The Post Game Podcast

Ben Nichols is the Founder of Padel 22, the first Communications and Marketing Consultancy dedicated to the fastest growing sport in the world, padel.
He shares his journey from sports journalism to working at the World Anti-Doping Agency during the Russian doping scandal, and now to promoting padel - the world's fastest-growing sport.

Timestamps:
(0:00) – Intro to Ben
(0:22) – Ben's Background in Sports Marketing & PR
(8:07) – The Move to Padel
(11:12) – Social Media & Growth Drivers for Padel
(14:15) – What is Padel?
(16:45) – Why Padel is Exploding Globally
(17:01) – The Investment & Business Opportunity
(22:37) – Challenges Expanding in the US Market
(25:27) – Storytelling Across Different Demographics
(27:16) – The Community Aspect of Padel
(31:40) – Padel vs Paddle: Setting the Record Straight!
(33:36) – What's Next for Padel
(35:51) – Padel as a Sport of Its Time
(37:24) – Where to Find Ben Nichols

Links:
Padel 22 Website
Ben Nichols Instagram
Padel 22 Instagram

The Post Game Podcast:
⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://postgamepodcast.beehiiv.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/thepostgame_podcast/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠The Post Game Podcast (@JoePod24) / X⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-post-game-podcast/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
Email me: joe.poduslenko@gmail.com

Christopher Knowles is a former D1 Volleyball player at LIU Brooklyn.
He shares his story from college sports to entrepreneurship, content creation, and building a brand for athletes navigating life after sports.
We also dive into UnJerseyed, Chris’s platform focused on helping former athletes rebuild routines, mindset, and direction after sports.

Timestamps:
(0:00) – Intro & Chris’s Volleyball Background
(4:00) – Growing Up in a Pro Sports Family
(7:00) – Recruiting Reality & College Disappointment
(8:15) – Discovering Personal Development on YouTube
(10:00) – Dropping Out, Trying Entrepreneurship, and Failing Forward
(12:00) – Building Volleyball Growth Coach (247K+ Followers)
(14:30) – Viral Content, Growth Explosions, and Branding Lessons
(17:15) – Monetization Mistakes & Selling the Account Too Early
(20:15) – Playing at LIU Brooklyn & Finally Finishing the Dream
(22:30) – Identity Collapse After Sports Ends
(25:00) – Why Athletes Struggle After the Jersey Comes Off
(27:30) – The Vision Behind UnJerseyed
(30:30) – Surveying Athletes Instead of Guessing What They Want
(33:30) – Community, Career, and Mindset vs. Just Job Placement
(37:00) – Corporate vs. Entrepreneurial Paths for Young Athletes
(40:30) – Why Degrees Are Losing Signal (and What Replaces Them)
(42:30) – Where to Find Chris & Final Thoughts

Links:
Unjerseyed
LinkedIn
Instagram

The Post Game Podcast:
⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://postgamepodcast.beehiiv.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/thepostgame_podcast/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠The Post Game Podcast (@JoePod24) / X⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-post-game-podcast/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
Email me: joe.poduslenko@gmail.com

Vasu Kulkarni is a tech entrepreneur, investor, and lifelong basketball fanatic best known as the founder of Krossover, one of the first sports analytics platforms to bring video breakdown and data insights to high school and collegiate teams.
After scaling and exiting Krossover, Vasu moved into venture capital, investing in early-stage sports, media, and technology companies including The Athletic.
He has worked closely with high-profile athletes like Larry Fitzgerald, built a reputation for spotting outlier founders, and now spends his time backing innovative startups and advising entrepreneurs.
What You’ll Learn:
How Vasu founded Krossover and scaled it from a college project
The underrated lessons sports teach entrepreneurs
Why former athletes often thrive in startups
How venture capitalists choose where to allocate dollars
Why being wrong 90% of the time is part of the job
Behind the scenes of working with Larry Fitzgerald
The art vs. science of venture capital
How top teams prioritize product features
What makes certain founders “outliers”
The story behind the investment in The Athletic and their retention data
Losing a competitive deal to Andreessen Horowitz
The key questions he asks early-stage founders
Vasu’s watch collecting hobby

Timestamps:
(1:30) – Intro to Vasu, childhood, and love for basketball
(5:30) – Getting to Penn & playing JV hoops
(9:30) – Entrepreneurship in his blood
(11:15) – Breaking down the venture ecosystem
(13:00) – Lessons from sports you carry into business
(15:45) – The fine line between quitting & persisting
(18:30) – Why most venture dollars go toward people
(20:30) – Why VCs are wrong 90% of the time
(21:30) – PE vs. VC: What’s the difference?
(25:15) – Working with Larry Fitzgerald
(26:50) – Venture capital: art and science
(27:40) – Prioritizing product features as a founder
(30:20) – Are there true outlier founders?
(31:40) – The Athletic deal & retention numbers
(34:00) – Are founders calling them first?
(35:30) – Why it’s not hard to go 0 for 30 in VC
(37:10) – Early work ethic stories
(39:15) – Vasu’s love for watches
(42:00) – Michael Jordan vs. Steph Curry

Links:
Vasu Kulkarni - Athlete, Entrepreneur, Blogger
Courtside Custom
Vasu Kulkarni | LinkedIn
x.com/Vasu

The Post Game Podcast:
⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://postgamepodcast.beehiiv.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/thepostgame_podcast/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠The Post Game Podcast (@JoePod24) / X⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-post-game-podcast/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
Email me: joe.poduslenko@gmail.com

George Boyd is a former professional BMX rider turned elite video editor.
He shares how a career-ending injury pushed him into storytelling, working with the NFL, Disney, Meta, Air Jordan, and several others before launching his podcast editing company Cut The Pod, where he helps transform raw recordings into premium podcasts.

What You'll Hear About:
Growing up in the BMX world and getting injured
How filming BMX led to a video-editing career
Creative risk-taking and betting on yourself
The mentor who changed everything
How George landed NFL projects (Jamar Chase, Eagles)
Building Cut The Pod into a storytelling powerhouse
SEO keywords, packaging, and audience clarity
The biggest mistakes podcasters make
Lighting + production tips
Promoting himself on LinkedIn
Timestamps:
(0:00) - Intro to George Boyd
(3:05) - Early days falling in love with BMX
(4:50) - The different worlds of BMX
(6:50) - Where did BMX come to an end?
(9:35) - Filming and BMX
(12:35) - Risk taking
(16:20) - Aspirations to do something big
(18:05) - Mentor that changed his life
(21:35) - Doing work for himself + reaching out
(24:35) - Jamar Chase’s offseason profile (first NFL job)
(28:35) - Working on video for the Eagles
(29:50) - George’s first podcast clients
(32:50) - Handling packaging for clients
(34:40) - Ex-Athletes stories
(35:40) - Who am I talking to?
(40:35) - Making a story out of anything
(42:10) - Short storytelling segments
(44:20) - Doing the simple things best
(46:20) - Podcast lighting setup
(50:05) - Consistency
(52:20) - Asking for subscribers
(53:40) - Don’t be afraid to ask
(54:30) - Fighting the demon to not be yourself
(57:50) - Twitter vs. real life
(59:35) - Promotion on LinkedIn
(1:00:05) - Dillon Gabriel and George’s favorite project
(1:04:20) - Dubai Cricket
(1:04:40) - Where to find George

Links:
Cut The Pod - Make Your Podcast Look The Part
George B. (@cutthepod) / X
GWB Creative - A Video Editing Partner to Help Your Brand Grow

The Post Game Podcast:
⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://postgamepodcast.beehiiv.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/thepostgame_podcast/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠The Post Game Podcast (@JoePod24) / X⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-post-game-podcast/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
Email me: joe.poduslenko@gmail.com

Bela Carrasco is a former soccer player at Marquette University and currently an Assistant VP of Investor Relations at Origin Investments.
She is also the host of the "How Do You Know?" podcast where her goal is to help people feel more confident about investing.
What You’ll Hear About:
How Bela launched her real estate career after college
The mindset shift from athlete to investor
Whether she would invest the same way again
How to build an emergency fund
The power of understanding your Why before making investment decisions
How multifamily real estate works
Knowing how your advisor is incentivized
Why Bela started her podcast
How she balances a demanding VP role with content creation
Why asking questions is your most underrated advantage
Timestamps:
(0:00) – Intro to Bela Carrasco
(0:50) – Lessons from playing soccer at Marquette
(2:30) – First jobs out of school
(4:50) – Real estate investing herself
(7:00) – Would she invest the same way again?
(9:00) – Build an emergency fund first
(9:45) – The 50/30/20 rule explained
(11:30) – Bela’s podcast
(13:50) – Pro athletes’ relationship with money
(16:30) – Multifamily investing in the Sun Belt
(19:45) – How are advisors incentivized?
(22:00) – Confidence in the team investing with you
(23:15) – Underwriting a deal
(25:15) – Knowing your Why with investment strategy
(27:00) – What cities should you be watching?
(28:50) – Why asking questions will accelerate your career
(30:10) – How Bela balances her time
(31:20) – Dream guests for Bela’s podcast
(32:30) – What’s next for Bela
(33:20) – Where to find her

Links:
Isabela Carrasco | LinkedIn
How Do You Know?

The Post Game Podcast:
⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://postgamepodcast.beehiiv.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/thepostgame_podcast/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠The Post Game Podcast (@JoePod24) / X⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-post-game-podcast/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
Email me: joe.poduslenko@gmail.com