What do fantasy football and marriage ministry have in common? They seem like an unlikely pairing. Yet it was noticing her husband, Clorenzo’s, passion for his fantasy football team (which seemed to eclipse his passion for their marriage.) that motivated marriage coach Leslie Griffin, Ph.D., to re-evaluate her own marriage and spurred the creation of Marriage Champs. She describes Marriage Champs as “a faith-driven lifestyle brand for growth-minded couples that want to maintain (or regain) a happy, healthy marriage.”

After 10 years of marriage, Leslie realized that her marriage was faltering. She was dedicated to her work teaching premarital and parenting classes and coordinating a church couples ministry. She was trained in couples communication – even earning her doctorate degree in Family Studies from Texas Women’s University in Fort Worth – yet she realized things were a little shaky at home. And couples in crisis kept coming to her for help. She determined she needed to be more proactive – both at home and with the couples she was serving.

The lightbulb went off watching her husband’s fantasy football excitement and realizing how much he responded to athletics. Once Leslie started positioning marriage skills building as “teamwork” and framing conversations in sports metaphors, he started to respond. As their marriage turned around, the Griffins were inspired to launch Marriage Champs and share the strategies that worked for them.

“We needed to see ourselves as teammates and not rivals. We needed to view our challenges as opportunities for growth. We needed a better understanding of one another and a greater appreciation for our individual differences and collective strengths. We needed to work together to get back to a place of mutual satisfaction and enjoyment. We needed to develop our communication and problem-solving skills and we needed a plan/strategy to help us get there. We needed guidance and support to make sure we could maintain our progress and with our busy schedules, we needed a convenient way to do it.” She wrote on her website, Marriagechamps.com.

Just a quick glance at the site reveals its sports theme and language designed to appeal to men who are often less interested in talking about “feelings and relationships.” “We wanted something wives could present to their husbands that would be of interest to them,” Leslie said. “Couples wait until there’s a problem before reaching out for support. Coaching is designed to be proactive and preventive.”

Prominently displayed on the site is a High Five Assessment – a free marriage quiz that helps couples get a general idea of how “fit” their marriage is based on a High Five Framework. The assessment populates 10 questions from each of the five pillars of the Marriage Champs framework: spiritual growth, passion, intimacy, teamwork and commitment. The program automatically adds up the numbers and emails a PDF that shows the total score, implications and follow up steps. Leslie recommends couples take the assessment individually, then compare their results.

The High Five assessment is designed to help couples narrow their focus and identify strengths and growth areas. Do they have what Leslie calls a “gap” due to lack of skill or lack of will? Do they not have the ability or knowledge to make a needed change? Or do they know what to do but are not motivated to do it? Leslie can coach couples accordingly to help them close either a “will” or a “skill” gap.

“No matter where you are, there’s something you can do to level up,” Leslie said. “And if your score is low, you need a comeback. A lot of couples feel overwhelmed. They come in for coaching with a list of things that are wrong and start describing the symptoms. They have the same argument over and over again because they haven’t identified their gap.

Leslie has found the five framework areas to be necessary for couples to experience love and build their marriage on a firm foundation– starting with strong spiritual health. “That’s your anchor. Praying together daily, actively participating in church,” she said. “If scores are good, don’t let up – keep pressing. It’s like having a lead in a game, the minute you get comfortable, the other team’s going to come back and take your lead. You can’t take your foot off the gas.”

One way couples can build into their marriage is to join Winner’s Circle by Marriage Champs, “an exclusive membership community for proactive, faith-driven couples who want to continue to level-up. It’s like having a gym membership for your marriage,” she wrote.

“When you join, you’ll get immediate, 24/7 access to our community platform where you can take advantage of our skills and drills training, on-demand courses, coaching calls, couples challenges, squad challenges, local meetups, member-only events and so much more! We even have a date night concierge to keep things fresh, flirty and fun!” as described on the website.

“Longevity requires intentional effort, skill, will, strategy and execution; none of which are instinctive. If you want to improve your odds of winning at love, you need access and opportunity to grow.”

Leslie was inspired to create the Winners Circle by feedback of couples she’s coached previously – especially those whose marriages were in trouble. When asked what would have helped them, many replied they wished they had done maintenance work. They had put their marriages on cruise control and before they knew it, they were in a bad place. They shared it would have helped if they’d been in a community that was proactive and engaging.

“You don’t have to be in a bad marriage for it to be better. Have a growth mindset,” Leslie said. “You eat right and go to the gym to maintain your physical health. The same idea works with marriage. Something will inevitably happen to challenge your stability. The enemy is always busy trying to find ways to exploit your gaps. You are on the same team. Shore up the gaps with offense and defense.”

The Winner’s Circle offers:

🙏 Faith Foundations – Deepen your relationship with God, self and others.

🏠 Family-Life Balance – Tackle life’s ups and downs as a united front.

💑 Intimacy Incubator – Forge a stronger spiritual, physical and emotional connection.

🗣️ Communication Station – Practice strategies for better communication and learn to resolve conflicts quickly.

🎓 Expert Guidance – Exclusive courses, content and coaching led by Dr. Leslie Griffin and a network of professionals.

🍽️ClutchDater – When you need big time plans to impress, but without the stress!

🥰Date Night Concierge – To help you keep things fresh, flirty and fun 😜!

Other benefits: Spot coaching to give immediate on-demand support. Couples can bypass the wait for a training or workshop at church or a counseling appointment.

For the couple that is more interested in pursuing marriage enrichment in the privacy of their own home, Leslie published Legendary Love: A Champion’s Guide to Winning at Marriage: 1st Quarter in 2019. The eight-session workbook includes Adopting a Team Mindset – what it looks like and how to practically implement a marriage game plan.

In 2024 Marriage Champs hosted a Marriage Honors Awards Ceremony honoring couples nominated as inspirational by someone within their circles of influence. Highlights of the black-tie event were the videos of the children (young or adult) testifying how their parents’ healthy marriage influenced them.

The Marriage Champs website also includes a blog with titles like “Tackling Insecurities” or “Recovering from a Financial Fumble.” The latter includes a notorious early-career gaffe by Hall of Fame and nine-time Pro-Bowl NFL running back Walter Payton. “Every fumble is recoverable – even financial ones,” Leslie wrote. “If you’ve made a financial mistake, here is how you can dust yourself off and get back in the financial game.”

And Marriage Champs posts date night ideas like “Major League Dates on a Minor League Budget.”

Marriage Champs will soon roll out a podcast of marriage coaching tips. They hope to start interviewing athletes/couples who are strong in their faith to explain how what they learned in sports translates to being part of a team in marriage.

Marriage Champs also plans to revamp a marriage ministry leader training. In the past, the organization has hosted a summit that addresses challenges of establishing and maintaining a thriving marriage ministry. They’ve discussed how to serve couples in a way that is impactful, what happens if a marriage group runs into a high-needs couple, and especially if volunteers run the program. Leslie hopes to be able to resume partnering with leaders in the future.

Coming up: Leslie is releasing a book in 2025 titled, The Making of a Marriage Champ – How Faith, Failure and Fantasy Football is Helping Christian Couples Succeed at Love. Keep an eye out for this memoir-meets-skills-training to learn more about the Griffins and their journey helping couples be “Rooted in Christ. Rallied by Community. Fueled by Fun!”