In a recent episode of The Table, I had the privilege of sitting down with two former Division I football players who are transforming how we think about student athletes. Casey Johnson, founder and CEO of Gymnaze and my brother, brings a unique perspective on measuring the leadership and mindset traits that traditional stats miss. Michael Willet, founder and CEO of Walk-On Nation, experienced a career-ending injury that forced him to confront a critical question: Who are you when you can no longer play the sport that has defined you?
Their insights hit close to home for me as a former student athlete and someone who has spent years working with schools on culture and student development. The conversation we had revealed something that many educators already sense but struggle to address: our student athletes are navigating an identity challenge that affects every aspect of their school experience, from the classroom to the locker room to their mental health.
The Identity Crisis We’re Not Talking About
Michael’s story captures what so many student athletes experience but rarely articulate. When an injury ended his senior year at UCF during an undefeated season heading toward a national championship, he discovered that his entire sense of self had been wrapped up in being an athlete. “My identity was so rooted in athletics,” he shared. “Even though I was one of the guys with my head on straight, when it was taken away from me out of nowhere, I was not ready for life at all.”
This isn’t just about elite athletes or those facing career-ending injuries. Casey described something many of us have witnessed: the emotional roller coaster that student athletes ride based on their performance. “I remember giving up a 75-yard touchdown, and they showed it all weekend on the local news channel,” he explained. “I didn’t want to go to class the next day or go to film study and just didn’t feel like eating just because of how bad I felt.”
Think about what this means for our classrooms. We’re expecting students to show up fully present and engaged, but some of them are carrying the weight of last night’s game, the pressure of an upcoming match, or the fear that one bad performance might define them. As educators, we often celebrate the wins and the highlight reels, but we’re not always equipped to support students through the identity work that athletics demands.
What “More Than an Athlete” Actually Means
We’ve all heard the phrase “more than an athlete.” It’s printed on T-shirts, posted on locker room walls, and repeated in pep talks. But as Michael pointed out in our conversation, “most of us don’t even know what that means. It just sounds cool.”
The reality is that athletic identity doesn’t just need support. It needs to be fundamentally redefined. Michael frames it this way: “There are so many great things you pull from being an athlete, but understand that’s not your end all be all. It only enhances who you are.”
This reframing shifts the entire conversation. Instead of asking student athletes to compartmentalize or diminish their athletic identity, we’re helping them understand how the skills they’re developing through sports can enhance every other aspect of who they are and who they’re becoming.
Casey’s work with Gymnaze focuses on measuring the traits that stats can’t capture: coachability, resilience, and sports IQ. These aren’t just athletic qualities. They’re life skills that transfer to academic challenges, relationship building, and professional success. When we help students recognize these transferable skills, we’re not just preparing better athletes. We’re developing more resilient, self-aware young people.
The Mindset Question That Changes Everything
One of the most compelling parts of our conversation centered on a debate Casey and I had years ago about athlete evaluation. The question was whether an athlete who has all the physical tools but lacks the mental game can ever succeed. Casey’s response led him to create an entire platform: “I felt like that’s not right. There is obviously something that you can do about it.”
His insight came from recognizing how differently he performed under various coaches. “I looked at all the great coaches that I had in my life and how I performed during that time period, and also some of the coaches that lacked a little bit, and how I performed during that time period.”
This should resonate with every educator reading this. We know that how information is presented changes everything. Casey noted that he might struggle in one class one year, then excel at a higher level the next year, simply because the information was presented differently. The same principle applies to developing mental toughness, resilience, and coachability in athletes.
The question for schools becomes: are we intentionally developing these mindset traits, or are we assuming that students either have them or don’t? Casey’s research led him to create Gymnaze, which literally means “to train yourself,” because he recognized that we can train the mental side just as we train the physical.
Small Actions That Create Big Shifts
When I asked both Casey and Michael about practical steps schools can take, their responses were refreshingly actionable. These aren’t massive program overhauls. They’re thoughtful adjustments that acknowledge the reality of student athletes’ experiences.
Create Space for Identity Exploration
Michael emphasized the importance of helping athletes answer the question: “Who am I beyond this sport?” This doesn’t happen through a single assembly or motivational speech. It requires consistent opportunities for students to explore their interests, values, and identities outside of athletics.
Schools can integrate this work into advisory programs, student life initiatives, or even team meetings. Michael’s approach at Walk-On Nation involves helping students recognize that athletics enhances who they are rather than defining them. The shift is subtle but powerful.
Recognize the Transferable Skills
Casey spoke about the importance of helping students identify what they’re actually learning through athletics. “We develop a platform that you can actually glean from who I am as a person, as well as what I know in this particular sport, to help me perform at my highest level.”
Coaches and advisors can facilitate this by regularly connecting athletic experiences to broader life skills. When a student demonstrates resilience after a tough loss, name it. When they show leadership during practice, help them see how that same skill applies in group projects or peer relationships. The intentional naming of these skills helps students recognize their own growth and carry those competencies into other contexts.
Address the Emotional Realities
I paused our conversation to highlight something Casey said about not wanting to go to class or eat after a bad game. This is the reality many of our student athletes face, yet classroom teachers may have no idea why a normally engaged student seems checked out on a particular day.
Creating better communication systems between athletic departments and academic faculty isn’t about making excuses for students. It’s about acknowledging the whole person who shows up in our classrooms. Simple awareness can shift how we approach a student who seems disengaged, helping us respond with curiosity rather than judgment.
The Role of Coaching in Identity Development
Both Casey and Michael spoke about the profound impact coaches have on identity formation. Casey’s observation that he performed differently under different coaches wasn’t about athletic ability. It was about how those coaches helped him understand himself and his potential.
Michael reinforced this, noting that “if coaches can integrate these mindset training sessions or identity workshops throughout the season, I’ve seen transformations. It’s really powerful to watch.”
For schools, this means investing in coach development that goes beyond X’s and O’s. Coaches need support in facilitating conversations about identity, resilience, and life beyond sports. They need resources to address mental health concerns and frameworks to help students process both success and failure.
Michael described working with a team where coaches became more vulnerable with their players. “They started sharing their own stories of identity struggles beyond their coaching career. Once the coaches made themselves vulnerable, the kids opened up even more.”
This kind of cultural shift doesn’t happen overnight, but it starts with recognizing that coaching encompasses far more than athletic development. The best coaches understand they’re shaping humans, not just athletes.
Supporting Athletes Through Transitions
One of the most practical insights from our conversation addressed the transitions that student athletes face: moving from middle school to high school athletics, from JV to varsity, from being a star player to riding the bench, or from playing to no longer playing.
Casey emphasized that these transitions require the same intentional support we provide for academic transitions. “When I hurt my quad senior year, I went through a mourning process. You’re trying to figure out what is life, what’s next in life, especially when the sport has been all-consuming for so long.”
Michael’s injury was more severe and more final, but the emotional experience was similar. “It was devastating. I realized during that time that my identity was so rooted in athletics. When it was taken away from me, I was not ready for life at all.”
Schools can support these transitions by:
- Creating peer mentorship programs where former athletes support current athletes through transitions
- Offering counseling resources specifically trained in athletic identity issues
- Building in reflection opportunities throughout the season, not just at the end
- Celebrating growth and character development alongside wins and championships
- Providing pathways for athletes to stay connected to athletics in new roles (coaching, managing, sports medicine, etc.) if they choose
The Classroom Connection
As someone who has worked in both athletic and academic settings, I appreciated how both Casey and Michael emphasized the connection between athletic identity work and classroom success. Students who understand themselves as enhanced rather than defined by athletics show up differently in every setting.
Casey noted that we often overlook this connection. “Teachers in the classroom forget about that piece, and they just assume that kids are showing up with their whole selves. They’ve got lots of different pieces that affect how they can be their best selves wherever they are, whether it’s in the classroom, on the field, part of an advisory group, or another team.”
This awareness should inform how we structure support systems, design advisory programs, and train faculty. When teachers understand the identity challenges student athletes navigate, they’re better equipped to create inclusive classroom environments where all students can thrive.
Moving from Awareness to Action
The work that Casey and Michael are doing through Gymnaze and Walk-On Nation provides schools with a roadmap for supporting student athletes holistically. But you don’t need to bring in an outside program to start making meaningful changes.
The most important shift is recognizing that athletic identity development isn’t separate from our broader student development goals. Every school committed to building character, fostering belonging, and preparing students for life beyond graduation should be thinking about how athletic experiences fit into that mission.
Michael’s closing thought in our conversation captures this perfectly: “Athletes die two deaths. I always feel like that shouldn’t be the case. I’m just starting my new life, and I’m reemerging, really finding who I am now.”
Our goal as educators should be ensuring that when students hang up their jerseys, whether by choice or circumstance, they’re not experiencing a death. They’re experiencing a transition into the next phase of a life that has been enriched, enhanced, and shaped by athletics but never limited by them.
Starting the Conversation
If this conversation resonates with you, here are some questions to bring back to your leadership team, athletic department, or faculty:
- How do we currently support student athletes in developing identity beyond sports?
- What systems exist for communication between athletic and academic departments about student well-being?
- How are we training coaches to address identity and mental health alongside athletic development?
- Where in our curriculum or advisory programs do students explore who they are becoming beyond their current roles and activities?
- How do we celebrate character development and transferable skills alongside wins and championships?
The work Casey and Michael are doing reminds us that supporting student athletes isn’t just about better performance on the field. It’s about helping young people understand that they are so much more than any single aspect of their identity. And when we get that right, everyone wins.
