CONCORD, N.C. -- The college football season is right around the corner and the Hendrick Motorsports pit crew athletes are ready to cheer on their former college teams.
In our new series Game Day to Race Day, our pit crew members will tell their story of making the change from college football to professional pit athlete.
New episodes will drop every Tuesday over the next seven weeks.
In our kickoff video, hear from Jon Carvin, Chris Burkey and Keith Flynn talk about their roles in coaching the best pit crews in NASCAR.
Carvin played football at the University of Albany before coaching football at LaFayette College, the University of Illinois and the University of Idaho. Burkey played football for Wingate University and then went on to coach there, as well. He also took on coaching roles at Tennessee Tech University and University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. Flynn played at Wake Forest University and also spent time coaching for his alma matter before making calls at Western Michigan.
"The most rewarding part of the job is 100% watching the people you work with have success," Carvin said. "That just gives you that great feeling that what you are doing is helping them be successful. As a coach, that is what it comes down to — being a part of someone else's success. That's what makes me feel like I am doing something that matters."
Check out the video above to hear from our three pit coaches as they break down what they look for in a NASCAR pit crew member and how they help the athletes perform their best pit stops for Hendrick Motorsports.
Full Schedule:
Week one: Pit Coaches
Week two: Spencer Bishop, jackman on No. 24 team, Wake Forest
Week three: RJ Barnette, tire carrier on No. 5 team, Samford University
Week four: Landon Walker, fueler on No. 24 team, Clemson University
Week five: John Gianninoto, fueler on No. 9 team, University of Nevada Las Vegas
Week six: Allen Stallings, tire carrier on No. 48 team, Greensboro College
Week seven: Dustin Lineback, jackman on No. 48 team, East Carolina University
Week eight: TJ Semke, jackman on No. 9 team, Kansas University