In this episode of the podcast, Matt sits down with veteran center midfielder, Manuel Gonzalez to hear about his path from growing up in Colombia to the professional game. Some highlights of Manny's career include dropping out of college to try to play professionally, moving back to Colombia to sign his first contract, playing for Fort Lauderdale Strikers in the NASL, Playing against teams like Juventus, Malmö FF, Boca Juniors, etc. and then going all of 2017 without a club or contract. It's ano...
Oct 13, 2019•1 hr 18 min•Season 3Ep. 19
In this episode, Matt sits down with Tulsa Roughnecks teammate, Tobenna Uzo to discuss his crazy path from Lagos, Nigeria to playing professionally in the states. Toby has a unique story of playing recreational football in the streets of his home country most of his life to walking on to a D1 college soccer program and then eventually being drafted by Orlando City SC in the MLS. Not to mention that he was a goalkeeper until the age of 16 and then converted to a striker. Sit down and listen to th...
Oct 06, 2019•1 hr 17 min•Season 3Ep. 18
In this episode of the Against All Odds Podcast, Matt sits down with fellow YouTuber, Sheldon Tweedie to talk a bit about his career so far and answer some questions sent in by fans. In this episode of the podcast, the two discuss the following topics: 1. What's a better route to the professional game... College soccer or going abroad searching for pro trials? 2. Have you ever had coaches tell you that you're too small and if so how did you respond to that? 3. Where do you see yourself in 5 year...
Sep 15, 2019•54 min•Season 3Ep. 17
In this episode, Matt sits down with Tulsa Roughnecks teammate, Matt Rogers to discuss his path to the professional game. Rogers has an incredible story from growing up in Mexico to coming to the states to walk on to play D1 college soccer to entering into the real life work force at age 25. After a while of working a normal 9 to 5 job, Rogers realizes that he isn't quite ready to give up on his dream of being a pro footballer. Tune in to listen to Matt's incredible journey!
Aug 11, 2019•57 min•Season 3Ep. 16
In this episode, Matt sits down with teammate Renan Ferreira to discuss his life and career growing up in São Paulo, Brazil. Renan. a center back standing at 6 foot 6 inches, talks about his journey into the professional game in Brazil, playing with Brazilian legend Cafu, trialing in Hungary, playing over in Portugal, as well as how he ended up in Tulsa, Oklahoma playing for the Roughnecks. In addition, we talk about the low periods of his career about his struggles with knee injuries like a tor...
Jun 16, 2019•1 hr 9 min•Season 3Ep. 15
In today's episode, Matt got the chance to sit down with Tulsa Roughneck teammate, Frantzly Zephirin. Frantzly, a 26 year old from Montreal, quickly found a love for soccer and spent almost every single day of his childhood from age 4-20 playing for top club teams and futsal teams in Canada dreaming of one day playing professionally. After four great years at two different universities, Frantzly took the leap abroad to try to sign his first pro contract. His story of bouncing around from country...
Jun 09, 2019•1 hr 25 min•Season 3Ep. 14
In this episode, Matt gets to sit down with Tulsa Roughnecks teammate, Rodrigo Bandeira Da Costa and listen to his story of how Rodrigo went from quitting competitive soccer at age 14 to then signing a professional contract at age 25. It's an amazing story that again just showcases how you can achieve your goal despite what anyone tells you. In addition, Matt and Rodrigo talk about the differences of youth soccer between the USA and Brazil, how Rodrigo went from playing at an amateur level in Br...
May 19, 2019•1 hr 12 min•Season 3Ep. 12
In this episode, Matt gets to sit down with Portuguese teammate, Janu Silva. Janu grew up and spent most of his life playing soccer in the local parks in Portugal as well as with some top youth teams in the area. At one time, he was even scouted by the same person who also scouted Cristiano Ronaldo. I really recommend all of you guys to sit down and listen to Janu's story and how he went on to have an illustrious professional career!
May 05, 2019•1 hr 14 min•Season 3Ep. 11
In this episode I sit down with Akeil Barrett to hear about his journey from growing up playing soccer in local parks in his hometown of Kingston, Jamaica to being recruited by Akron, the number #1 ranked U.S. College at the time, and being drafted by Orlando City SC. Since then, he has played for a number of different professional teams around the US and even one over in Sweden. We go in-depth about the struggles he's faced with injuries and rejections as well as the absolute highs he's felt wh...
Apr 28, 2019•54 min•Season 3Ep. 10
Jeff Addai from Ottawa, Canada. Really excited for you guys to hear Jeff's story of how he overcame two ACL surgeries and two Sports Hernia surgeries to go on to play professional soccer. The persistence Jeff had to have in order to ride out the incredible low times of his injuries is something that I will always respect him for. Jeff also talks about his experience abroad over in Albania, Germany, France, Belgium, and Portugal and what he learned from those experiences as well as how him and hi...
Apr 14, 2019•1 hr 34 min•Season 3Ep. 9
In this podcast, I got the chance to sit down and talk to one of the younger guys on the team, Colton Haskin. Even though this is his first year playing professional soccer, Colton has had a very successful and inspiring career so far. One of the highlights that stuck out to me was when he tried out at a top D1 soccer program only to be told by the coaches that he'd make a good D3 level soccer player. Colton printed that out, taped it up on his bedroom door, then used it as motivation every sing...
Apr 07, 2019•48 min•Season 3Ep. 8
In this episode, I got the chance to sit down and listen to Brayan Reyes' story of how he went from playing pick up soccer with his cousins to scoring the game winning goal of a Cup Final in Honduras in front of tens of thousands of people. Other highlights of Brayan's career include playing Junior College soccer in the United States of America to dropping out and flying out to Hungary to play professionally. I'm really excited for you guys to sit down and listen to the highs and lows of a great...
Mar 24, 2019•55 min•Season 3Ep. 7
This is the longest podcast to date, but is also one of the most inspirational stories I've ever heard. Cyprian Hedrick went from playing barefoot in the streets of Cameroon to moving to America at age 9 to eventually being drafted as the 30th overall pick to Sporting Kansas City. The 29 year old center back then went on to a successful professional career with multiple USL clubs and now is the captain of the Tulsa Roughnecks. Cyprian's story is full of ups and downs, but is incredibly inspiring...
Mar 17, 2019•2 hr 34 min•Season 3Ep. 6
Mar 10, 2019•58 min•Season 3Ep. 5
Roach infested apartments in Egypt, 15 hour bus rides to Romania, going 2 years without seeing his Mom or Dad... Moses Makinde has an incredible story of perseverance and determination as he played professional soccer around the globe. This is one of the craziest journeys that I've ever heard. Makinde was born in England, but later moved to America and had an ideal youth career, and was consistently on one of the best youth teams in the country. He went on to play D1 soccer at NC State for four ...
Mar 03, 2019•1 hr 47 min•Season 3Ep. 4
In this episode Matt sits down with Tulsa Roughnecks FC's latest signing, Anthony Legendre, to talk about his journey to signing his first professional contract. Anthony has an inspiring story from facing rejection from his youth club to going on trials with teams in 5 different countries. Any player can benefit from sitting down and listening to the story, advice, and lessons of Anthony Legendre.
Feb 24, 2019•1 hr 21 min•Season 3Ep. 3
In this episode of the Against All Odds Podcast, Matt sits down with former opponent, former teammate, and now current teammate, A'kwafei Ajeakwa to hear his story about how he made it to the professional level after being cut from his high school team at age 14, his experience playing abroad in England and Spain, and how he started the successful clothing company, Pala Design. AJ's seemingly impossible journey is sure to inspire and any player. Really excited for you guys to hear his story! A'k...
Feb 17, 2019•1 hr 5 min•Season 3Ep. 2
In this podcast Matt sits down with fellow Roughnecks teammate, DJ Dean, to hear about how he went from playing soccer in high school to being recruited to the University of Central Arkansas. They discuss his decision to drop out on move-in day, and how that all lead to him signing his first professional contract with the Tulsa Roughnecks.
Feb 10, 2019•50 min•Season 3Ep. 1
A lot has happened since Episode 10: Christmas, New Year’s, A Trip To Ottawa, and big life changes. Matt and Mimi go in depth about their last few weeks and also explore some major millennial problems. Technology and entrepreneurship can sometimes take a toll on other aspects of life. Can you relate?
Jan 13, 2019•55 min•Season 2Ep. 11
Absolutely loved sitting down with Oliver Maroney of the Positionless Podcast! This was my (Matt's) first ever guest appearance and I had an absolutely amazing experience going over our time playing together back in the early stages of our youth careers, how I got recruited to the collegiate level, my transition to the pro level, and my journey of vlogging and documenting my career on YouTube and Instagram. Great episode with a completely different dynamic than what you guys are used to!...
Jan 02, 2019•59 min•Ep. 19
In this episode, Matt sits down with his parents to discuss Matt's childhood, upbringing, and differences between siblings. In addition, Matt asks his Mom and Dad about their specific parenting style, regrets in life, happiest moments, and much more. Don't miss this unique episode of the Against All Odds Podcast!
Dec 30, 2018•1 hr 1 min•Season 2Ep. 10
With the holidays upon us, a lot of people are bound to get off the healthy lifestyle bandwagon. Why does that happen? Matt and Mimi discuss their experiences with quitting and losing motivation. They also discuss Mimi's first home decor products and their plans for Christmas.
Dec 23, 2018•43 min•Season 2Ep. 9
Most of you enjoyed our previous interactive podcast, so we decided to do it again, this time with just Matt. On Instagram Live he asked his followers to bring up any point, question, or topic. Listen to this podcast to hear how it went, and also be sure to follow Matt Sheldon on Instagram, @MattSheldon23.
Dec 16, 2018•46 min•Season 2Ep. 8
Listen to this episode to hear all about the ins and outs of professional trials. Matt records this podcast (without Mimi) while actually on trial for a USL team. He goes over how he prepared for it physically, his diet, mental preparation, and even the sacrifices of missing out on his college reunion. Matt even shares how he preformed today on his first day of the trial. This is an extremely rare behind the scenes look at the professional world, did you take anything away from it?
Dec 08, 2018•43 min•Season 2Ep. 7
After returning from Thanksgiving in Hawaii, Matt and Mimi reflect on the vacation. The week off from soccer did Matt’s body some good, but now is he ready for his upcoming trials? Listen to this episode to hear the behind the scenes of combines and trials, and to find out if Matt is mentally and physically prepared for what lays ahead.
Dec 02, 2018•41 min•Season 2Ep. 6
In this episode, Matt dives straight into some thought provoking questions. Mimi and Matt agree that this is their favorite podcast to date, and hope you too enjoy thinking about life on a deeper level... and don’t worry, there’s some soccer stuff too!
Nov 18, 2018•49 min•Season 2Ep. 5
Ever felt like the rookie on your team or in the work place? Believe it or not everybody goes through that. In this episode, Matt opens up about his rookie season and how dark that time can be. It’s important to not feel alone so listen to this podcast if you need some reassurance. In addition, Matt talks about the frustrating offseason contract negotiations as well as the constant pressure to perform and train at the highest level.
Nov 11, 2018•49 min•Season 2Ep. 4
This episode involves you guys more than any other episode thus far. To encourage interactions with all of the viewers, Matt and Mimi opened the discussion up to questions from their recent Instagram post. The second half of the episode features an Instagram live on @Become_Elite, where Matt and Mimi answer questions directly from you in real time. This is a new style of podcast for Against All Odds, please feel free to leave your thoughts or suggestions for future episodes.
Nov 04, 2018•46 min•Season 2Ep. 3
Sometimes you deserve to be cocky. Or at least that's the way Matt and Mimi see it. In this episode they explore the mini milestones they have reached in the last couple of days regarding businesses and social media platforms. And Matt discusses the book he is currently obsessing over. If you are looking to become a professional athlete or something of that nature, then this is an episode you won't want to miss.
Oct 28, 2018•49 min•Season 2Ep. 2
Welcome to Season 2 of Against All Odds. In this new season, Matt and Mimi will be living in San Diego and experiencing 'offseason' for Matt's professional football career. Listen to this episode to hear their plan, find out what's new with each of their businesses, and get one of Matt's best pieces of advice.
Oct 21, 2018•42 min•Season 2Ep. 1
