"Beyond the Game": The RealSportsDoc Podcast
Welcome to "Beyond the Game: The RealSportsDoc Podcast," hosted by a seasoned sports medicine doctor who brings a unique perspective to the intersection of sports, health, and life. In each episode, we explore the physical and mental challenges athletes face both on and off the field. From injury prevention and recovery strategies to insights into the latest advancements in sports medicine, we provide essential knowledge for athletes, coaches, physicians and other sports medicine or sports enthusiasts alike.
Join us as we share inspiring stories of resilience, discuss the impact of injuries on athletes' lives, and delve into the importance of mental health in sports. We will also feature expert guests, including physicians, psychologists, trainers, elite athletes and coaches to discuss their journeys and the lessons they've learned.
Whether you are a competitive athlete, a weekend warrior, or simply passionate about sports, tune in to discover what it truly means to go "Beyond the Game."
"Beyond the Game": The RealSportsDoc Podcast
Hunter Ross: Passion, Family, and the Love of Sports
Hunter Ross joins us to share his journey from a baseball-loving child in Alabama to a standout collegiate player at Jones County Community College. His story is not just about baseball; it's about the unwavering support from a family that stretches across the U.S. and to Poland, and the life lessons learned along the way. Hunter reflects on the early influence of his stepdad, the exhilaration of hitting his first home run, and his admiration for the great Clayton Kershaw. But that's not all—listeners also get a peek into Hunter's bowling passion, proving that his talents extend beyond the baseball diamond.
Our conversation uncovers the grit and determination required to transition from high school to college baseball, highlighting the mental and physical demands that come with the territory. Hunter walks us through his freshman year as a varsity pitcher and the challenges of adapting to collegiate level play, all while emphasizing the significance of dedication, proper training, and listening to coaches. We delve into the crucial role of medical professionals and sports psychologists, emphasizing how they help athletes like Hunter maintain mental toughness and overcome obstacles, from shoulder injuries to intense mental pressure. This episode is a treasure trove of insights for young athletes and anyone interested in the intricate balance of sports, passion, and perseverance.
Thank you for tuning in to "Beyond the Game"! We hope you found valuable insights into the world of sports medicine and the importance of health and wellness in athletics. Remember, whether you're an athlete, a parent, or a sports enthusiast, this podcast is designed for you.
Stay connected with us! Subscribe to the podcast, share it with your friends, and don't forget to send in your questions and topics you'd like us to explore in future episodes.
Join us next time as we deliver sports-related topics right to your doorstep. Let’s continue this journey together—beyond the game!
For more resources and to connect with Dr. Brandon Hardin, visit TheRealSportsDoc.com or HardinSportsMed.com to learn more.
Keep pushing your limits, and see you next time!
hey, what's up everybody. I got hunter ross in the house and welcome to beyond the game podcast. Hunter is a good friend of mine. Now he's a collegiate baseball player at uh. Well, tell him hunter, uh jones county community college.
Hunter Ross:Jones county's a collegiate baseball player at well, tell them Hunter. Jones County Community College.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Jones County Community College Collegiate baseball player Hunter's been a patient of mine for a while now. He's come to me with a few issues which we'll talk about here in the podcast and wanted to give you guys kind of an overview of what collegiate athletics looks like and sort of how he went from, you know, high school to college and what life looks like beyond the game. So, hunter, what drew you into baseball as a kid?
Hunter Ross:I always like watched baseball occasionally when I was younger and when we moved to Alabama I kind of took a stride to be in sports. So my stepdad just basically taught me how to play baseball and ever since then I've just been playing the game.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:So you just caught on to it.
Hunter Ross:Yeah, it became natural for you.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Yeah, yeah, kind of like that weightlifting. So he's trying to catch up to me. He's like what do you got Doc 600 on a squat? No, dude, I got 1 up to me. He's like what do you got doc 600?
Hunter Ross:on a squat? No dude, I got a thousand. What are you talking about it's? It's the total opposite guys.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:I used to be in your shoes. Bro used to have big legs, not anymore yeah, they're just.
Hunter Ross:They'll continue to be like that.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:They're just white can you, uh, can you, elaborate on your earliest memories of playing baseball?
Hunter Ross:I just remember having practice with all the guys I used to play baseball with. There wasn't really any big memories. Yeah. Because it was just like a short period when we lived in Alabama until we moved to Lexington.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Yeah, what about your first home run? You remember that? Yeah, moved to Lexington. Yeah, what about your first home run? You don't?
Hunter Ross:remember that? Yeah, I do remember that Okay, okay. I was 11 or 12, and I was playing with an actual new team, like a new travel team. It was my first time playing. I actually did baseball and I don't know, my mind went blank when I hit the ball.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Yeah, it was crazy, it's so surreal, right when you hit that and you're like there's no way, that just went over the fence. Yeah, yeah, that's awesome. So what were your or who were your biggest influences in baseball growing up like major leaguers?
Hunter Ross:Being a pitcher. I was like watching Clayton Kershaw. He's just like a real role model, like the way he carries himself, Just everything about him, just the way he plays. Yeah. So I try to be like him.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Yeah, it's funny listening to you talk about baseball. It's like I'm 38, so, going back in my days, I'm like, yeah, Ken Griffey Jr, you're like who's that?
Hunter Ross:I know the older guys. I love watching the older guys.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Yeah, old baseball man, best memories, best memories. Yeah, so did you always play baseball. Did you ever have like any other sports interests?
Hunter Ross:Not, did you always play baseball. Did you ever have like any other sports interests? Not really at the time. Like I mean, I always wanted to play football. Like I'd joke around and play football and whatnot. But I never thought of it because I never wanted to get injured because of the level of game I had for baseball. Yeah. But as a freshman in high school I took a game of bowling. Yeah. I've bowled ever since. Yeah. And hopefully make it. Try to put my name out there and make it professionally.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Yeah, man, I think that's super cool. Yeah, Hunter is asking me to go play a game of bowl with him and I'm like dude, what he's like.
Hunter Ross:Yeah, I'm actually pretty good, I'm like well, I'm not, I'm a two-hander, so it's kind of it would be a little hard because you might bowl one-handed. Yeah, granny, bowl down the lane.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Yeah, dude, you got to pull up the lane assist and granny bowl.
Hunter Ross:it Bumpers.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:The bumpers. Yeah, bumpa, that's right. So how about your family support and friends? You know, obviously through sports, and what I like most about sports, man, is just the camaraderie of the athleticism that goes into the sport. So how does your family and your teammates support your journey, especially through your youth years, like high school baseball? You know, I remember high school sports. Everybody gets to play, sometimes there's a tryout, sometimes there's not, depending on how many people you have and the school. You know you're just trying to make a team. But was your family supportive? And I bet they're still supportive, knowing your mom.
Hunter Ross:Family's always been really supportive of me. Like just with anything, just pursue your dream. If you feel like it's right, then we'll support you. So when I took up the game of baseball, they supported me and this support hasn't stopped since. Especially, I have different family members from all over the country, Especially all over the United States Kentucky. I actually have no family members that live in Kentucky.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:No Zero, no zero Okay.
Hunter Ross:I have family members that live in California, texas, north Carolina, georgia. My older brother lives in Poland, poland, poland, poland Okay, it's far, yeah, and Tennessee.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:And Tennessee, so you pretty much took over the South Basically. Okay, I got you. Yeah, so let's talk about your high school baseball journey. What were some of your biggest challenges during high school, especially for, like our young listeners as a collegiate baseball player now, what do you think your biggest challenges or hurdles were during your high school career?
Hunter Ross:Running.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Running.
Hunter Ross:Running, because as a seventh, eighth grader coming up to play high school baseball, you're not, you don't run on your own. So when you come into, like high school sports and you have to run, that's a really, really big challenge for a lot of incoming freshmen. It was my biggest challenge. And weights, because at the time you don't lift weights. Yeah, because at the time you don't lift weights. So that was the biggest, two biggest obstacles, plus, give or take, every now and then you have injuries, so you have to accommodate for that.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:That's right, then you know who to go to now.
Hunter Ross:Right, dr Harden? Guys, make sure you all go to Dr Harden, I've got him in a chokehold right now.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:He has to say it. I paid him Just kidding. What accomplishments or memories from your high school team stand out to you the most?
Hunter Ross:Actually my freshman season. Okay. As a freshman I started varsity PO'd.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Hey, that's impressive.
Hunter Ross:We ended up going to the second round of playoffs.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Yep Fell short, unfortunately, but hey man, you made it to playoffs. It was your first year in high school baseball you made it to playoffs. And for those of you who don't know, when he says PO'd he doesn't mean pissed off, he means pitcher only.
Hunter Ross:Real baseball players know what that means. Yeah, yeah, there you go.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Did you always know you wanted to pursue baseball at the collegiate level, or did that decision come later, like as a junior or senior?
Hunter Ross:I knew ever since I started working out the end of my freshman year, going into my sophomore year, that I wanted to pursue the sport in college. That's since I started working out the end of my freshman year, going into my sophomore year, that I wanted to pursue the sport in college. That's when I started working hard. Yeah.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:And so you guys now like give us a rundown. What does high school baseball look like? I mean, you're not waking up at 5.30, 6.30 in the morning to do workouts. You have basically a block period at the end of your day where you transition into baseball, right?
Hunter Ross:Yeah, I don't know how to say this. It's definitely easier being able to do this stuff in high school, not waking up early in the morning.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:You have more freedom.
Hunter Ross:Absolutely. Yeah, you don't have to. You're not tired not walking around like a zombie every time. You have to go work out or run, right. So get some grace, unless you get the coach pissed off, and then that's a different story.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:That's a different PO. Yeah, yeah.
Hunter Ross:We had a couple encounters of that this year. Yeah, and we will not talk about it. We won't talk about it, not on the air, not on the air, and we will not talk about it.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:We won't talk about it. Not on the air. Not on the air. What do you think about shaping your skills in high school Like? Let's give them a rundown real quick for the high school players listening to this today. Guys, listen up. This is what you need to do. What would it be, Especially to prepare for college.
Hunter Ross:Definitely make sure you're on top of it. Don't slack at all. Make sure you hit the gym and just listen to what the coaches have like playing for y'all Right, because that's the biggest thing. They always want you to go play at the next level it doesn't matter, like if they're nice mean, just listen to what they have to say, because they always know what's best for you. They probably had that. What's the word?
Dr. Brandon Hardin:They advocate for you. Yeah, hunter just woke up. Not too long ago I had to feed him some lunch before we did this podcast. Yeah.
Hunter Ross:Words aren't coming out of my mouth right now. They had the experience, they had some sort of experience when they, when they came. Yeah. So they know. They know what it's been like to be in your shoes. They know what it's been like to play at the college level. So they just want what's best for you. Just listen to them.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Your recruitment process. How does that look? How did you decide on which college you were going to?
Hunter Ross:Funny Jones was my only offer and I committed on the spot. Ever since I walked on campus at Jones, I knew it was the right place for me. I love the spot. Yeah, Ever since I walked on campus at Jones, I knew it was the right place for me. Coaches I love the coaches. Yeah. I love the way they have what they have, what they have to offer, mm-hmm, and just like their mindset toward the game, because I know they're good at making people get to the next level.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Yeah, Jones is known for that. Yeah, they have a great, great baseball program.
Hunter Ross:We had eight guys signed last year to play the next level.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Yeah, I mean, yeah, it's incredible.
Hunter Ross:I want to be a part of that.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:How much longer do you have left? Two years, Two years. And then NIL says hey, Hunter, guess what? You got another four over here.
Hunter Ross:Yeah yeah, thank you, vanderb, what you got. Another four over here, yeah yeah. Thank you, Vanderbilt, Thank you.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Vanderbilt yeah, dude, absolutely. We were just talking about that at lunch today. So what was your biggest adjustment you had to make when transitioning from high school to college ball? Obviously, I know you get up way earlier.
Hunter Ross:Not really.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:No.
Hunter Ross:I mean you get up way earlier, Not really. No, I mean you're not working out, you wake up earlier for high school.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Well, I mean to go to school, but I mean for like to go and do your workouts. You guys do early morning workouts.
Hunter Ross:Oh, so you don't have to call the coach at Jones then. Yeah, Unless you piss the coach off and we have to do like 6 am like agility stuff on a practice football field it's fine.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Yeah, put that 45-pound plate on and go up the stands.
Hunter Ross:I promise you the trap bar carry is awful.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Oh yeah, I'm sure.
Hunter Ross:That's the one thing I struggle with throughout the six weeks of competition that we had. Yeah, yeah. Transitioning to college is tough.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Did you make any preparatory changes when you made the jump to playing at the collegiate level Before you went in? I know a lot of colleges say hey guys, this is the summer before your freshman year. These are our expectations. This is your workout plan. Either do it over the summer or you're going to be suffering in the fall For fall ball yeah, um, I actually did do the workouts.
Hunter Ross:Yeah, it definitely helped me out with all the the running and working out we do. Now you know to live the amount of weight that I do and playing over the summer as well, definitely, definitely helped out a lot. Staying loose try to keep the body moving absolutely because you, you don't want to go stiff.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:I promise you that that is the worst thing to do oh yeah, I mean, you know that's what I do all day is treat athletes and I'm no college. Athletes come in and they're like, doc, I have not done any of my summer workouts. I'm like, hey, good luck when you get to school, because that coach is going to know exactly what you're slacking on.
Hunter Ross:Stay off the game. Stay off the game.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Stay off the.
Hunter Ross:PS5. Make sure you get your work in.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Yeah, absolutely, and nutrition is obviously important as well, which we'll talk about in a little bit Eat right, yeah, yeah, nutrition is obviously important as well, which we'll talk about in a little bit Eat right, yeah, eat, right, yeah.
Hunter Ross:So Hunter came in during the season. What were you about 210? I was not that big. No, no, I think I was 195.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Oh, 195. Oh, and then you cut 10 during workouts Right to 185?.
Hunter Ross:Yes, did not like it.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Does not like it. Yeah yeah, as a dude, we don't like cutting that much. I like to be a big boy.
Hunter Ross:No, I like being a little bit bigger, a little bit stockier. Yeah. Still lean. Still able to move all that weight yeah, I will say that, dropping to 10 pounds, I'm able to move, get into different positions that I haven't been in, so I unlock a lot more power, which is really good. I've experienced a lot more power when it comes to moving weight. For sure. And it keeps you more mobile.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:I mean it absolutely does, Absolutely does. I mean absolutely does, Absolutely does. So what did it feel?
Hunter Ross:like when you first stepped onto the field as a college athlete One. It was like this is unreal. I can't believe all my hard work has paid off to this, even though it's a juco, but most kids don't even get to play JUCO.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Well, and just so everybody knows, Jones can compete against D1 colleges, I mean their program is fantastic, Absolutely.
Hunter Ross:We actually, I think we play. I don't know if they're JUCO or D1, but we play in. Florida, I think second or third week Nice. So I don't know what the colleges are. But JUCO and. D1,. They're getting beat.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Yeah, there you go. Right attitude, that's a good one. How do you handle balancing academics and athletics in college? Like what advice?
Hunter Ross:would you give other student-athletes Make? Sure you take the right classes. That's the big one. I took classes that I did not have to take during the fall and it caused me to lose being able to hit, being able to play in a position, because I just had to focus on one thing I couldn't balance out the academics and the athletics. That was planned, but I plan to get back into it.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Yeah, man, you got it, you got it. What do you believe makes collegiate baseball different from high school or even the youth level?
Hunter Ross:Yeah, you get, the more stuff is on you. You, I mean, we don't get. We don't get a whole period to live. You stay out there as long as possible, as much as you want. Yeah, get the work done, you need to. Yeah, kind of helps out with the process for you. Help the process with me Saying, after you get work done, I'm going to be a better ball player.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Sure, so more of your conscience has to be there. Yes, you are part of a team and obviously the team wants to win. If you're not doing your part, everybody suffers, right?
Hunter Ross:Absolutely.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:So can you share what your role is on your team right now?
Hunter Ross:Being a freshman, I think just being there for my teammates is the role. I have being humble, being able to piggyback on what they have to say and get better that way, because they do have more experience than I do and probably more success, so being able to get feedback off of their success would help me, help my knowledge and help me be a better role player overall.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:How do you approach each season and prepare mentally and physically?
Hunter Ross:I feel like just keep the mindset of staying after it, being humble, and just allow God to work.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Mm-hmm. Absolutely.
Hunter Ross:Keep your faith in God. He is the one who's given you the ability and the talent to play the game, so all glory goes to him.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Absolutely, bro, absolutely. How do you approach each season as far as workouts and nutrition? Does anything change during your offseason versus your in-season play?
Hunter Ross:Definitely being able to gain muscle. So, being able to, your calorie count would go up and it would cause you to gain that muscle mass that you want to be at for the season. And then, during the season, you end up cutting a little bit, stay a little bit leaner. It causes you to be more mobile.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Obviously you're playing more games. How many games a season do you guys have in college? 62. 62.
Hunter Ross:So how do you stay Minus the World Series if we go yeah?
Dr. Brandon Hardin:How do you stay motivated throughout the season, especially during those tough stretches?
Hunter Ross:The ring.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:The ring.
Hunter Ross:The ring.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:You have that picture in your locker room. It's like we want this.
Hunter Ross:I think everyone wants the job, to be able to have a ring on their finger. Absolutely, it keeps everyone motivated.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:If I remember correctly, which we'll have hopefully have our softball player from Jones on there, If I remember correctly, didn't Jones softball win a championship?
Hunter Ross:They did. They did last year.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Yeah, last year they were pretty good. Yeah, I saw a couple of my athletes post their big fat rings on their Instagram.
Hunter Ross:Yeah, it would be nice to be able to have one of those.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Yeah, yeah, brooklyn, if you're listening, I'm talking about you. They did fantastic. Man, what challenges are you facing as far as growth? Every athlete faces setbacks. What's been one of your biggest obstacles in your baseball career and how did you overcome it?
Hunter Ross:Shoulder injuries, this throwing arm. I'll say that it's the whole thing, dr Harden. Dr Harden was the reason that I was able to come back, get me back right, all the stuff that he put me through.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Nice man. Yeah, I appreciate that I don't have him in a chokehold this time. He he said that on his own I was never in a chokehold oh man, yeah, no, we, we get you right here, don't we?
Dr. Brandon Hardin:we get to have a lot of fun here too, and hunter knows like, about our clinic. We're, uh, we are all sports mad. I mean, we got you have turf in our office like our. Our facility is built specifically for athletes, um, and when these guys come in, uh, it especially makes me feel great to see them, uh, perform better, even even better than they did before they had an injury. Um, and that's the goal here and and that's kind of what we we face every day with our athletes is is, hey, you know, this is only a little minor setback. You know, we go into the psychology of sport with Dr Ferris here in office and we talk about you know how, during our training, our peak periods, we're feeling great.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:But, hey, my motto to all these kids is you know how you got hurt, right, how, doc, I said, well, you weren't riding the bench when you did it, but you could have been right, you could have been sitting the bench the whole time, but you weren't. You're playing ball, you're having fun. You know, sometimes they do silly things, like I had a two lane baseball player one time. He comes in because he's like, he comes in. He's like, doc, you won't believe it. And I said what happened? Dude, he goes. Man, I was playing basketball. He fell over the basketball and broke it. I'm like, bro, stick to baseball, stay away from basketball, let's see what you're good at. The poor guy man, he didn't stand a chance against me that day.
Hunter Ross:It's always the sports, the different sports, that get you injured, not the sport that you're playing.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:That's exactly right, man. That's exactly right. That's exactly right, man. That's exactly right, or deadlifting.
Hunter Ross:Let's be honest, performs bad.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Yeah, that's exactly right. Performs bad yeah.
Hunter Ross:Performs terrible.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:I do not deadlift, I am way too tall for that shit. No, not happening.
Hunter Ross:Sumo.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Yeah, you could sumo.
Hunter Ross:I mean, you don't get anything out of it. You just need to be able to move weight. I'm just not a deadlifter?
Dr. Brandon Hardin:right, I'm just not doing it. I like to put weight on my back, I like to squat, I like to lunge. We've got to have Jacques Pichu on here. We've got to show everybody what lunging looks like. With 225 on your back, then 315.
Hunter Ross:I'm like dude he's asking for it. He's got that. He's got that.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:He's got that. Yeah, he does, he does.
Hunter Ross:Man worked hard for that All credit goes to him.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Yeah, man, he did, he did good, he did good have you. Obviously you came here for a few injuries. Can you elaborate on what got you in our office to begin with?
Hunter Ross:Wasn't it your low back? Yeah, yeah, throughout, yeah throughout like pitching whatnot?
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Yeah, you weren't opening up very well were you, I was not.
Hunter Ross:I was causing stress in my lower back and just wasn't able to do the right thing. So I came in for a lower back and see where I am now. Yeah. Being able to do stuff I haven't been able to do. And then shoulder my shoulder was tight, really tight.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:We did arm care for it, arm care for it, super, super, very important.
Hunter Ross:Important, very, very important. Yes. Especially as a this's sports all around. Just make sure you get your care in in general. It doesn't matter what part of your body, Just make sure you get your care in.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Yeah, absolutely man. So I mean it starts from the field up, right? So I mean I attend a lot of sporting events as a doctor, but there are athletic trainers, there's physical therapists. You know you've got to utilize all of your resources to stay well and your arm care guys. If you don't have an arm care routine, let your coaches know. Dr Harden will hook you up and we'll get you right.
Hunter Ross:Now I can't tell you all my secrets, but we can hook you up. I know the secrets.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Yeah, how long have you worked on improving your mental toughness, hunter, especially when facing pressure? I mean you're a pitcher, right, so there's a lot of pressure.
Hunter Ross:There is a lot of pressure. Yeah, obviously the game depends on you, Even though you're the one person out of eight other guys on the field being a pitcher. You control the game.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Yeah, I think we saw that last year in a College World Series man.
Hunter Ross:That was crazy.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Yeah, that was nuts.
Hunter Ross:But keeping your composure, just staying humble and just keeping your mind right and don't allow the setbacks to destroy your mental toughness. Everything will be okay.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:That's exactly right, man. I'm glad you said that that's one of the biggest things in sport now and you'll see, like sport psychologists, psychologists who are athletic psychologists- they only take on athletes to talk with them about these certain types of injuries and setbacks that they have.
Hunter Ross:It's very big. Yeah, your mental toughness goes down the drain. You're just not going to be there mentally and it's not going to help the team get better in any way possible yeah that's exactly right, so looking ahead what are your goals for the remainder of your college baseball career? Just work hard, get better, just allow God to work and allow him to do stuff in my life.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Yeah, man, do you have aspirations to play professionally?
Hunter Ross:Absolutely.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Yeah.
Hunter Ross:That's always the goal and nothing will change that goal.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:I like that. That's awesome, man. That is awesome. Do you envision life after baseball, like even after professional baseball? If you achieve that, what are some of your passions or plans that you have in the future?
Hunter Ross:Bowling. I'm going to pick up bowling again. Bowling will never leave.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Bowling will never leave.
Hunter Ross:Bowling is the plan after baseball.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Yeah, I bet you guys didn't think he was going to say that. I know I didn't think you were going to say that.
Hunter Ross:Yeah, I'm going to be like Donald Trump. Let's pick up golf.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Yeah, dude. So Hunter Ross, running for president, he's going to pick up golf and go be at the White House 24-7. That sounds good, man. Yeah, definitely tune in. He'll put a bowling alley in the basement. Absolutely my own custom bowling alley. How are you staying focused right now, while keeping an eye on your?
Hunter Ross:future opportunities. Keeping the eyes on the future is good, but keeping your eyes one day at a time, every minute of the day, making sure you're doing the right things, always accumulates to what happens in the future. You don't take it one day at a time, you just steadily think about the future. Then the future will never come. The future plans that you have for yourself will never come if you don't take everything one day at a time, one minute at a time.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:You're staying humble in the moment. Yeah, I love that. Got to yeah for sure.
Hunter Ross:I mean, if you're good and you're humble about being good and you have those cocky moments, that's fine. If you're just cock, you're humble about being good and you have those cocky moments, that's fine. If you're just cocky about it and Karma yeah, karma bites you in the butt.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Baseball to the teeth.
Hunter Ross:Jawline fractured.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Right Seen that happen. So let's talk about beyond the game, right, big reason why we're here Beyond the game. Pretty cool, catchy right Outside of baseball. What are some of your interests or hobbies? Not bowling, but what other interests or hobbies do you have? Travel I love traveling.
Hunter Ross:Even though my mom likes to stay home, I'm going to find some way somehow to get out the house. Be, able to travel not to Mississippi or not to places I've been before, because that's just boring.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Have you been out of the country?
Hunter Ross:I want to. I want to go to Italy. Dad was there for three years and he loved it and I always wanted to go. Yeah. I want to go to the UK, okay, the weather sucks, you like tea and crumpets never tried them. I want to try them, or Canada, canada, yeah.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:I heard Canadians are mean, but no, they're not mean, they just have a way of life it's like you going to New York. Oh, dude, that's a hodgepodge. Yeah, there's a lot going on there. Yeah, yeah, keep your money in your front pockets.
Hunter Ross:Always.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Oh man. So how has college shaped you into the person you are today, both on and off the field?
Hunter Ross:It's definitely allowed me to keep my eyes peeled into the person you are today, both on and off the field. It's definitely allowed me to keep my eyes peeled for anything, because you never know what could happen. You don't know what the setbacks could do to you. So, always keeping your eyes open, always keeping your mind straight this allows you to be a better person overall. It doesn't matter if you're playing the game or not, just keeping the focus in general, this allows you to be a better person.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Yeah, absolutely. What advice would you give young athletes aspiring to reach the collegiate level, really in any sport, not just baseball?
Hunter Ross:Trust the process.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Trust the process.
Hunter Ross:Just in the work that you do, always work hard. Give it 110% every day, every time you're doing something, and everything will fall like it should.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Keep the faith.
Hunter Ross:Keep the faith.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Yeah.
Hunter Ross:Have good grades.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Yeah yeah.
Hunter Ross:Because sports does not just get you into college. Right. And if you want college paid for, have good grades, have a good GPA, have a good ACT score.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:And just have fun with it. You know, I think a lot of people place too much emphasis on one area of their life and are not very I'm not saying they're not very well-rounded, but you know, there are certain people who baseball, baseball, baseball, baseball. You know, like I have to play baseball, I have to go out today and do something related to baseball. What do you think on those? Do you take rest days? You think those are important, absolutely.
Hunter Ross:Yeah, you have to, Because that's one way you get hurt. You don't have the rest that you need and it causes you to stay injured. It's the body. You don't rebuild the muscle as fast when you just keep doing stuff.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Constantly breaking it down, yeah absolutely.
Hunter Ross:Yeah, all the tissue Mm-hmm. Yeah, that's why you stay sore, that's why you get inflammation. That's when inflammation builds up, especially throwing nonstop, that causes the inflammation to build up in the shoulder and that's how your shoulder hurts.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Mm-hmm.
Hunter Ross:Just figure that out. You did yeah last year.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Well, hunter man, we really appreciate you coming on the show and you want to have anything else that you have for the audience, do you have?
Hunter Ross:anything else for them. Stay tuned. More is to come.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Stay tuned. More is to come. That's right. You guys can watch Hunter over at Jones Baseball. Again, hunter's a pitcher. You guys go out to Jones and catch a good game. Man, I would say probably, at least in my opinion, you'll have the best JUCO program in Mississippi, absolutely. Yeah.
Hunter Ross:I know my PERC guys are going to be really PO'd at me for saying that, but Jones typically has fantastic athletes. Y'all stay tuned to the PERC.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Jones game. We're going to kick some butt Dude. We ought to set up a podcast at the game. Yeah.
Hunter Ross:We should do that In between games just be able to go on the podcast.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Yeah, Hunter come on over Land Hunter. Come on over Landon Wallace. Come on over and tell us how you feel about Jones kicking that butt. I'm just kidding, Landon. I'm just kidding.
Hunter Ross:He's going to get a chair. He's going to be sitting down in the dugout wondering what happened. Yeah, Joshley, sit him down, boss Joshley.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Yeah, Poor Josh picking on him down, boss Josh Lee. Yeah, poor Josh picking on him.
Hunter Ross:Yeah, we don't have anything else, nicholas Handy.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:You better get in this office. We're talking to you too, buddy Nicholas Hamby. Hamby, Hamby, Hambone. Call him Hambone.
Hunter Ross:Hambone.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Hambone.
Hunter Ross:That's Hambone. Call him Hambone.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Hambone.
Hunter Ross:Hambone, that's the new nickname yeah, dude, just make sure you all stay focused. For sure. Stay focused and what you love. It doesn't matter if it's baseball, just any sport. Stay focused.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Yep eye on the prize right.
Hunter Ross:Yep.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Stay focused, stay humble.
Hunter Ross:Take everything one day at a time.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Be in the moment.
Hunter Ross:Be in the moment, mm-hmm, and allow God to work.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Yeah, man absolutely.
Hunter Ross:Grow your faith.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Yeah, dude, that is exactly right. Hey guys, thanks for listening up to Beyond the Game podcast. We appreciate Hunter Ross for being on the podcast today and wish him all the success for the rest of his college career and beyond. Hopefully we'll see you in the pros, brother, and good luck catching up to me on squat day. Stay tuned for that. We'll post more on that. Hopefully Hunter doesn't hurt himself, but if he does, he can come see me.
Hunter Ross:Coach Dr Harden will hurt himself for sure. He Coach Dr Harden will hurt himself for sure. He will get under the rack with the same amount of weight that I have and he probably will fall to the floor.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Maybe Hopefully not.
Hunter Ross:Gracefully, I'll spot you, it's fine. Yeah, make sure you don't fall Might as well. Just turn it into deadlift after that. Now you've got to pick it up, buddy.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Yeah, oh, man. Well, guys, again, we really appreciate you guys listening and remember in sports it's all about the game. Stay humble, Stay in the moment and we'll see you next time. Thanks for listening.