Better Together with Kosta Yepifantsev

Join Kosta and his guest: Luke Ramey, Business Owner, Coach, Photographer and Entrepreneurship Coordinator at The Biz Foundry. In this episode: You've worked with The Biz Foundry from both sides: as a founder and business owner, and now as an expert helping business owners like yourself. What is an Entrepreneurship Coordinator? I know most people listening to this episode have probably driven by the Biz Foundry, or heard of someone renting an office there, but they might not know exactly what it is, or what it does. If you had to give a pitch on the Biz Foundry, what would it be? Being a small business owner is hard. Most small businesses fail within the first five years. How can The Biz Foundry help an existing small business? Find out more about The Biz Foundry: https://thebizfoundry.org/ Find out more about the Start Here Pitch Competition: Wednesday, November 18, 2026 Doors Open: 5:30pm | Pitches: 6:00pm - 8:00pm 37 Cedar ( 37 N Cedar Ave, Cookeville, TN 38501) Free/Registration Required Register Here: https://thebizfoundry.org/events/starthere2026 Better Together with Kosta Yepifantsev is a product of Morgan Franklin Media and recorded in Cookeville, TN. This episode of Better Together with Kosta Yepifantsev is made possible by our partners at Miss Sallie's Market. Find out more about Miss Sallie's Market: https://www.misssallies.com

Join Kosta and his guest: Dr. Lauren Harding, Associate Professor of Political Science at Tennessee Tech University. In this episode: For the first time in eight years, Tennesseans are picking a new governor. Early voting started last week and we have eleven days until Marsha Blackburn faces off against Jerri Green on November 3. Assuming a party candidate wins, in two weeks Tennessee will have its first female governor. Do you think Blackburn and Green as candidates are shaping how voters think about this race, or is it background noise to our greater political landscape? Thirteen Independents are running in the Governor's race for TN. Currently, polling has (I) David Hatley anywhere from 10% - 20% on favorability and (I) Lauren Pinkston anywhere from 2% - 5%. How does the Independent vote and their candidates change this race? What is an Independent voter in 2026? Democrats haven’t won a governor’s race here in two decades, and Al Gore’s 1990 re-election was the last Senate win for a Democrat in Tennessee. What has the Tennessee GOP done well to build and hold that coalition, and what would realistically have to change for a statewide race to become competitive again? Better Together with Kosta Yepifantsev is a product of Morgan Franklin Media and recorded in Cookeville, TN. Important Putnam County (2026 Federal and State Election) Dates and information: Federal and State Elections will be held on November 3rd with early voting from October 14th to October 29th. All early voting for Putnam County voters takes place at the Putnam County Election Commission on 705 County Services Dr, Cookeville, TN 38501. For more information visit on Putnam County polling locations visit: https://putnamcountytn.gov/election-commission Register to vote, check your registration or update your voter registration: https://sos.tn.gov/govotetn This episode of Better Together with Kosta Yepifantsev is made possible by our partners at Aspire Barber and Beauty Academy. Find out more about Aspire Barber and Beauty Academy: https://aspirebarberandbeauty.com

Hey, y'all! This is Kosta and today I’m here with my guest: Allison Clark, Assistant Head Coach and Recruiting Coordinator for Tennessee Tech’s Women’s Basketball Team. In this episode: You won or shared the OVC title all four years you played at Tennessee Tech. In the 25-26 season you coached through the league’s final chapter. What did the OVC mean to you, and what’s it like to be part of the staff that turns the page? Last season was a tough one by TTU standards. What did the staff and players learn from it, and what has to look different this year? Recruiting for college sports entered a whole new world since the transfer portal and NIL arrived. What does your job as recruiting coordinator look like now, and how does joining the SoCon change your pitch to players? Find out more about TTU Women's Basketball: https://www.ttusports.com/sports/wbkb/index Buy Season Tickets for TTU Women's Basketball: https://prod5.agileticketing.net/websales/pages/packagetypeselect.aspx Better Together with Kosta Yepifantsev is a product of Morgan Franklin Media and recorded in Cookeville, TN. This episode of Better Together with Kosta Yepifantsev is made possible by our partners at Miss Sallie's Market. Find out more about Miss Sallie's Market: https://www.misssallies.com

Join Kosta and his guest: Jerri Green, Memphis City Council Member, Chief Public Defender and Democratic Candidate for Governor of Tennessee. In this Episode: We’re recording this interview on Friday, October 16th, early voting has started in Tennessee, election day is 18 days away. Tennessee hasn’t elected a Democratic governor since 2006. The latest Beacon poll has you down 21 points among likely voters, 55 to 34. What do you know about this race that the polls don’t? You’ve called Marsha Blackburn a coward for refusing to debate, as a constituent, I agree. If you were up 20 points, would you debate you? What does it tell voters that the only debate on the calendar is you and two independents? Cookeville is about three hundred from Memphis, it might as well be another state. When people in Putnam County hear Memphis Politician, they hear someone who doesn’t understand Putnam County. Throughout your campaign you’ve made a point to remind voters you’ve lived in Knoxville, Nashville, and Memphis. But what do you understand about life in the Upper Cumberland, and what have rural voters taught you that you didn’t know before this campaign? Find out more about Jerri Green: https://greenforgovernor.com/about/ Better Together with Kosta Yepifantsev is a product of Morgan Franklin Media and recorded in Knoxville, TN at the University of Tennessee. Special thanks to Knox County Young Democrats, Madeline Rust, Solomon Trapp and Tennessee College Democrats. Important Putnam County (2026 Federal and State Election) Dates and information: Federal and State Elections will be held on November 3rd with early voting from October 14th to October 29th. All early voting for Putnam County voters takes place at the Putnam County Election Commission on 705 County Services Dr, Cookeville, TN 38501. For more information visit on Putnam County polling locations visit: https://putnamcountytn.gov/election-commission Register to vote, check your registration or update your voter registration: https://sos.tn.gov/govotetn This episode of Better Together with Kosta Yepifantsev is made possible by our partners at Aspire Barber and Beauty Academy. Find out more about Aspire Barber and Beauty Academy: https://aspirebarberandbeauty.com

Join Kosta and his guest: Danny Holmes, Mayor for the City of Baxter and County Commissioner for Putnam County Commission District 8. In this episode: According to the Tennessee State Data Center, Baxter is the fastest growing municipality in Tennessee with a population under 5,000 seeing a 35% increase in population from 2020 to 2025. Congratulations. What’s bringing us to Baxter? In 2024 you won your race for Baxter Mayor as a write-in candidate after resigning as Chief of Police. What did this win tell you about what kind of leadership Baxter needs and do you believe you’ve fulfilled those expectations? You’re an institution of Baxter and Putnam County. How much of the Baxter you grew up with still exists today? How do we manage growth and preserve legacy at the same time? Find out more about the City of Baxter: https://www.baxtertn.gov Better Together with Kosta Yepifantsev is a product of Morgan Franklin Media and recorded in Cookeville, TN. This episode of Better Together with Kosta Yepifantsev is made possible by our partners at Miss Sallie's Market. Find out more about Miss Sallie's Market: https://www.misssallies.com