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True competitors want to perform well themselves, but great teammates genuinely celebrate when others succeed. They understand that someone else having a great game doesn't take anything away from their own success. In fact, it makes the team better.
The mark of a great teammate isn't just how they respond when they succeed. It's how genuinely they celebrate when someone else does.
That's what being part of something bigger than yourself looks like.
The mark of a great teammate isn't just how they respond when they succeed. It's how genuinely they celebrate when someone else does.
That's what being part of something bigger than yourself looks like.
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Coach Jeff Barnes retweeted
, @HammondSports Blaze Barnes 15-yard TD run. Skyhawks lead @CNathletics1 55-0; 7:51 4Q
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There’s something special about being part of something bigger than yourself. Something that asks you to put aside your own interests, commit to something greater, and understand that the journey was never just about you.
In today’s day and age, that seems to be getting harder to find and even harder to embrace.
The players, coaches, and parents who do it best eventually look back and realize that the greatest part of the experience wasn’t always the wins, the recognition, or the individual accomplishments. It was the journey.
It was the relationships built, the adversity overcome, the lessons learned, and the memories made along the way. It was learning to put the team first, sacrifice for one another, and understand that you were part of something bigger than yourself.
The real reward of team athletics isn’t just what you accomplish together. It’s who you become along the way and the people who share that journey with you.
One day, you’ll look back and realize just how special it was to be part of something bigger than yourself.
In today’s day and age, that seems to be getting harder to find and even harder to embrace.
The players, coaches, and parents who do it best eventually look back and realize that the greatest part of the experience wasn’t always the wins, the recognition, or the individual accomplishments. It was the journey.
It was the relationships built, the adversity overcome, the lessons learned, and the memories made along the way. It was learning to put the team first, sacrifice for one another, and understand that you were part of something bigger than yourself.
The real reward of team athletics isn’t just what you accomplish together. It’s who you become along the way and the people who share that journey with you.
One day, you’ll look back and realize just how special it was to be part of something bigger than yourself.
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Coach Jeff Barnes retweeted
, @HammondSports Blaze Barnes 15-yard TD run. Skyhawks lead @CNathletics1 23-0, 4:38 1Q
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Remember this: You are chosen by God, and you are part of His creation.
Leadership is hard. It requires making difficult decisions, even when those decisions are unpopular. There will be times when people judge you, criticize you, ridicule you, and hold anger in their hearts toward you.
But you cannot allow the opinions of others to distract you from the purpose God has placed on your life.
You were not called to leadership to make everyone happy. You were called to lead with integrity, stand firm in your convictions, serve others, and do what is right, even when doing what is right comes at a personal cost.
God has placed you in this position for a reason. He has equipped you for the challenges you face. He chose you.
When leadership gets lonely, when the criticism gets loud, and when the weight of difficult decisions feels heavy, remember that your worth is not determined by the approval of others.
Stay faithful. Stay humble. Stay strong. Lead with courage, love, and conviction.
You answer to a higher calling. Trust God, stand firm in your faith, and keep leading.
Leadership is hard. It requires making difficult decisions, even when those decisions are unpopular. There will be times when people judge you, criticize you, ridicule you, and hold anger in their hearts toward you.
But you cannot allow the opinions of others to distract you from the purpose God has placed on your life.
You were not called to leadership to make everyone happy. You were called to lead with integrity, stand firm in your convictions, serve others, and do what is right, even when doing what is right comes at a personal cost.
God has placed you in this position for a reason. He has equipped you for the challenges you face. He chose you.
When leadership gets lonely, when the criticism gets loud, and when the weight of difficult decisions feels heavy, remember that your worth is not determined by the approval of others.
Stay faithful. Stay humble. Stay strong. Lead with courage, love, and conviction.
You answer to a higher calling. Trust God, stand firm in your faith, and keep leading.
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Everything you do during the preseason and throughout the season is worth it when you finally reach the end. The early mornings, the long hours, the sacrifices, and the challenges all add up. Trust the process, stay disciplined, and keep working. When it all comes together, you realize every bit of it was worth it.
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Great post about recruiting. Notice that statistics still aren’t mentioned. Film, yes. Stats, no.
A lot goes into evaluating film, but three things stand out to me:
1.Effort: Do they play hard on every single snap?
2.Speed and Explosiveness: Can they run, change direction, and make plays athletically?
3.Dominance: Do they consistently dominate their position and show up on film?
Stats tell you what happened. Film helps you see how and why it happened.
Recruiting is about evaluating the player, not just the production. Coaches want to see how you compete, how you move, how you handle adversity, and whether your ability translates to the next level.
Production matters, but traits, effort, and how you show up on film tell a much bigger story.
A lot goes into evaluating film, but three things stand out to me:
1.Effort: Do they play hard on every single snap?
2.Speed and Explosiveness: Can they run, change direction, and make plays athletically?
3.Dominance: Do they consistently dominate their position and show up on film?
Stats tell you what happened. Film helps you see how and why it happened.
Recruiting is about evaluating the player, not just the production. Coaches want to see how you compete, how you move, how you handle adversity, and whether your ability translates to the next level.
Production matters, but traits, effort, and how you show up on film tell a much bigger story.
A D2 coordinator posted something that should scare every recruit reading this.
His school’s database held 50,000+ recruits for a single class.
One class.
One year.
50,000 names.
He can’t watch 50,000 highlight tapes.
Nobody can.
So he doesn’t try.
He eliminates.
Fast.
Every coach runs a checkbox system before he presses play on your film.
Checkbox 1 is size.
You can’t control height, but weight is 100% on you.
If you’re undersized for your position, every other box has to be perfect just to survive the cut.
Checkbox 2 is position need.
A coach can love your film and still cut you if he already took 3 quarterbacks in your grad year.
Zero room left.
That’s why sending 100 messages to one level is a losing bet.
Fire wide across every level.
Some staff has a hole at your spot right now.
Checkbox 3 is grades, and it’s the one most families ignore.
Below FBS, academic money stacks on top of athletic money.
A 3.5 GPA kid is cheaper to offer than a 2.5 GPA kid with the same exact film.
Talent gets you recruited.
Grades get you offered.
Aim for a 3.0 minimum, and know that 3.5+ often maxes your offer.
Check your NCAA core GPA, not your transcript number.
Core excludes PE and electives.
Floors are 2.3 for D1 and 2.2 for D2.
Checkbox 4 is your X profile.
When a coach hears your name, he searches X, not Google.
He gives you about 30 seconds to prove you’re worth the click.
A helmet photo, no measurables, and a bare Hudl link gets you cut before he ever opens your film.
Only after all of that does he reach checkbox 5: your first 5 plays.
A D1 recruiter and a director of player personnel both told me the same number.
30 seconds.
3 to 5 plays before he decides.
Order your best play first, because there is no later.
Notice the order here.
Size, position need, grades, X profile, then film.
Film is dead last.
Most recruits obsess over their highlight tape and fail every box that comes before it.
And here’s the part that flips this whole thing.
You can pass every single box and still get skipped, because he simply forgot you exist.
A coach needs to see your name about 7 times before it sticks.
One message is not a strategy.
It’s hope.
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“Mrs. Terri always told me what I needed to hear, not always what I wanted to hear.” — Nick Saban
Well said by Coach Saban. The people who truly love you and want to see you succeed are willing to tell you the truth, even when it’s uncomfortable and not what you want to hear.
Real growth comes from being willing to listen, accept hard truths, and learn from those who care enough to hold you accountable.
Surround yourself with people who love you enough to be honest, challenge you to be better, and want nothing more than to see you become the best version of yourself.
Well said by Coach Saban. The people who truly love you and want to see you succeed are willing to tell you the truth, even when it’s uncomfortable and not what you want to hear.
Real growth comes from being willing to listen, accept hard truths, and learn from those who care enough to hold you accountable.
Surround yourself with people who love you enough to be honest, challenge you to be better, and want nothing more than to see you become the best version of yourself.
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That a boy!!! Keep pounding
After a great conversation with @CoachRahl I am blessed to have received my 2nd D1 offer from Presbyterian College!! #agtg @CoachJonWheeler @thom_thebomb @JeffBarnes52 @HammondSports
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Coach Jeff Barnes retweeted
After a great conversation with @CoachRahl I am blessed to have received my 2nd D1 offer from Presbyterian College!! #agtg @CoachJonWheeler @thom_thebomb @JeffBarnes52 @HammondSports
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From personal experience one of the hardest things to do is coach your own child in a high school varsity sport.
As a parent, your natural instinct is to advocate for your child. But as a coach, your responsibility is to make the best decision for the team.
Sometimes you find yourself being harder on your own child because you are trying to avoid the perception that you are showing favoritism. Other times, you have to bite your tongue when another coach is coaching your child hard.
One thing I have learned is that you have to have a standard for every athlete, and your own child cannot be held to a different standard.
You have to learn to be the coach on the field and Dad at home. You have to trust the standard, trust the program, and trust the coaches around you.
And if you aren’t able to separate being the coach from being the parent, then you probably need to choose being the parent.
Because perception will always be there about favoritism. The key is making sure your decisions are driven by the standard of the program, not by the fact that your child is wearing the uniform.
As a parent, your natural instinct is to advocate for your child. But as a coach, your responsibility is to make the best decision for the team.
Sometimes you find yourself being harder on your own child because you are trying to avoid the perception that you are showing favoritism. Other times, you have to bite your tongue when another coach is coaching your child hard.
One thing I have learned is that you have to have a standard for every athlete, and your own child cannot be held to a different standard.
You have to learn to be the coach on the field and Dad at home. You have to trust the standard, trust the program, and trust the coaches around you.
And if you aren’t able to separate being the coach from being the parent, then you probably need to choose being the parent.
Because perception will always be there about favoritism. The key is making sure your decisions are driven by the standard of the program, not by the fact that your child is wearing the uniform.
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Just had a student-athlete receive his second college scholarship offer.
Our head coach spoke with the college coach, and these were the questions they asked:
• How is his home life?
• How are his academics?
• How is he in the weight room?
• Is he coachable?
• Does he pick up on concepts?
• Are his parents a problem?
• Is he a complainer?
• Does he run track?
• What is his legitimate size?
Not one question about his stats.
Not a single one.
College coaches are evaluating the whole person.
Character. Family. Academics. Work ethic. Coachability. Football IQ. Physical development. Attitude.
The scoreboard matters. The film matters. The production matters.
But when a college coach is deciding whether they want to invest in a young man for the next four years, who he is matters just as much as what he does on Friday night.
That’s why we talk so much about building the person, not just the player.
The game may get you noticed. Your character determines what happens next.
@CoachJonWheeler
Our head coach spoke with the college coach, and these were the questions they asked:
• How is his home life?
• How are his academics?
• How is he in the weight room?
• Is he coachable?
• Does he pick up on concepts?
• Are his parents a problem?
• Is he a complainer?
• Does he run track?
• What is his legitimate size?
Not one question about his stats.
Not a single one.
College coaches are evaluating the whole person.
Character. Family. Academics. Work ethic. Coachability. Football IQ. Physical development. Attitude.
The scoreboard matters. The film matters. The production matters.
But when a college coach is deciding whether they want to invest in a young man for the next four years, who he is matters just as much as what he does on Friday night.
That’s why we talk so much about building the person, not just the player.
The game may get you noticed. Your character determines what happens next.
@CoachJonWheeler
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One of the realities of being an Athletic Director is that you encounter plenty of people who want to be the chief, but not everyone wants to accept the responsibility that comes with being one.
People are often quick to have opinions about how things should be done, what should change, or what they would do differently. But when you give them the opportunity to step up, take ownership, make decisions, and be accountable for the outcome, the conversation can change quickly.
Leadership is more than having an opinion.
Leadership is stepping forward when there is an opportunity to lead. It is accepting responsibility when things do not go as planned. It is making decisions when there is no perfect answer. And it is being willing to do the work that comes with the title.
If you want to be the chief, you have to be willing to carry the responsibility that comes with being the chief.
People are often quick to have opinions about how things should be done, what should change, or what they would do differently. But when you give them the opportunity to step up, take ownership, make decisions, and be accountable for the outcome, the conversation can change quickly.
Leadership is more than having an opinion.
Leadership is stepping forward when there is an opportunity to lead. It is accepting responsibility when things do not go as planned. It is making decisions when there is no perfect answer. And it is being willing to do the work that comes with the title.
If you want to be the chief, you have to be willing to carry the responsibility that comes with being the chief.
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Servant leadership. That’s what the great ones do!!!
Baylor leads MBA 38-3 at the half. DGG has eight carries for 81 yards and two TDs (also had a 70-yard TD called back by penalty) and helps carry the team’s water bottles into the locker room…
Keegan Croucher is 13 of 17 for 182 yards and two TDs. Croucher also has a 4-yard eps
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As an AD, I am seeing the days of “because I said so” are coming to an end.
Athletes & parents want to know why and they should.
Good programs have standards. Coaches communicate those standards, athletes are held accountable, and parents should talk with their athlete before approaching the coach.
But accountability goes both ways.
Coaches can make bad decisions. They can be inconsistent. They can fail to communicate. When that happens repeatedly, trust begins to crack.
Don’t treat everyone the same. Treat everyone fairly.
Every athlete and every situation is different. Fairness isn’t identical treatment, it’s having a standard, applying it with consistency and context, and being able to explain the why.
Standards create accountability. Communication creates understanding. Consistency creates trust. Fairness creates credibility.
Athletes & parents want to know why and they should.
Good programs have standards. Coaches communicate those standards, athletes are held accountable, and parents should talk with their athlete before approaching the coach.
But accountability goes both ways.
Coaches can make bad decisions. They can be inconsistent. They can fail to communicate. When that happens repeatedly, trust begins to crack.
Don’t treat everyone the same. Treat everyone fairly.
Every athlete and every situation is different. Fairness isn’t identical treatment, it’s having a standard, applying it with consistency and context, and being able to explain the why.
Standards create accountability. Communication creates understanding. Consistency creates trust. Fairness creates credibility.
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