From the NFL to Life Coaching: Overcoming Injury, Identity Loss, and Building Purpose After Football | John Youboty Jr.

What happens when the dream ends—and you’re forced to reinvent yourself?

In this powerful episode of Sports Will Save Us All, host Sasha Graham sits down with John Youboty Jr., former NFL defensive lineman, Temple University standout, and current ICF-certified executive and life coach, to explore what it truly takes to transition from elite athletics to a purpose-driven life beyond sports.

John’s journey is anything but ordinary. After earning Second Team All–Big East honors at Temple, he signed with the Denver Broncos as an undrafted free agent, beating impossible odds to make it to the NFL. But like so many professional athletes, his career was cut short by a torn Achilles, forcing him to confront the reality of the league’s brutal truth: “Not For Long.”

From there, the story goes deeper.

John opens up about:

• The mental and emotional toll of career-ending injuries

• Losing identity after football and rebuilding from the inside out

• Lessons learned playing alongside NFL greats like Peyton Manning

• Why the hardest workers are always the best players

• The unseen challenges young professional athletes face with money, pressure, and trust

Sasha and John also dive into his extraordinary personal history. Born to parents who fled the Liberian Civil War, John spent years of his childhood living in West Africa, witnessing war firsthand before returning to the U.S. That experience shaped his perspective on adversity, gratitude, and opportunity—and continues to influence how he approaches leadership, coaching, and life.

Now the founder of Supreme Coaching Group, John works as an executive and life coach, helping athletes, entrepreneurs, and high performers master mindset, align with purpose, and navigate major life transitions. He explains what ICF certification really means, how coaching differs from therapy, and why the most successful people in the world—from CEOs to elite athletes—all have coaches.

This episode explores:

• Athlete transition after the NFL

• Mental resilience and identity beyond sports

• Executive coaching and performance psychology

• Immigration, legacy, and cultural perspective

• Real estate investing, entrepreneurship, and reinvention

• Why self-mastery always comes before external success

John’s story is a reminder that sports may open the door—but who you become after the final whistle matters even more.

If you’re navigating change, redefining success, or searching for purpose after a major life shift, this episode will resonate deeply.

ABOUT JOHN

Sports Fam, you can find John’s Supreme Coaching Group online at Supreme-Coaching.com and on Instagram @supremecoachinggroup. John is also on LinkedIn by searching John Youboty Jr.

About Sports Will Save Us All podcast

Sports Will Save Us All is an inspirational sports podcast hosted by Sasha Graham, featuring powerful conversations with athletes, coaches, and changemakers about how sports shape mental health, resilience, leadership, and personal growth. Through real-life stories of women in sports, inclusive and adaptive athletics, and athletes overcoming adversity, the show explores how sports change lives—on and off the field.

On Instagram @SportsWillSaveUsAll 

Online at www.SportsWillSaveUsAll.com

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