Author: Don Yaeger

What an amazing first weekend of the NCAA men’s basketball tournament. If anyone in America picked Middle Tennessee over Michigan State, Arkansas-Little Rock over Purdue and Yale over Baylor, I want you picking my lottery numbers. But the weekend’s most incredible game was among its last, finishing late Sunday night. Tiny Northern Iowa, fresh off a last-second win over Mighty Texas, was up by 12 with just 33 seconds...

Dear Peyton Manning, Thank you. You’re truly one of a kind, and I hate to see you go. The last few weeks have been a whirlwind for you, from a Super Bowl title to some tough news coverage, to the daily question of when (or if) you would retire. Now you’ve chosen to do so. I have been consistently fascinated by your leadership—which has earned you league MVP five times and two Super Bowl wins—but you are leaving us...

Recent shakeups within the NBA saw the dismissal of several high profile coaches. One change, though, really stood out to me. Derek Fischer—league-beloved point guard known for his championship-level play with the Los Angeles Lakers—was recently fired as coach of the New York Knicks and the dismissal reminded me of a truism most don’t openly discuss: All-star employees often make lousy managers. Though the decorated...

This Sunday, the Daytona 500 will serve as the opening for another NASCAR season. And much as he has for most of the last 15 years, Jimmie Johnson will be among the favorites to be the champion at season’s end. Six times in the last 10 years, Johnson has held the Sprint Cup trophy aloft. But while Johnson’s name is the one etched in history, he couldn’t win all those races without a GREAT TEAM. In my long-running effort...

Congratulations to Peyton Manning and the Denver Broncos—you’ve just climbed the mountain. Now, the most difficult thing to do will be scaling that mountain twice. The sports and business greats all know that winning is difficult, but repeating a championship performance is such a challenge that few can tell you how it feels. Think about it, how many champions repeat? Whether it is a team hoisting a championship banner...

In 2011, Cam Newton would sulk on the bench whenever the Carolina Panther’s defense was on the field. Eventually, Newton was advised by veteran players that he could be more effective as a leader if he used his personality to uplift the team. Newton took the assessment to heart and made several major adjustments. Now—less than a week before his first Super Bowl—he’s not only the dynamic leader of the NFL’s hottest...

In a flurry of postseason NFL firings, several big-name coaches—Lovie Smith, Chip Kelly and Tom Coughlin—departed from their respective teams faster than a slant pass from Tom Brady. While loyal fans have decried the firings, it’s not unusual for NFL jobs to change hands before the dust can settle on the regular season. In the business world, executive turnover happens every day and teams must address a consistent...