Published 10/30/08
One of the watershed moments in the development of a team, no matter what the sport, is when players can make the connection between what the coach is telling them and what’s happening on the field or court. It’s sort of a “Eureka, I found it!” moment, when things become much clearer.
I remember those moments from when I participated in sports. My football coach would tell us to read our keys over and over, and we’d just answer “Yes, sir” without really knowing why. Then one day, we’d read the keys and make the play. A light bulb would go on, and that realization would open up a whole range of new possibilities.
It happens in other sports as well. I can’t remember how many times I heard the term “pick and roll” before I finally did it, and instantly realized what it meant. I learned what a press breaker was when I saw it break a press and understood why.
In baseball, I’d always heard about studying a pitcher, but the lesson didn’t sink in until I actually did it. An opposing pitcher had tossed a no-hitter against us earlier that season, but I got a hit off him during my first at-bat.
To reach that epiphany, it’s important to face your failures and analzye what you need to do to prevent them from happening again.
Those moments don’t seem to be happening like they should. When I overhear coaches talking to players, too often the players have some kind of argument, excuse or explanation. Admitting mistakes and taking responsibility is now something to be avoided.
That’s one of the reasons it’s important to play against competitors who are as good or better than you are. If you’re constantly playing weaker teams, you could be making many mistakes, but the weakness of your opponent hides them. At those times, it’s important for a coach to keep things in perspective and, more importantly, enable his players to do the same.
It’s also important for fans to do so. Too often, I see fans reveling in runaway victories and moaning when their team is losing. The team is probably playing the same way in both games — it’s the opponent making the difference. True fans recognize which skills their team needs to work on, what the opponent is doing better and how to beat them.
I see some dominant programs over the course of a season, and the big difference is attitude. Just recently I saw Fort Sumner, who has won three consecutive Class A football championships, beat up on McCurdy School.
Note that Fort Sumner is one of the smallest Class A schools in the state. They have an average enrollment of fewer than 100 students. And yet they could beat most of the Class AAA teams in the state, and more than a few of the Class AAAA teams. They win because they are Fort Sumner.
Too often, their opponents believe they lost because they were playing Fort Sumner. That’s just a convenient way out. The attitude should be, ‘We lost because they did this better, and we need to do that better to beat them.’
I guess the big question a team, coach or player should be asking is, ”What do I need to do to be like Fort Sumner?”