Liv Off Court
As a student-athlete, it’s very easy to fall into the pattern of putting all your time and energy into that respective sport. For Olivia Brown ’ 23, ’ 24 and Olivia Sims ’ 25, their goal this past year has been learning to separate themselves from their sport and dive deeper into what their lives and personalities are like off the court.
This spawned “Liv Off Court,” the podcast about two transfer student-athletes and their lives outside of basketball. “The main reason we started this podcast was to give other students, other athletes, something to listen and relate to,” Brown said. “They want to hear their feelings validated, and we hope they find comfort in hearing that they are.”
Each week, the duo kicks off the podcast by asking each other “what was your best moment off the court this week?”
By asking this question, their conversation pivots away from game talk, something the duo wants to limit in order to separate their on and off the court personalities.
“Who we are on the court isn’t who we are off the court,” Sims said in an interview with Paul Oren for “The Victory Bell” podcast.
The duo goes on to say that while there are ups and downs during the season which can affect how they feel about basketball, their main goal is to continue to express gratitude for the ability to play D1 basketball here at Valpo. Brown and Sims are both transfers, entering the portal at different times, but they both made the conscious decision to come to Valpo after previously establishing a home on another court. Sims transferred from Oakland University after her freshman year, realizing the team and school wasn’t a good fit for her. She describes the experience as very stressful.
“You don’t get to pick, necessarily,” Sims said. “Whatever comes to you, you just have to work with.” After a bad experience, Sims describes how she began to lose her love for the game in an episode of Liv Off Court where the duo breaks down their transfer experiences. Her initial plan after freshman year was to transfer but not play basketball. Luckily, Sims made a lot of connections in high school, including the assistant coach Dominique Duck, who had Brown FaceTime Sims and talk about the team culture. Additionally, Sims was looking to see how she could build her identity outside of basketball and what the schools offered as far as career growth.
Brown, having been seven hours away from her family at St. Bonaventure University in upstate New York, transferred to Valpo after her sophomore year in order to be closer to her family. While Brown has just graduated from Valparaiso University this past May, she will be returning to campus and women’s basketball, obtaining her MBA and playing her 5th year.
“Four years just didn’t feel like enough,” Brown said. “I’m really grateful to come back another year — especially being a transfer — because I feel like I’m just now hitting my stride here at Valpo with my team and coaches.”
As transfers, Brown and Sims have a lot of advice on transferring and managing all the emotions that come with that, but their biggest piece of advice is to give yourself grace.
“When you leave a school behind that you have made home, you’re kind of mourning the loss of your old school and trying to figure out everything out with your new school at the same time,” Brown said. “Giving yourself grace is so important, but so is knowing that it’s going to take time.” Additionally, they recommended that student transfers not be afraid to get out of their comfort zone.
“You might just want to stay in your room or hang out with your roommate, but there are so many activities and welcoming events on Valpo’s campus,” Sims said, who attended trivia nights with friends and teammates.
You can stream new episodes of Liv Off Court here or wherever you get your podcasts.
Written By
Alexis Hodo
