The team

Meet the crew

The people behind Golden Helmets & Green Jackets — on the mic and behind the scenes.

Michael Maier, M.D. “GolfDoc”

Host · Founder

Michael Maier, M.D. — “GolfDoc” to the show — is an orthopedic surgeon and has been an Assistant Professor of Orthopedic Surgery at Baylor College of Medicine since January 2018. A cum laude graduate of the University of Notre Dame (Class of 1994), he earned his M.D. at UT Southwestern Medical School and trained in general and orthopaedic surgery at Duke University Medical Center. Board certified by the American Board of Orthopaedic Surgery, he cares for athletes and active patients across sports medicine, joint reconstruction, trauma and golf-specific injuries, and holds Titleist Performance Institute Medical Level 3 certification. On Golden Helmets & Green Jackets he brings the operating-room view to college football, golf and the Notre Dame stories he has loved since his days under the Golden Dome. Go Irish!

Notre Dame ’94Orthopedic surgeonBaylor College of MedicineDuke OrthopaedicsTPI Medical Level 3

LinkedIn My TPI Certified Expert profile Titleist Performance Institute @MichaelMaierMD

Matthew “Matty Ice” Maier

Co-host · Production Assistant

GolfDoc’s co-host and the other half of every conversation. Matty Ice keeps the show moving, asks GolfDoc for his “diagnosis” on the week’s biggest games, and brings friends like Oklahoma die-hard Cade Cruzen into the mix.

Behind the scenes he helps produce the weekly episodes and Shorts — and he still guards the famous Matty Ice Nuclear Whale Lock.

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Tevon Coney

Co-host · Former Notre Dame football player

A former Notre Dame linebacker who went on to the NFL, Tevon was the show’s very first guest and has been part of the team ever since — returning for the Michigan State–Notre Dame episode and joining GolfDoc to interview Purdue brothers Steve and John Jackson.

Tevon brings a player’s perspective on injury, resilience, the Notre Dame alumni network and passing the game’s lessons on to the next generation of young athletes.

Notre Dame footballInterviewsYouth football

LinkedIn @TevonConey Tough Choices Foundation @toughchoices Tough Choices on Facebook

Brandon Varon

Production Assistant

Brandon helps bring Golden Helmets & Green Jackets to life behind the scenes, supporting production of the episodes and Shorts and helping the show reach more fans every week.

A first-generation, pre-med student at the University of Houston, Brandon helps lead the Patient Discharge Initiative (PDI), a student volunteer organization that helps underserved patients at LBJ Hospital after discharge — supporting medication adherence and follow-up care and connecting them with community resources. He also brought GolfDoc to his UH pre-health students for Episode 8.

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LinkedIn Patient Discharge Initiative (PDI)@uh_pdi

Cade Cruzen

Production Assistant · Senior College Football Analyst, GolfDoc’s Weekly Futures

Market outlook: bullish on the Sooners. Cade Cruzen, a University of Oklahoma alum based in Dallas–Fort Worth, covers the SEC for the GolfDoc’s Weekly Futures desk, issuing buy, sell and hold ratings on every weekly slate. An Oklahoma die-hard who lives for Red River weekend and Matty Ice’s former fraternity brother, he goes head-to-head with GolfDoc and Brandon on the picks board, and he’s the analyst GolfDoc calls after a rough week.

His signature product, Cruzen’s Turkey Triple Play, is a three-leg parlay that cashed at +567 in Week 8. Behind the scenes, he works with Brandon and the crew to bring Golden Helmets & Green Jackets to fans every week. Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Boomer Sooner, and gobble gobble.

University of OklahomaSEC coverageWeekly FuturesProduction

Ricky Rodriguez

Chief Financial Officer & Accountant · Head College Football Futures Analyst

Ricky Rodriguez keeps the books for GolfDoc and Golden Helmets & Green Jackets as the show’s CPA, which makes him the one member of the crew who always knows the numbers. He runs Richard Rodriguez, CPA, PLLC by day and, on the weekends, chairs the GolfDoc’s Weekly Futures desk.

His research note, “Ricky’s Pearls,” delivers weekly against-the-spread positions, and he is not afraid to take the other side of GolfDoc’s book. Week 8 closed at 3–1–1 ATS, and for Week 9 he floated the “Row the Boat” moneyline underdog parlay (Northwestern, Wisconsin and Arizona), which he priced at +1,323. A Notre Dame grad and lifelong Irish fan, he believes in diversified portfolios and Golden Dome blue chips. Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Go Irish!

Notre DameRicky’s PearlsWeekly FuturesCPA

Richard Rodriguez, CPA, PLLC

Our Athletes’ team physician

Photo: Victory Medical

Team physician

Dr. Nathan Pekar, MD

Family medicine · Victory Medical, Austin, Texas

Dr. Pekar is the Maier family’s doctor and the team physician for Mitchell and Melanie, helping them optimize their health and wellness on and off the course. A family physician since 2001 and board certified in family medicine, he has practiced at Victory Medical in Austin since 2009. He earned his M.D. at UT Southwestern Medical School and completed his family medicine residency at Saint Louis University.

Victory Medical bio

New guests · Episode 10: West Point Football

From West Point to the show

John Robb

USMA Class of 1991 · Army linebacker

John grew up in Houston and didn’t know what West Point was until his junior year of high school, when Army coach Bob Sutton came to recruit him. He played linebacker for Jim Young and Bob Sutton and co-captained the 1990 Army team that beat Navy 30–20.

Today he is founder and managing director of The Stone Creek Group, a Denver wealth-management firm built on “Duty. Honor. Family.” He spent 2001–2015 at Bernstein, has served on the West Point Association of Graduates board and Investment Committee, and earned his MBA at Our Lady of the Lake University.

West Point ’91Army linebacker1990 co-captainWatch Episode 10 →

Otto Leone

USMA Class of 1991 · Former Army quarterback

Otto earned his engineering degree at West Point and quarterbacked Army from 1987 to 1990 in Jim Young’s wishbone. On Halloween 1987 he started the year as sixth-string QB, came in against Temple, and his only pass went 64 yards to Mark Charette for a touchdown in a 17–7 Army win.

He later earned his MBA at Notre Dame, spent 2009–2024 at Schindler Elevator, finishing as VP of the South Central region, and is now SVP, Multi-Family, at Repipe Specialists. His advice to West Point’s Class of 2029: “Be a great teammate, be a servant leader, take care of each other, and always put the mission first.”

West Point ’91Army QBNotre Dame MBAWatch Episode 10 →

Partners & links

Friends of the show

Dr. Tom Parr

Dr. Thomas J. “Tom” Parr, M.D., F.A.C.S., is a 1967 West Point graduate and Army Ranger who commanded an armored cavalry troop in Germany and a mechanized infantry company in Vietnam, then became an orthopaedic surgeon and retired from the Army Medical Corps as a Colonel in 1987. He has practiced orthopaedics in Sugar Land for more than 30 years, now with Baylor St. Luke’s Medical Group, where he is GolfDoc’s partner, and has served on the board of the West Point Society of Greater Houston since 1989. Tom and his wife Joannie brought John Robb and Otto Leone into GolfDoc’s life. Episode 10 is dedicated to Tom, Joannie and Bill York.

LinkedIn Watch Episode 10

Bill York

William H. “Bill” York, West Point Class of 1981, is the founder of Tudor Lewis, a retained executive search firm, after senior staffing roles at Compaq and Bank of America. Bill is the connector who put the West Point episode together. Episode 10 is dedicated to him, along with Tom and Joannie Parr.

LinkedIn Watch Episode 10

Titleist Performance Institute

GolfDoc is a TPI Medical Level 3 Certified Expert. Find his profile or a TPI expert near you.

My TPI profile mytpi.com

Patient Discharge Initiative

University of Houston student organization serving underserved patients after discharge at LBJ Hospital — led in part by Brandon Varon.

UH PDI Instagram @uh_pdi

Tough Choices Foundation

Tevon Coney’s nonprofit mentoring young people to reach their goals.

toughchoicesfoundation.com Instagram Facebook

Notre Dame Orthopaedic Society

Founded in 1995 by Notre Dame alumni, NDOS hosts the annual Notre Dame Orthopaedic Symposium in South Bend: a weekend of teaching, reunion and Irish football for anyone in musculoskeletal care. Guests Chip Taunt and A.J. Mencias are part of the NDOS family.

ndorthosociety.org NDOS over the years

Our guests

Guests & contributors

Everyone who has joined GolfDoc on the show. Tap the LinkedIn or bio link to learn more about their work.

John RobbWest Point ’91 · Army linebacker & 1990 co-captain · Founder, The Stone Creek Group (Denver)Episode 10 · West Point Football
LinkedIn
Otto LeoneWest Point ’91 · Former Army quarterback · Notre Dame MBA · SVP, Repipe SpecialistsEpisode 10 · West Point Football
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Tevon ConeyFormer Notre Dame & NFL linebacker · Founder, Tough Choices Foundation · co-hostEp. 1, Ep. 6 & Shorts
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Brandon VaronUniversity of Houston pre-med · Patient Discharge Initiative · production assistantEp. 8
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Dr. A.J. MenciasHand, wrist & elbow surgeon · Notre Dame ’94Ep. 7 & Shorts
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Gordon NiebylskiFormer Michigan State offensive linemanEp. 6 & Shorts
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Dr. Charles “Chip” TauntHip & knee replacement surgeon, Michigan Orthopedic Center · Notre Dame ’95Ep. 5 & Shorts
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Dr. Christopher DanneyOrthopedic surgeon, Texas Orthopedics · Duke Orthopaedics · former Texas LonghornEp. 4
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Dr. Thomas RoushSpine surgeon, Roush Spine · Duke OrthopaedicsEp. 4
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Dr. William “Billy” HarvinOrthopedic trauma surgeon, UTHealth Houston · former Rice OwlEp. 3
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Dr. Ken RegnerLive from LambeauEp. 2
Uncle BobLive from LambeauEp. 2
Steve & John JacksonPurdue / Houston OilersShorts
Cade CruzenProduction assistant · Oklahoma die-hard · SEC picks analystClips & picks shows
LinkedIn
Zach MillerTexas Longhorn superfanBonus video
William EschenbachFirst hole-in-oneBonus video

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