Dan Meske | Head Volleyball Coach, University of Louisville | "Take more from failure than it took from you."

In this episode, I’m joined by Dan Meske, the head women’s volleyball coach at the University of Louisville and one of the most respected coaches in the entire sport.Before becoming Louisville’s head coach in 2025, Dan spent eight seasons as the program’s associate head coach, helping transform Louisville into a national powerhouse. During that stretch, the Cardinals reached multiple Final Fours, appeared in two NCAA National Championship matches, won four ACC championships, and consistently finished among the top teams in the country. In 2022, Dan was named AVCA Assistant Coach of the Year.In his first season as Louisville’s head coach, the Cardinals finished 26–7 while advancing to the NCAA Regional Semifinals. Prior to Louisville, Dan served as head coach at Augustana University, where he compiled a 45–17 record across two seasons and led the Vikings to their first NCAA Tournament appearance since 2008.Before that, Dan spent eight seasons at University of Nebraska, where the Huskers compiled a 216–44 record, won multiple conference championships, made eight NCAA Tournament appearances, and helped establish Nebraska’s sand volleyball program into a top-10 national program. Dan is also a former standout player at Ohio State University, where he helped lead the Buckeyes to a national semifinal appearance and earned All-MIVA honors during his collegiate career.Here's some notable highlights from our conversation:[4:10] — Lessons Learned from Year One as a Head Coach[7:35] — Reflection as a Coach[10:13] — Catching People Being Good[16:23] — Taking Over a Winning Program[20:54] — Growing Beyond Your Strengths as a Leader[25:33] — Joy and Flow State in Competition[30:02] — Core Values[33:03] — Courage and Leadership[43:21] — Turning Failures and Losses Into Lessons[49:01] — Searching for Competitive Advantages[53:49] — Never Stop Learning[58:30] — Family and FatherhoodFollow Dan's Coaching Journey:Follow Dan on Instagram here. Learn More About Zach:Explore 1:1 coaching with Zach -- Schedule a free call hereSubscribe to my free newsletter hereYou can watch the video recordings of the podcast on YouTube here.