What happens when a longtime college football coach leaves the sidelines and jumps into an industry he knows almost nothing about?
In this episode of Growth Without Referrals, Mark Ferguson sits down with Mark Elder, owner of All Side Roofing & Restoration, to talk about his unconventional transition from college football coaching to entrepreneurship.
After more than 20 years in coaching—including stops at Michigan, Central Michigan, Cincinnati, Tennessee, and four years as a head coach at Eastern Kentucky—Mark found himself at a crossroads. Rather than uproot his family again and continue the coaching cycle, he chose a completely different path: buying a roofing and exterior-services company.
Mark shares what leadership lessons transferred from football into business, what didn't, and what he has learned by entering an established industry as an outsider.
The conversation also explores the realities of business ownership that often don't make it onto social media—the mistakes, sleepless nights, emotional highs and lows, and constant learning that come with building something new.
Mark also explains why he believes great leaders should strive to surround themselves with people who know more than they do, why referrals alone aren't enough to create predictable growth, and how the way customers find businesses is rapidly changing.
If you're a business owner, entrepreneur, or leader navigating a new chapter, this conversation offers a refreshingly candid look at what it really takes to learn, adapt, and lead through uncertainty.
In This Episode, You'll Learn
- Why Mark Elder left a 20+ year college football coaching career for entrepreneurship
- How coaching and business leadership overlap
- Why recruiting the right people matters as much in business as it does in sports
- The advantages—and disadvantages—of entering an industry as an outsider
- Why learning hard lessons can ultimately make you a stronger leader
- Why referrals are valuable but difficult to build a predictable business around
- How digital marketing and AI are changing the way customers discover companies
- Why successful leaders should never assume they have all the answers
- The importance of surrounding yourself with people who are stronger than you in their areas of expertise
- The emotional highs and lows of learning a new business in real time
About Mark Elder
Mark Elder is the owner of All Side Roofing & Restoration, a Southwest Ohio company specializing in roofing, siding, gutters, and exterior home services.
Before entering the home-services industry, Mark spent more than 20 years coaching college football, including experience at Michigan, Central Michigan, Cincinnati, Tennessee, and Eastern Kentucky, where he served as head football coach.
Today, he applies many of the leadership principles he learned in athletics to building a growing business, developing people, and creating a strong team culture.
Connect with Mark Elder
About Growth Without Referrals
Growth Without Referrals explores how business owners and leaders build predictable, scalable growth without depending exclusively on word of mouth and referrals.
Host Mark Ferguson sits down with entrepreneurs, executives, and business leaders to discuss growth, leadership, sales, marketing, technology, and the lessons learned along the way.
Email: mark.ferguson@prestige-services-group.com