me rewatched the talk from the beginning. It's that good.

28. Michal Winiarski:"I have the same attitude towards coaching as I had towards playing, I want to be the best I can be."

Michal became a volleyball coach after a long and successful playing career. He's the former captain of the Polish National team, 2014 World Champion, 2012 World League winner, 2009 Champions League winner, Italian Champion with the team of Trentino and won multiple Polish Championships and Cups.

27. Alan Knipe:"Our culture is by design, not by default."

Alan Knipe is the head coach of Long Beach State. The 2018 and 2019 NCAA National Champion. Alan is of course also known as the former head coach of Team USA's men's team (2009-2012). In this masterclass he takes us with on a deep dive into the importance of team culture and accountability.

26. On the court: The Strength and Conditioning Experts.

We are back with the second part of this weeks 'On the court' series. We sent out 3 questions about physical development in volleyball to 3 top experts in the field. The questions were: 1. Do you have a particular idea of ​how a volleyball athlete should physically

25. On the court: The performance tools used by Italian pro teams.

We at volleybrains are fans of staying in our lane, that 'inch wide and mile deep' kind of thing. Don't get distracted, just keep on pumping out interviews with the brightest and best pro volleyball coaches on the globe.😀 BUT! But, once in a while an

24. Marcello Abbondanza:"Even after being successful, what we do will change. And it will change again."

Marcello Abbondanza is an Italian coach with a boatload of experience coaching high level club teams in Italy, Azerbaijan, Poland, Turkey, both the Canadian and the Bulgarian national teams. Being known as one of the most successful coaches in female volleyball of the last decade.

23. Tama Miyashiro:"You always have to be looking for ways to be a better teacher."

Tama is an assistant coach for the USA Women's National Team. Specializing in serve receive and defense. Even though Tama is one of the youngest coaches that we've featured on volleybrains she possesses an interesting mix of pro player experience, coaching 'overseas'...

22. Craig Skinner:"If you stop learning, then you're doing yourself and your team a disservice."

Craig Skinner is the head coach of the Kentucky Wildcats. The 2020 NCAA National Champions. Since arriving at Kentucky, Craig has rejuvenated the Kentucky volleyball program into national prominence and has directed the Wildcats to 16 consecutive NCAA Tournaments.

21. Andrea Gardini:'For every player you'll need a different key, your job is to find that key.'

If you are a fan of the small gold medal emoji's 🥇, you should go and take a look at Andrea Gardini's wikipedia page. There are too many World Championship, Olympic, World League and other titles to even start to count. Today we talk to the former athlete who became a successful coach.

20. Joop Alberda:'Success is all about communication and trust, not having success...also.'

A game that many coaches mention as their favorite one and also my personal favorite is the Olympic final at Atlanta in 1996, The Netherlands winning a 5 set match against Italy. Today we share the story of Joop Alberda, iconic coach of that Dutch team.

19. Russ Rose:'You can't get too high when it's good and you can't get too low when it's not good.'

Normally our intro's are the highlights from a coaches' wikipedia page. But what do you pick with a Russ Rose interview: coached 44 All Americans, 40+ years of head coaching, won 7 national championships? We had the pleasure to have a long call with coach Rose. Hope you will enjoy the interview.

18. Daniele Santarelli:'If I knew what volleyball would look like 10 years from now, I would start to adapt already'

Since the 2017-2018 season Daniele Santarelli is the head coach of Italian powerhouse Imoco Conegliano. In this masterclass we talk about his journey and growth as a coach, what makes a great player, the evolution of our game and so much more.

17. Tuomas Sammelvuo:'Your best players are the ones that make the culture, they are the foundation of your team.'

With the Russian National Men's team Tuomas Sammelvuo just won the Olympic Silver medal🥈. We had a talk with him after the VNL tournament in July a few days before leaving to Tokio.

16. Tommi Tiilikainen:'I try to break and take off all limitations.'

Hi readers, this article features Tommi Tiilikainen. Tommi is a 34 year old Finnish volleyball coach who has coached in Europe, just had a 4 year stint in Japan and is now coaching the South Korean champions Incheon Korean Air Jumbos (btw the team that Roberto Santilli coached last season)

15. Kelly Sheffield:'We're trying to max this thing out.'

In this article we feature Kelly Sheffield, head coach for the women's volleyball team at the 'University of Wisconsin'. We covered a lot of ground in our videocall. There is a lot of great content in this article. Covering coaching concepts, what Kelly looks for in

14. Marco Mencarelli:'Never stop improving yourself, your team and your work environment.'

In today's article we feature Marco Mencarelli. Marco has an extensive experience coaching and developing the training programs of the Italian Female Youth teams, he has international experience with the Italian Seniors national team and until recently he was coaching in the Italian Serie A. From this spring

13. Lauren Bertolacci:"You can’t beat teams better than you by playing it safe, you need to score points."

In today's article we're featuring Lauren Bertolacci. Lauren is the head coach of Swiss powerhouse NUC Volleyball [http://www.nucvolleyball.ch/](Neuchatel), the current Swiss champion and she's an assistant coach with Team Canada currently competing in the VNL. Lauren is a former pro

12. Emanuele Zanini:'Every day is an opportunity to write on a new blank page'

In this article we feature Italian coach Emanuele Zanini. Emanuele's career as a head coach in the Italian Serie A1 started in the year of 2000, coming fresh of an Olympic Bronze medal at the Olympic games of Sydney as the assistant coach of the Italian national men&

11. Giovanni Guidetti: 'Listening is more important than talking'

Hi kind readers, in today's article we feature Giovanni Guidetti. Giovanni is for his 12th year the head coach of Turkish powerhouse Vakifbank. We had a nice videotalk last March which laid the ground for this article. I won't go over Giovanni's CV, it

10. Roberto Santilli:'Inspire the individual and allow them to be the best that they can be.'

Today we feature Roberto Santilli. Roberto just won the 2020-2021 South-Korean KOVO V-League with the team of Incheon Korean Air Jumbos. Congrats! But Roberto's experiences go much further than this recent victory. He has coached for over 2 decades in Italy, Poland, Russia and was coach of the

9. Mark Lebedew:'Focus on the single thing that will do the most to help your team win.'

Hi everyone! In this article I'm happy to feature Mark Lebedew. Mark is the former head coach of the Australian men's national team. He has coached at many high level European teams and is for sure a mindful coach when it comes to all aspects of

8. Shannon Winzer: 'Don’t fear failure, fear regret. '

Hi readers! In this article we're featuring Shannon Winzer. Shannon is the Head Coach of the Canadian Women's National team. She's a former player that developed herself into a world class coach. A lot of great advice to be picked up in the article

7. Jan De Brandt: 'There is no elevator to success, there are only stairs.'

Hi, this week on volleybrains we're featuring Jan De Brandt. Jan coached all over Europe: Belgium, Spain, Switzerland, Germany, Turkey, Italy, Hungary. He's a coach who has an infectious enthusiasm for the game and he gave some interesting answers to our questions. Read all about it

6. Luka Slabe:' We make sure we do a good job on our side of the net, before we worry about the opponent.'

Hi readers, this week we have Team USA Women's Assistant coach and NC State Head Coach Luka Slabe on volleybrains.com. Luka has coached many different levels and teams. Slovenian Champions League teams (I met Luka in 2012 while he coached ACH Volley Ljubljana), the Slovenian Men'

5. Andrea Anastasi:'A coach must follow his own path, make up his own plan.'

Andrea started to coach in Brescia in 1994, other Italian clubs, the Italian National Team, the Spanish National Team, Italy again, Polish clubs, Belgium...now we are 26 years later and Andrea coaches the team of Verva Warszawa in Poland. At lot to look back at. A lot of lessons

4. Liam Sketcher: 'You can’t “fix” players, but you can help them improve.'

Liam Sketcher has been part of the Australian Men's Senior National Team since 2017. On a club level he's currently coaching in Switzerland with one of the top teams over there, Volley Schönenwerd.  Volley|Brains is really focused on delivering articles of coaches with a clear

3. Angelo Lorenzetti: 'Study the game because it never stops teaching you something new.'

Hi Volleybrains readers, My first memories of following Italian Serie A1 volleyball are the finals of the 2001-2002 season. Daytona Modena versus Sisley Treviso, one of the truly classic battles. That finals race was won by Modena in 4 games. At Modena were playing legendary players like Andrea Giani, Lloy

2. John Cook: 'Be A Lifelong Learner'

During the Christmas holidays I had the pleasure to get on a video call with coach Cook. John Cook is the head coach of the Nebraska Huskers volleyball program. Under John's guidance the Huskers went on to grab 4 National Championships. This current season is his 21st straight

1. Vital Heynen: 'Our game has to become even more dynamic, more play, less breaks.'

Vital Heynen is the head coach of Sir Safety Perugia in the Italian Serie A and the Polish national team coach. Read his answers to the Volley|Brains questions below. Why did you decide to become a professional volleyball coach? What pushed you towards that decision? I remember that while