Today we’d like to introduce you to Gavin Schoenwald.
Hi Gavin, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
Being in Nashville since 2005, I have seen the city change firsthand. Growing up in Williamson County Schools and then attending Brentwood Academy (2018 graduate), I chose to stay home and play football at Vanderbilt University. After 5 years of playing tight end and eventually being named team captain, I gave my best shot at the NFL, appearing in training camps for The Tennessee Titans and San Francisco 49ers I learned very quickly that “NFL” stands for “Not For Long,” and eventually shifted my focus to my next phase of life. I got an entry level sales position at a company named PLAE, an athletic flooring & equipment company. This role introduced me to the business side of sports and I soon realized this is an industry that was passionate about and could thrive in. After about 18 months at PLAE, I transitioned to Whistle Performance, and AI Sports Science startup focusing on performance data & analytics, to serve as their Director of Football. We have seen immense growth over the past few years partnering with several professional organizations and universities including hometown Nashville Predators, Vanderbilt Football, and Tennessee Volunteers Football.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
Life is a journey full of hills and valleys. Although the mountain tops of enjoyable moments are incredible, much of the learning occurs in the struggle. The 2020 SEC COVID Football Season was a rough one. As we all remember, no one knew what was going on, who or IF we were playing the next week due to roster / quarantine restrictions. At the end of the season, Coach Derek Mason was let go and the football program hit the full reset button. All that to say, it was a cluster. However, it tested my patience and challenged my leadership abilities. It was a huge challenge to try and unite a locker room of men from all over the country while we faced this level of adversity.
Coach Clark Lea was hired and in January 2021, we set out on a new journey to lay the foundation of the Vanderbilt Football everyone now sees today. There were some dark, cold, and REALLY tough mornings that first winter/spring as we quickly found out who wanted to be a part of this new standard, and who was looking for a way out. Although the results may have took a bit longer than we all wanted or had hoped for, those grueling morning runs of Nashville’s Capitol Hill, team competition drills, or hitting every step of Frist Bank Stadium helped develop the strong program everyone now sees today.
Appreciate you sharing that. What should we know about Whistle Performance ?
First, I want to make it clear that we would be no where without our CEO/Founder Marc Kerrest, VP of Performance Science Kevin Cronin, and VP of Sales Jacob Norlock. These 3 got the company off the ground when no one knew who we were. I would be remiss if they were not included and mentioned in this.
At Whistle Performance, we’re solving one of the most persistent problems in elite sport. The gap between collecting performance data and actually being able to use it. I have seen it first hand, every high-performance program today is swamped in data. GPS speeds & total distances, force plate power outputs, wellness/sleep/nutrition tracking, wearables, etc…the technology is incredible. But for most coaches and performance staff, the bottleneck has never been the data collection. It’s been the hours it takes to turn that raw data into something meaningful, something you can actually act on. By the time the analysis is done, the training window has closed. What sets us apart is what we don’t do. We don’t hand you another dashboard to build or another spreadsheet to manage. We don’t just visualize your data. We tell you what it means and what to do next. Automated insights, predictive analytics, injury risk alerts, athlete-facing mobile check-ins — it’s all designed around real performance workflows, not theoretical ones.
My role specifically, I am in charge of our growth and partnerships in American Football. We collaborate with several NFL Franchises, Power 4 Football, and even some elite high schools throughout the country, including local Ravenwood High School.
From my perspective on the football side, what I’m most proud of is that this platform was built by people who have actually worked and played in elite sport environments. We understand the pressure of game week. We understand that a strength coach managing 90 players doesn’t have two hours to cross-reference spreadsheets before a morning session. We built Whistle for that reality.
Networking and finding a mentor can have such a positive impact on one’s life and career. Any advice?
Successful people leave clues. Obviously, there’s value in finding a singular mentor, or someone that you trust to help you along the journey of your own career. However, I think there is little nuggets of wisdom you can find from multiple people every day. Identify people who have “earned it” along their journey, and then figure out how/what was their process looks like. Everyone will give you a different answer, but the underlying theme will most likely remain the same: discipline, hard work, and taking advantage of opportunities when they come.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.whistleperformance.ai/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/g_schoenwald10?igsh=MWNxYmk2dTRpNTZ5dw%3D%3D&utm_source=qr
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gavin-schoenwald-566407166/
