Today we’d like to introduce you to Jeff Black.
Thanks for sharing your story with us Jeff. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
Well, I am a San Diego native and started playing volleyball my freshman year of high school. Instantly I fell in love with the game and wanted to play 24/7. I played in high school, played the club, and two years of college ball. My passion came from playing for my high school/club coach, Matt Wilkinson, who had a genius volleyball mind and is the best strategist/motivator I have ever seen. When I graduated college in 2012 with a Sport Management degree, I struggled to find a career I was passionate about and was fortunate to land a job with one of the best volleyball clubs in the country – A5. I learned everything about running a successful club and developed an even stronger passion for teaching/coaching. While at A5, I founded the beach program, which started with 14 year round players, then grew to 40+ and 70+ in just three years. With indoor at A5, I coached 15-3 my first season. The following year six players made 16-2. The next year I coached 13-4. They won three tournaments, the following year one player made the one team and another made the two teams. (which is really unheard of to jump multiple levels in one season).
After that, I spent a year at A5 South to help build and mentor the youth program, which grew to 70+ players in just one year. Working for a big company as the director of two of their satellite programs that got little attention, I got frustrated and resigned from A5 because I thought I could do better and was unhappy. I coached with Crossfire Volleyball for two seasons. Their youth program saw tremendous growth in the first season, with over 100 players going through the ignite program and more than 50% played club the following year. Being super competitive and working for a brand that did not support that mission, I quickly realized Crossfire was not the place for me and I decided to launch 575 Volleyball with three other well has known coaches in the area – Jamie Horton, John Edwards, and Kortney Kimura.
In our first season, we had 11 teams, 2nd season we had 16 teams, and currently, in our 3rd season, we have 21 club teams and will train over 500 youth athletes this year! I have helped players sign to colleges across the country, including Florida State, Arizona, Georgia State, West Georgia, Mercer, Texas Christian University, Columbus State, Valdosta State, and many more.
To help grow the company and not take a big salary, I took a job as a teacher and the head coach for the Marietta High School Blue Devils. In the first season we lost a heart breaker to not qualify for the state playoffs. In my 2nd season, we achieved our goals of finishing top 3 in the region, qualifying for state, then won the first round and lost in the sweet 16 to Norcross.
I have a history of success growing volleyball programs throughout the Metro Atlanta Area and have been mentored by some of the best in the business. I remain active in the volleyball community as a coach and player and have established life long relationships with coaches and players across the country.
Has it been a smooth road?
The road is never smooth and every day presents new challenges that need solutions. With around 50 part time employees, our biggest struggle is hiring and keeping really good coaches. The nature of the job is part time, so everyone has a real job and the majority of us have families on top of being a coach. To combat that, we offer very competitive pay, bonus incentives, and encourage coaches to bring their families with them to travel tournaments.
We’d love to hear more about your organization.
575 Volleyball is a volleyball club on the edge of Cobb/Cherokee County. We specialize in developing technically skilled volleyball players who strive to compete at the highest level possible. We are a family oriented club and are very passionate to do what is best for the players. Our highly trained and committed staff provides skill based instruction and only form competitive teams.
I am most proud of the team we have been able to assemble in just our third year as an organization and the competitive spirit of volleyball we have brought to the area. There are several key things that set us apart from our competition:
1. We do not host our own events yet. Many clubs do this because there is a ton of money involved with hosting events, so clubs play their teams in events they shouldn’t due to monetary reasons. We do plan to host our own events in the future, but will still play our teams in the best events to compete.
2. Our coaching staff is one of the best in the state and our youngest head coach is 28 years old, meaning our staff is more experienced and older than the average club.
3. We have a preseason and master coaching philosophy that allows our best coaches to help mentor our less experienced coaches and creates more consistency in our training as a club.
Is our city a good place to do what you do?
Atlanta is a great place to start a volleyball club, which is evident because there are a new start up clubs every year due to the low barriers to entry. Girls volleyball is one of the fastest growing sports in the country, so anywhere with a lot of student-athletes is a great place for a volleyball club.
Pricing:
- A beginner volleyball program is typically between $100-$300, which is cost efficient to see if your kid is really passionate about a new sport.
- Club volleyball season is 4-9 months long depending on what level you play. (local, regional, national). Playing club is expensive and typically costs between $1000-$5000 for a season.
- 575 Volleyball has given away over 200k in scholarships in just 3 years, mainly to single parents and players who strive to play in college and could receive financial assistance to do so.
Contact Info:
- Address: 525 Industrial Dr. Suite # 160
Woodstock, GA 30189 - Website: www.575volleyball.com
- Email: jeff@575volleyball.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/575volleyball/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/575Volleyball/
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