Josh Duke on the University-Model School, Multi-Sport Culture, and Leading as an Athletic Director

On the Contacts Coaching Podcast, Josh Duke, Executive Director of Athletics and Operations at Grace Prep in the DFW Metroplex, shares his path from Grace Prep student to Abilene Christian student manager, then coaching at Fort Worth Christian (freshman, JV under Jeff Bell, and varsity head coach) before returning to Grace Prep in 2020 as athletic director and head boys basketball coach. He explains Grace Prep’s university-model schedule, how families make it work, and the broader Texas homeschool sports landscape. Duke outlines Grace Prep’s sports offerings, enrollment size, and the realities of sustaining football participation, while emphasizing the value and role-management of multi-sport athletes. He discusses balancing in-season/off-season demands, how roster makeup changes basketball strategy, the importance of mentors, AD lessons learned during COVID, culture-building through parent/community engagement and monthly team dinners, and how conversations with other coaches shifted his thinking on using pressure defense to control tempo.00:00 Welcome And Introductions00:42 Josh Duke Coaching Journey02:54 University Model School Explained06:44 Homeschool Sports Landscape08:10 Grace Prep Sports Offerings08:42 Building Multisport Culture10:45 Roles And Expectations12:09 Making Room For Leaders14:50 State Title Multisport Example15:28 Football Numbers Reality16:47 AD Coach Conflict Balance17:24 Offseason Basketball In Texas19:45 Adapting Style To Talent22:06 Simple Vs Complex Offense23:57 Playing Downhill And Pace24:48 Assistant to Head Coach Shock25:50 Finding Your Own Style26:57 Leveraging Veteran Assistants28:19 Mentors and Accountability30:29 Becoming Athletic Director33:42 Stealing Culture From Others37:41 Coaching Through Parenthood39:44 Team Dinners Build Culture43:58 Changing Minds and Tempo46:55 Pressing to Control Pace49:09 Final Thanks and Wrap