Lessons Learned Through Football Translate To Life

This time of year, fall, I get a chill down my spine. It isn’t because the weather is changing, it is because I can smell football in the air; the smell of hard work, sweat, victory, tears, and pride. I can hear the roar of the crowd, the band playing, and the elation after a hard fought victory. Ever since I was a young man, there hasn’t been a season I haven’t either played or coached the great game they call football. Football is different than many other sports in that it is a “true" team sport. “Individuals play the game, but teams beat the odds.” Isn’t life a team game? I can’t go back and strap the pads on again, lay a big hit, or make a great catch, but I can do one thing…continue as a coach to teach the life lessons football teaches us all.

Here are some of the life lessons I have learned from this game:

*Work Ethic: “If it were easy, wouldn’t everyone do it?” Football, like life, is a physical and mental game that beats you up at times. Coming to work every day with a solid attitude ready to get better than your competition is more than half the battle. Every day, someone is out there working harder than you to beat you. “If you can dream it, you can do IT.”

*Perseverance: Life is full of peaks and valleys. “The peaks inspire us, but the valleys mature us.” Being able to persevere through a tough loss or an injury translates to life. Nothing in life is perfect but learning how to cope and persevere with issues will ultimately make you a winner. Two great quotes that I love are: “Life is 10% what happens to you and 90% how you react.” “Always choose to rise one more time than you fall and you can’t lose.”

*Character: Most coaches say you need to be a person of strong character, but many kids don’t know what that powerful word entails. It means “what you are inside as a person and human.” Are you driven, humble, and a person of integrity? Do you have a good attitude and give to others? “Be more concerned with your character than your reputation. Your character is what what you really are while your reputation is merely what others think of you."

*Leadership: Not everyone has to be the quarterback or stand out player to be a leader. Many leaders are people of humility who do things right 100% of the time. They are people twho are willing to serve others and lead by example. “A leader leads by example, whether he intends to or not.”

*Goal Setting: What is the point of going through life if you don’t ever set goals for yourself? Do you always want to be average or do you want to be great? One of my favorite coaches always used to say to the team; “You either get better or you get worse, you never stay the same.” Setting goals allows you to “reach for the stars, if you miss, you still land on the moon.”

*Teamwork: “There is no “I” in “TEAM.” Learning how to work with others and being able to accept that you are not always right or it isn’t all about you says a lot about your character. Football is a game of sacrifice as is life.

*Respect: For other cultures, races, etc. Deep down, we are all human and want the same thing: To be happy and successful in our own rights. It is the old golden rule: “Treat others as you would want to be treated.”

*Take Nothing for Granted: There isn’t a day I don’t think about playing one more football game on Friday night with my friends. Life passes us by very quickly. Treat everyday like it is your last because life is fragile and you never know when your time is up. “Family, Faith, Focus.”

If football has taught you something that I have missed, please feel free to share. Good luck to all the teams this fall especially my hometown Dallastown Wildcats!

“Courage is the discovery that you may not win, and trying when you know you can lose.”

-RD

The Solution - Div 1-A Football Playoff

How should this be awarded?

Last week, ESPN The Magazine put a poll out to 135 Division 1-A players regarding the BCS system versus a playoff system. They were asked three questions. The first was “Do you want a playoff?”62% of the voters said they did. OK great, so we know it isn’t just the fans that want it, it is the players as well. Second question, “Would you rather have an FCS-style, 16-team playoff (no bowls) or the current system?” 70% now say they would take the BCS system over a 16 team playoff. Makes sense, we want a playoff but don’t want the bowls to be done away with because if we have a decent season, we don’t get any reward for it. Third question, “Would you rather have a college football career with three bowl trips or one playoff trip?” An amazing 77% said they would take the three bowl trips instead of the chance to be crowned a national champion or maybe re-write the history books with a big upset! Hmm….now this once confused me or should it? In an interview with the players on why they would take the three bowl trips, most of them said they got treated like kings with gift baskets and it was a nice reward for a long, tough season. I understand that, but I would be upset if I was the fifth ranked team in the nation, our goal was to get to the championship game, we lost one game because of a last second field goal and now I can’t have the opportunity to show the nation that we are true champions. That would eat at me as a person and player.

Anyways, I want to thank ESPN for their poll because it gave me new insight on what should happen in regards to division 1-A playoff football. Personally, I think the BCS does a great job getting the team rankings right. It isn’t error proof, but it works. Everyone loves the bowl games, even the players. OK, let’s keep them and the BCS ranking system. Next, let the conferences keep the way they determine their conference champion. Most have a game between the two best teams at the end which I love, some like the Big Ten don’t. OK, leave it up to the conference to decide that. I also get that the big bowl games are all about money, that doesn’t have to go away either. Here is how you solve this whole mess and make everyone happy. You keep the thirty or however bowl games there are for division 1-A. The teams that had decent seasons, you reward them with a nice trip to a sunny bowl and they can have their gift baskets; everyone except the top eight ranked teams in the nation at the end of the season. These eight will be entered into a three week playoff for the national championship. Seeding will be determined by the BCS rankings. Why eight teams? Two reasons, any more than eight, I don’t think they are worthy to be called a national champion. Secondly, it would make the season way to long and that is a huge fear of the players/coaches already. The big bowl games would just be added into the playoff. The Rose, Orange, Sugar, Fiesta. etc. Teams travel to each stadium to play and don’t tell me fans won’t travel because they will and the stadiums will be packed. Also, these top eight teams would still get their gift baskets and treated with royalty...

This system gives teams that may not be at the top of the BCS system such as TCU and Boise State an opportunity to compete for a national championship. It also eliminates the issue of the number three of forth ranked team being left out of the picture with having the same record as the second ranked team. Put the best of the best in the fire and let them dance. If the number one ranked team is worthy of that rank, they will prove it through three awesome playoff games and be crowned champion. These are my thoughts on the whole debate. Please feel free to share your opinions. Thanks for reading.

RD

The Content of Our Character: Ten Essential Virtues

This summer in one of my grad classes, my professor gave us an article on the "Content of Our Character" by Tom Lickona, Director, Center for the 4th and 5th Rs (Respect and Responsibility). As a coach and future teacher, we always want our students to exemplify "good character," but I never truly understand what that all entailed until I read Tom's article. He gives and explains ten essential virtues that should be practiced in order to be considered a person of strong character. My goal is not to analyze every detail of each virtue, mere give a sentence or two description from the article of what it is and how you can practice it as a person.

1. Wisdom - Wisdom tells us how to put other virtues into practice - when to act, how to act, and how to balance different virtues when they conflict. Wisdom in summary is utilizing good judgement. "We cannot do right unless we first see correctly." Practice wisdom by learning from others triumphs/mistakes and use them to make good choices and be a positive role model for others to follow.

2. Justice - Justice means respecting the rights of all persons no matter their color, race, ethnicity, etc. One can practice justice by simply being civil, honest, respectful, responsible, and tolerant.

3. Fortitude - Fortitude enables us to do what is right in the face of difficulty. It is the inner toughness that enables us to overcome or withstand hardship, defeats, inconvenience, and pain. Being courageous, resilient, patient, persevering, enduring, and maintaining a healthy self-confidence are all aspects of fortitude.

4. Self-Control - Self-control is the ability to govern ourselves. It enables us to control our temper, regulate our sensual appetites and passions, and pursue even legitimate pleasures in moderation. Being in control is having the ability to resist temptation, to wait, and delay gratification in the pursuit of higher distance goals.

5. Love - Love is the willingness to sacrifice for the sake of another. Being a lover is being empathetic, compassionate, kind, generous, and loyal. "Selfless love that expects nothing back is the most powerful force in the universe." It is being not only a giver, but a "humble giver."

6. Positive Attitude - "If you have a negative attitude in life, you're a burden to yourself and others. If you have a positive attitude, you're an asset to yourself and others. A positive person has hope, a sense of humor, enthusiasm, and is flexible. "Most people are about as happy as they make their minds to be." -Abraham Lincoln.

7. Hard Work - There is no substitute in life for hard work. John Wooden once said, "I challenge you to show me a single solitary individual who achieved his or her own personal greatness without a lot of hard work." Hard work includes the virtues of initiative, diligence, goal-setting, and resourcefulness.

8. Integrity - Integrity is adhering to moral principle, being faithful to moral conscience, keeping our word, and standing up for what we believe. "Integrity is different from honesty, which tells the truth to others. Integrity tells the truth to oneself."

9. Gratitude - Gratitude, like love, is not a feeling but an act of the will. We choose to be thankful, just as we choose to love. It moves us to count our everyday blessings. Take time in life to reflect and be thankful what you have, not be upset with what you don't.

10. Humility - Humility can be considered the foundation of the whole moral life. Humility is necessary for the acquisition of the other virtues because it makes us aware of our imperfections and leads us to try to become a better person. "Humility is recognizing both our inadequacies and abilities and pressing our abilities into service without attracting attention or expecting applause."

As I go through the days and try and better myself as a person, I try and practice these virtues as much as I can. They are to hard to practice all at once, but if we try and implement one at a time, not only will we become a better person, but the people around us will become stronger and happier. Please feel free to comment or share. Thanks.

-RD