Meet Brian Tanner | Coach Brian

We had the good fortune of connecting with Brian Tanner and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Brian, we’d love to hear more about how you thought about starting your own business?
I was in the car business for almost 20 years; I never thought I would walk away…but God! He took the car business from me and put Premier Prep on my heart. I spent the majority of my life as a worker, and it was clearly time to create my own stream of revenue. Because I was obedient to God’s instructions, I’ve been blessed to help so many young men and women get into college, through scholarship.

Truth be told, I was tired of making other people’s companies profitable. I wanted to come up with something that I could make a difference while making an honest living. I’ve always had a passion for basketball and our youth. Those two passions birthed Premier Prep.

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
Premier Prep is a 5th year, post graduate program that provides the ideal environment for student-athletes who want an additional “gap” year. During that year, students have a chance to develop their strength, skills, mentality, and body in to be in tip-top shape for the next level. Our goal is to give all of our athletes a chance to fulfill their dreams. We house, feed, and train them in their respective sport. We compete against programs that mirror ours, at showcases and schedule games against two and four-year institutions. The strategy behind that is to ensure they get within eyeshot of college coaches. Our goal is to get every kid who enters our program, an opportunity to play college ball under scholarship. We push our kids to the max, promote them as hard as we can, and get as many as we can to college.

The process is a hard, but, satisfying grind. There were a few failures along the way, but we turned those into lessons. We have spread our vision from one program to multiple and will have post graduate chapters in DFW, East Texas, SW Arkansas, Central Arkansas, Southern California, and Atlanta, both in men and women sports. We partner with individuals (directors), and empower them to create their own program within the Premier Prep umbrella. We are creating jobs, and opportunities by spreading the group. The key is to find like minded individuals who make the young men and women the priority. To show solidarity, we have one social media and one website to represent one goal… helping the kids.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
I would take them to my backyard, fire up the grill, and treat them to some of the best BBQ they’ll ever have. I would also take them around Dallas to show them all of the Black Lives Lost memorials. Then, of course, we would have to hit up a Premier Prep game, and maybe see the Mavericks, Rangers or Cowboys play… depending on the season. We would definitely have to hit North Dallas, one of those days, for some Big Mommas Chicken and Waffles and Sweet Georgia Brown’s the next. When you visit my family, you are family. We’d want them to enjoy our beautiful surroundings and DFW’s hospitality!

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I would like to shout out my wife, Beverly Tanner, my biggest support system. From day one, she believed in the vision, diving in head first to help create the brand and was instrumental in connecting me with Patrick Hunter. Pat came in and helped to make our vision grow into a reality. Without the help of Mrs. Tanner and Patrick, Premier Prep wouldn’t have been a reality. Big shout out to my guy, Will Young, he bleeds orange and black (our colors). Big thanks to everyone who has donated, purchased merchandise, attended one of our events, or even liked a photo on social media. Thank you to my kids Brandon, BJ, Blake, and Janae, who believe their dad is Superman. Also, thank you to each and every athlete who has graced the doors of Premier Prep. Thank you to the parents who entrusted us with their kid’s future. Big ups to my mother, Anita Hopkins and Pats mother, Barbara Hunter; they both have gave effortlessly to the prep. Lastly, thank you to every director, coach, or volunteer who has assisted in some capacity.

Website: premierpanthers.com

Instagram: premierprep_

Twitter: @premierprep_

Facebook: @Brian Tanner / @Premier sports group / @premierprepbball

Youtube: All In Premier