Cameron Sitler, the head coach of women’s beach volleyball at Houston Baptist University, sits down with us in this episode of the 35,000 feet podcast going over the past season for his team, how he got into coaching volleyball, some memorable travel experiences, and his advice to future collegiate athletes.

In this episode, we discuss:

• How this past season went for Houston Baptist University Women’s Volleyball team (0:17)

• How Coach Sitler got into coaching (2:29)

• Cameron’s advice to athletes wanting to play in college (7:45)

• Cameron’s favorite travel experience (11:20)

• One thing that no one knows about Cameron (16:20)

• Cameron’s next adventure (17:51)

The Peaks and Dives of the Past Season for Houston Baptist University Women’s Basketball Team

Morgan: Hi guys, welcome back. It's Morgan. Today, I'm sitting down with coach Cameron. Thanks so much for joining us.

Cameron: Thanks for having me.

Morgan: Yes. And we're excited to just get to know you better and learn more about your team and you and your travels that you've had. And so one of the first questions I wanted to ask you today is, if you could tell us about the highs and lows of your season.

Cameron: I mean, this year definitely had more lows than usual with our season getting canceled halfway. Everyone in the NCAA, we made three weeks of competition and then, again, with the shutdown kind of closed down our seasons. So you have a lot of players that put years of focus and activity to be prepared for these moments, and to lose the moments you compete for is definitely a load to watch. Some of the highs are we introduced a new system this year that actually is physical testing, that's connected to personality and motor learning patterns.

Morgan: Whoa.

Cameron: Yeah. Actually, it kind of goes back to survival instincts. Example is if someone charged you, you'd either move left or right in order to be safe. The same goes for athletes under stress. Eye dominance, the way you play the game. And so this year was awesome because our players were able to self-teach, and we were able to add an individualized coaching system that allow the players to dialogue more instead of telling them this is the only way to do it. And so that was awesome because there's more pleasure, excitement off of the players whenever it's kind of their journey instead of everyone in the same process going.

Morgan: Oh wow. Yeah. So it sounds like it's very personalized.

Cameron: Yes, it is. It is. There's four different types of systems, and each player has their own direction, but it's still a system instead of guessing pass to help players down. Another high was we beat a ranked opponent this year inside the top 10. And so again, that was a high to watch our team who's been chasing that for a few years. Again, we lost some matches we didn't wanna lose to. So every season has their highs and lows, it's definitely a rollercoaster.

Morgan: It's so true. Well, congrats on the highs that you've had and congrats on working through the lows that you've had. It's awesome seeing how coaches talk about their team, just overcoming adversity and things like that.

Cameron: Thank you.

Cameron Sitler’s Start in Coaching

Morgan: Well, how did you get to be a coach? What's your story there?

Cameron: I stumbled into volleyball as a sport my freshman year in college. It was the summer going in and decided to pass to go into football or soccer. My parents wanted to kill me because they put so much money into those sports. And it kind of took me around the country playing. So my first year I kind of just staying home, learning and then ended up getting picked up at a Division II school in Kansas, which cut the program and so then I went to a startup program in Bristol, Tennessee. And so again, it was definitely very challenging and I had to work faster than everyone else to get caught up in a game that most people have been playing for longer periods of time. And then I think every person kind of has multiple avenues they could take. For me it was either law school, flow management communication, consulting, or coaching.

And again, in coaching, we have more of an impact on our athletes, especially in female athletics. Because you're trying to kind of correct different, I guess, gender stereotype norms as you try to fight a little bit more for equality for female athletes and individuals. And so it's something I couldn't get away from. So I kind of followed it down the rabbit hole and coached four years as an indoor assistant down in McAllen, Texas. And got picked up here because I knew the coach and so kind of helped start the beach program. And I'm also an indoor assistance. So that's kind of very short.

Morgan: Wow. No. I love hearing how coaches get where they're going. It sounds like you've had quite the experiences to get where you're at.

Cameron: Yeah. Living in McAllen was definitely... I always compare it to the closest to living out of country because, again, you have a lot of people that kind of move over from Mexico and kind of just stay home. And ironically enough, even when there was a USA Mexico soccer game on there were more people wearing the Mexico jerseys. But with it comes a totally different culture than you ever really grew up in. So it was kind of nice to immerse in something different and see how other people live, compared to the norms we kind of practice here in bigger cities in the US.

Morgan: You could live anywhere, but there's a different culture everywhere you go.

Cameron: Yeah. And that's one of the norms I really picked up quick was, we're very concise and always about the next task, I feel like in the US. And they were more like, "Hey, you're not going to talk and hang out for a little bit." And I'm like, "We got a lot to do," and they're like, "We got to socialize. You got to enjoy life." And so you had to learn to play within those social norms a little more. Yeah. That was definitely an experience that kind of broaden the horizons, for sure.

Morgan: Oh. That's so true. Well, thank you for sharing that with us. I love your story on how you got to be a coach. And I can tell the passion that you have for the sport, which is important when being a coach or a player.

Cameron: Oh for sure. I mean, that's why a lot of coaches, unless you're Nick Saban or I guess coach K, you're not making a ton more money than an educator would make. Usually it's at, if not a little bit lower. But the hours you're putting in are usually 16 to 18 hour days to prep, travel, you know what I mean? Lot of time on the road. And so usually it's that passion and just the drive to do what you're doing what keeps you there. Because again, a lot of college coaches could... A lot of them branch out and do something else. You get former lawyers or different people that get into college coaching. So it's kind of a place where you either have a passion for it or you're like, "I can't survive in this ecosystem."

Morgan: It's true. No. That's a great example. It's true. It's because there is so much time and effort that goes into being a coach. And I think it's easy from an outsider's view, do not see all the work that goes into being a coach and a player.

Cameron: No, exactly. And that's the part where, again, it's either glamorized or kind of ridiculed. But a lot of people don't understand the hours the athletes put in. They're at minimum doing a 20 hour work week usually, and when I say minimum is usually there's outside stuff that athletes are doing on their own, which is voluntary work. But by NCAA standards you have 20 hours to kind of work with them in season. And so they're doing that and traveling while trying to get grades. And so, again, while there are plenty of athletes they get full rides. A lot of players are on partials or walk-ons to get the experience. I mean, the investment is the experience, but they're definitely having to pay the price for four years while some people get a chance to take a spring break vacation or-

Coach Cameron’s Advice to Future Athletes

Morgan: Mm-hmm (affirmative). Oh no, it's so true. It's so true. If you're an athlete wanting to play for a team or university, what would your advice be to them, I guess?

Cameron: So the one piece of advice I always give people is, everyone is always trying to... They're wanting to bent on what they value to make an experience work. And I think the older you get, you learn that unless you stay true to yourself the experience you end up with is not worthwhile. So again, if there are certain criteria is on schools athletes want, chase the school because most people, except for recreational level, will leave with a degree and that's all. You know what I mean? You have the experience. But now college athletics has become kind of a bigger deal in society. Athletics in general keeps growing. And the desire to be an athlete or be able to associate with one, whether it's your sports team in your city, your university in that football game, is a lot of people overlook what'll set them up in life. Or they start catering to what they think a coach wants to hear.

The longer you're in a program, who you are is going to show. That authenticity needs to kind of stick because that's what's going to take you where you want to go. If you try to fake something you really won't make it very long because you'll burn out or want to quit. And so it's like, if you're good enough, you'll end up at the level you belong at. And again, that's where hard work has to get you there. But have some ideas of what you're looking for. A lot of athletes will show up and be like, "Whatever you want coach." And you're like, "Well, hold on." You know what I mean? That was a one-year possible transfer. Well, what are you really looking for?

And that's where some coaches will do whatever it takes to bring them in. Some coaches try to avoid that, so you're not looking at high transfer rates. But again, right now the trend in society is student athlete welfare is kind of the uptick. Protecting the individual is a big deal because there just have been times where the athletes have been overlooked or kind of run on a little bit. And so they're trying to protect all parties involved, especially since it's become a bigger business.

Morgan: Mm-hmm (affirmative). I really like that you pointed out to the authenticity because I think that takes you far, not only in sports, but everywhere. It's a good trait to have in general in life.

Cameron: Yeah. I kind of have a theory that the moment of pressure is going to reveal who you are and you can constantly train and practice to get better, but until you reach that next pressure moment, you don't really know the changes you've made. It's hard to show what you're really worth.

Morgan: Yeah. No, it's so true. It's so true. And also, I loved how you mentioned being real when you come and having your expectations for what you want. I think those things are very important. So thank you for sharing those with us.

Cameron: Yeah. And a lot of athletes are scared that a question or being authentic might lose them the opportunity. And they don't realize we're on the other side as coaches recruiting talent. So it's a two-way street. And so it's like, yeah, if you're maybe at the bottom of the depth chart, but if that's your dream school and you're the kid, then you need to know that it's a good agreement for both sides.

Coach Cameron Sitler’s Most Memorable Travel Experience

Morgan: Mm-hmm (affirmative). No, it's so true. I love that advice. I really do. And I'm excited for people to hear that advice you gave for athletes that are wanting to play some day. So thank you, seriously. What's one of your most memorable travel experiences?

Cameron: Again, I'll kind of start... I guess, in a bad way one of the most memorable experiences I have is, I flew to New Jersey to recruit, caught a flight, landed in LA that night at 2:00 AM, got three hours of sleep, did another recruiting event. And then by that evening caught a flight home because it was time to run a few camps in town. And so there's plenty of stories where it's like pushing from the one place to the next, because again, there's only so many coaches on our staff, pretty much me for beach and then a couple for indoor. So again, we're trying to get out there and see as much as we can. And so that's one of the more challenging ones.

Morgan: Yeah. It's been busy.

Cameron: Yeah. One of the better things would be, I mean, again, we get to travel to cool locations like Huntington or Mosed Beach, beaches in Seattle, outdoor venues, except... Again, I've had a couple in January where it was 23 degrees and then it's a negative, but in the summer where it's warm and awesome out and a place where most people want to be, it's hard to complain about that. I guess I would add that one of my most memorable experiences as an individual was a trip I took to Greece, went over to Chania, kind of vacationing for a week to kind of get away. And then again, I love to network and meet people. And so I emailed a few people connected with the Greece Federation, and then they actually had an adult tournament. And so me and a buddy played in an adult tournament, and it was quite the spectacle because they don't get a lot of out of country people playing in tournaments, so everyone was watching the US players play whoever the local players were that were good.

And it just had quite a crowd of about 70 people around watching and heckling, and some were heckling in Greek, which we couldn't understand and using English to joke around. And just the social side of that and the community that volleyball really brings. Again, we're supposed to do something similar this year in Sicily, but again, with the travel restrictions and everything going on in the world that trip got canceled. So awesome experience.

Morgan: No, I love that. I love listening to travel experiences too because there's so much you can learn on those trips and so many new experiences. And I know you mentioned before we started you talked about how you just meet so many different people even on the flights. What are some of your insights on that?

Cameron: Being again, a coach, you typically have status with airlines because you travel enough to reach those points. And so you get a lot of perks, but with those perks usually come running into people that, for example, tend to be United just because we're out at Houston. And so, again, run into what they call a lot of 1K travelers, which are the business elite travelers that travel pretty much their entire lives. And I've run across people from random research that they're willing to just kind of toss out there without connecting their name to it. They're like life experiences like running across people, that one person is his thing was he kind of set up the infrastructure before the chaos hit. So whenever a virus would hit, Ebola hit in Africa or something, he went in. And so it's stuff like that, that you learn off people is amazing because you get to hear life experiences that you may never actually have.

And I compare it kind of to when you go to a movie you're getting an experience that's different because you're kind of wanting to see something out of what your natural life is. And so being a traveler that runs across these kinds of individuals, again, you're just hearing a ton of experiences that you usually wouldn't do, which is also why as I mentioned before, I visited 32 countries, is it's able to get out there and see how other people actually lives gives you a better appreciation for what people bring.

Morgan: It's so true. I think everyone has so many different insights. I don't know. I just thought that would be awesome for everyone to hear because there's so many different people, so many different experiences.

Cameron: Yeah. And actually, again, I have a background in a master's in social science and communication, but it's actually proven that if you have a 5 to 10 minute conversation to kind of get to know each other a little bit, it actually makes traveling a lot less stressful because when you're surrounded by somebody you think you know or you get a feeling of it, it takes a little anxiety off of that experience.

Something No One Knows about Coach Cameron Sitler

Morgan: Wow. No, that's really cool. Thank you for that. I think that's amazing. What's one thing that no one knows about you that you could share with us today?

Cameron: That one is a tough one. I guess one of the most kind of out there things would be, usually as coaches we kind of have this image of what coaches are. Myself, I've somebody who likes to go enjoy the arts, whether it's theater events or random readings of poetry or something like that. And so it's getting out there and doing things you wouldn't naturally do, would kind of be... A lot of people even in my own life don't know because I'll go check it out on my own.

Morgan: Oh really? Yeah.

Cameron: It's usually to corral people together, it's usually people have opinions and, again, whatever circle you're in, it may not be what they're trying. But trying something random as far as that goes... Trying to think of the randomest thing I've ever really done would probably be internationally, was traveling in Bali and ended up traveling around with a few Australians. And they were like, "Do you want the Australian experience?" And I was like, "Sure." Which was difficult to keep up with, to say the least. But ended up hanging out and doing everything culturally they would do. And so that's something I usually, after you have the experience, I usually kind of put it away and don't really talk about it too much.

Morgan: Thank you so much for sharing that. No, I love that you go out and do that. I think it's awesome getting those experiences. So thank you for sharing that with us.

Cameron: No problem.

Coach Cameron Sitler’s Next Adventure

Morgan: I guess, what's your next adventure?

Cameron: I mean, I think everyone at this point is on a... Looking at the globe and wondering what you can actually do and when it might happen again. I guess I kind of have a list of five trips that I've laid out. Because I'm four world wonders in, and so I'm trying to see all seven.

Morgan: Oh wow.

Cameron: And so theoretically China and Russia were next on the list. But again, given our current state as a country and what we're dealing with, it'll probably be something more local because who knows whenever the world actually opens all the borders back and gets functioning again.

Morgan: It's true.

Cameron: Yeah. Local, was looking at possibly sailing around the Caribbean as another option [crosstalk 00:19:09] a sailboat to kind of experience that. And the Taj Mahal was another one, because one of the perks is if you could figure out when everything lifts, airlines running massive specials on flights. So if you can hedge that bet and get it right, you could have a trip of a lifetime for a fraction of the cost.

Morgan: So true. No, that is so true.

Cameron: And so again, a lot of it is just continuing to broaden the horizon. And so if I went that route, it would be traveling to Nepal and checking out a base camp. I'm not ready in life to try the full adventure. And that's a little more death defying, I guess you can say. But just something that would be one of those bucket list items to kind of check off and see.

Morgan: Well no, those sound awesome. Those sound awesome awesome.

Cameron: Yeah. And again, I mean, part of it is, is staying there long enough to really experience a little bit of the local culture, because I think that's usually what as traveler as a tourist right now, a lot of people get there, see it, move on. And you want a chance to kind of experience what built the culture, how the people like to function, what are some normal trends. I'm not as food-based, I'm a little more picky as far as that goes, but even if it's a random festival that they run at a certain time of year and stuff like that. So that's kind of next on my horizon if and when things lift.

Morgan: That's amazing and I'm excited for your future trips that you're going to go on your next adventures. And thank you so much for joining us on this podcast. It's always fun getting an insight into coaches, their teams, their trips, and the views you have on life. So thank you so much for joining us and letting us see those insights.

Cameron: No problem. And thanks for having me.

Houston Baptist University Volleyball:

• Houston Baptist University Women’s Volleyball Team Twitter

• Houston Baptist University Women’s Beach Volleyball Team Twitter

Podcast made in partnership with Acanela Expeditions

Theme Song - I’ll Just Be Me by Gravity Castle