Softball Creates a Lesson for Life

I played softball in high school and our team was pretty talented. We had been playing well all season and we hadn’t lost a game yet. We had a really tough game coming up against our biggest rival, and they were also undefeated. Everyone on the team knew how important this game was and so we all committed to working hard and training specifically for this game. We gave 100% at every practice, we stayed after the coach left to work on our weaknesses, and we encouraged our teammates to push themselves. Things were going great at practice: we looked better than we ever had before and yet everyone was still having fun. We felt pretty good about the upcoming game,
When game day finally approached, we were all a little nervous but we felt confident with what we had done to prepare. And we looked great during the game: our pitcher was dead on, our outfielders didn’t miss a ball, and our infielders and catcher were making some great plays. We were doing a great job of preventing the other team from scoring, but they were holding us back as well. By the end of the eighth inning, neither team had scored a single run and everyone was getting restless. We were up to bat first: no dice. A ground ball, a strikeout, and a fly ball. We knew we would have to hold them to have any chance of winning and preserving our perfect record. First batter up, and a strikeout. One down. Second batter up and she nails it out of the park on the first swing. We were heartbroken: we had been so close to a victory here, but not close enough. We were all devastated, but our coach helped us realize that we had done everything we could have to prepare, and that we all played an amazing game. She told us it wasn’t any one person’s fault that we had lost: we win as a team and we lose as a team. This experience really helped me understand how important it is to play for your team, rather than just for yourself.
Kate Riley
Social Foundations of Coaching
ND 2012

A Special Kind of Sport

Most young athletes dream of playing for their favorite college or professional team. Yet these dreams are often accompanied by the pressures of making them come true. For some these pressures can create passion and lead to success, but for many they transform a fun game into a stressful fixation.
What if we could take that pressure out of a sport? Then we would have rugby. There are no professional rugby players in the US, and the most competitive college teams do not have a single scholarship athlete. That is not to say that rugby is not competitive. Rugby will become an Olympic sport in 2016, and every year high school, college and senior teams travel all over the country to compete for national titles.
Ask any rugby player why they play and you will get the same answer. They play because it is fun. They love the sport and the incredible friendships they form with their teammates. At every level, in every city, rugby teams form a unique community that cannot be found anywhere else. It is hard to tell what makes rugby teams so special. Some people attribute it to the types of people who play rugby. You might have to be a little crazy to play an 80 minute, full contact game with little to no padding in every conceivable condition: from driving rain storms to 100 degree heat. Maybe it is that craziness that bonds us. However, I think there is something more. When I step out on the rugby field there are not 80,000 adoring fans, there is no money to be made and my coach’s livelihood does not depend on how I perform. Instead I get to spend my day playing the sport I love with 14 of my best friends; girls who just like me are playing for love of the game. I do not have to worry about where I will be in a few years or if I am good enough to play professionally. When I play rugby, I just get to have fun.
Margot DeBot
Notre Dame ‘12
Social Foundations of Coaching

Flow in Sport

In our second meeting of our Social Foundations of Coaching class we discussed the article Flow in Sports by Susan A. Jackson and Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi. This article goes in depth into a state of mind that many athletes work and train to achieve in a time of competition. The authors describe the flow through nine different characteristics, challenge-skills balance, action-awareness merging, clear goals, unambiguous feedback, concentration on the task at hand, sense of control, loss of self-consciousness, transformation of time, and autotelic experience. These are the characteristics athletes have described experiencing while feeling as though they are in a state of flow during competition. To be in a state of flow an athlete does not have to experience all of these characteristics at once, because flow is different for every athlete, but often multiple forms of these characteristics are experienced by the athlete when in his or her own flow.
It is a goal of nearly all athletes to get themselves in a state of flow, groove, rhythm, or whatever they may refer to it as. But as the article explains it takes a nearly perfect set of circumstances to allow an athlete the opportunity to reach this level. The authors point out that a combination of challenges and skills need to be correct for the opportunity to exist. The area where the skills and challenges of the competition and athlete intersect must be opportune for flow to be achieved. If the challenge is too high or the skills of the athlete are too low in comparison to the opponent then the athlete will be unable to reach flow, because he or she will simply be out matched. Also, if the challenge is too low or the athlete is too far superior then flow will not be reached because the competition will not be enough to keep the focus of the player or athlete. However, when everything lines up and flow is achieved then that athlete will have been able to get to that ultimate level he or she has worked to reach.
Scott Martin, ND 2012
Social Foundations of Coaching
Notre Dame

Sport Injury - Lessons Learned

It was my senior year in high school, my last year playing soccer with my friends and my first playing with my brother who was a freshman. When winter rolled around, a fellow senior teammate and I had been declared captains. We decided that this year would be different. We were being moved up to a much more competitive division, and so we knew we need to work that much harder. We started conditioning workouts a month before pre-season workouts were scheduled to begin. It was the largest class of senior starters the school had ever had. We had one ambition, winning the state title. If we were going to win, leadership was going to be a major factor. The team had a meeting and we decided that this year was going to be different.
Personally, it was an important year for me. Not only was it my final season, but I had committed to play at the University of Notre Dame. My future coaches expected results. They expected me to have a very impressive senior season, to walk out on top. I had every intention of performing beyond any level I had previously. I was training and conditioning all winter for the spring season. I knew this was not only an important season for the team but for me as well. Because I played a primary role on the team, I knew that the quality of my season would fluctuate with the team’s success. I had to polish every aspect of my game before making the trip to South Bend later that year.
The season started, and the team was hot. We were winning at ease, dominating teams we should have and beating teams we weren’t expected to. It felt like “one of those years.”
I’ll fast forward 3 games into the season. We were playing our rival high school, Maryville. Twenty minutes into the game, we found ourselves sitting in a 0-2 hole. We came out flat, and lacked the intensity that we needed to make this a great game. In the 25th minute one of my shots found its way to the back of the net, 2-1. We went into halftime with momentum. We were pumped because we knew the game would end with us being the victors. Both teams came out of the locker rooms ready to play. It was one of the most intense, dirty, and fought for games I had ever played in. In the 78th minute I ran onto a beautiful through ball played by the other co-captain. I go to strike the ball to tie the game up. The next thing I hear is a pop. I had been slide tackled by the goalie. The first thing I though was, “that’s a penalty kick.” I was screaming at the referee. I tried to get up and then I felt an enormous amount of pain as I tried to put pressure on my left leg. It was agonizing. I screamed for the trainer. I remembered the pop that I heard and I saw flashes of my career at Notre Dame coming to an end before they had gotten started.
The trainer runs over and asks what hurt. I yelled, “obviously the leg I’m clutching!!” She examines it on the field and made the diagnosis that it is most likely a bone bruise. Hearing the great news I try to get up to continue on with the game. Again I feel the pain and sit back down. My coach demands that I sit out for the rest of the game.
As my dad and school minister walk me to the sideline, I look to see that my brother was cursing at the referee for not giving the goalie a red card. My brother therefore receives a yellow card for dissent. He is emotionally distressed to see that I am in serious pain and to not know the proper diagnosis of the injury. Once at the sideline a parent doctor from the other team runs to the sideline to examine my leg. He too feels it is only a bone bruise but recommends that I go get an x-ray to be sure. The game ends with us losing 3-2. The team was devastated, but they were much more concerned with my leg. Our rival school knew of my future at Notre Dame. After the game they were screaming at their own goalie for injuring me. They all came over to shake my hand and wish me the best. The pop was still resonating in my mind.
We go to the hospital to find that I indeed fractured my tibia all the way through the bone. I was to be put in a cast up to my hip for 3 months, which went past the time I was to report at Notre Dame. I received countless texts and emails containing prayers and sympathy. It didn’t matter to me. My whole season was shot and maybe even my future career. Fortunately I recovered. It took a lot of hard work, but I made it back.
The point of this story is that speed bumps are put in the way of our ultimate goal, but they can be overcome. They may slow us down a bit, but we can still reach our destination.
Luke Mishu
ND Soccer
Social Foundations of Coaching

Soccer - an analysis of the system

Soccer, the most popular sport in the entire world, is in a state of disarray. A large majority of the teams in the Barclays Premier League, Europe’s most profitable league soccer league, are in over $75 million of debt. Currently only 4 of the 20 teams in England’s top tier of football are making a profit, and this figure is projected to get worse with the current market. Some teams are in such a terrible state that even if the team had no expenses they would be still be unable to pay off their debts for 3 to 5 years. With teams being so uninterested in addressing their financial issues, how are they going to continue to operate with their current expenses?
One of the main reasons why so many clubs are in debt is player transfers. European football does not trade players in the same way teams in the United States do. They rarely make trades or have free agents to buy. For the most part teams buy and sell players. In this buying market the clubs with larger revenues buy and the ones with smaller revenues sell. This results in the top teams buying established players for large sums of money and the smaller teams having to sell their star players and find younger players to be able to afford running their club. This creates a huge gulf in skill between the historically great teams and the newly established teams.
This system creates a never-ending cycle of teams needing to win to afford the players to continue to win and increase their revenues. The best teams in Europe (the top 4 in England) play in the European Champions League with additional revenues of around $40 million for just taking part in the competition. This large amount of money is very attractive and spurs the best teams to continue winning. For the worse teams, motivation comes in another form. If a team falls to one of the bottom three places in the league, they get relegated from their current league into the one below them. This league drop comes at a cost of nearly $50 million in revenue due to sponsorship, television revenue, and ticket sale losses. Therefore every team must stay competitive; otherwise they will have to sell off their best players because they will be unable to afford their high wages. No team wants to find itself in that situation so they are compelled to continually reinvest, even if they don’t have the means to do so.
This is where the problem lies. For a team to be competitive they must have a significant payroll, but if they are not good enough and get relegated they are trapped in a financial model that they cannot sustain. Their profits shrink while still have to pay for their players, usually resulting in significant debt. Therefore, to avoid this fate, owners choose to invest in their teams with both cash and loans. The problem with that is that they have been priced out of the market. A few ultra rich owners have come out with their own cash and significantly changed the wage structure and the money it costs to buy players. Their insane spending habits have let to an inflated transfer market and players expecting wages that are unrealistic. Both Chelsea and Manchester City of the Barclays Premier League are spending roughly $40 million per year on player transfers with this number looking to rise substantially because of the rising market value of players. Keep in mind these enormous sums do not include player salaries. These spending splurges make it difficult for other clubs to compete when they don’t have an owner who has a personal net worth of over $7 billion. The result is that lesser teams choose to take out loans to afford the players to make them competitive, resulting in the debt problems throughout soccer.
Manchester City is the perfect example of a team to show the flaws of the current system. They have an owner who has invested over $500 million over the past 2 years. They have players costing over $35 million that ride the bench and never play for the team. When the team doesn’t win, they just throw money at new players who they believe can play even better. They have a wage bill that exceeds the total revenue they bring in. Their seemingly unlimited spending has also driven up player costs for other perspective teams. In short, Manchester City is the definition of a team that is not at all sustainable and is also ruining the game. This past year they spent over $60 million for a single player.
On the other hand, Arsenal is a club in the Barclays Premier League that tries to do things right. They are the only team who consistently makes the European Champions League, has a wage bill less than one third of their total revenue, and has posted consecutive years of net profit. Their team strategy is one of youth. They buy the best young players when they are inexperienced and give them the opportunity to play every week, a rare occurrence for other top teams.
This strategy has been chided, mostly from those critics who believe that they will never win a trophy because their team lacks the experience and leadership needed to win. This has been true for the past 6 years in which Arsenal have failed to a trophy. The fans see these shortcomings and plead for a reinvestment of those earnings. The fans feel they need to pay for players with experience and leadership because Arsenal needs to start winning it all. Their manager went into the transfer market this summer to try to find those key players who he believed would put Arsenal over the edge. To his dismay, he found the market to be overpriced and unrealistic for a financially responsible club, returning with a few players under 20 years of age and a few former stars, with a history of injuries. This did little to comfort the fans, especially after players like up and coming midfield starlet Samir Nasri held the club for ransom and refused to sign a new contract. (He ended up at Manchester City for what was reported as double the salary Arsenal offered)
Arsenal’s fans, however, must be realistic. Every team cannot afford to spend the $80, $65, and $55 million Manchester City, Chelsea, and Manchester United respectively can and did this off-season. They are in a position to be both competitive and fiscally responsible, a situation most clubs would love to have. Spending an average of $1.5 million a year on transfers is much more respectable and impressive considering the $15 million other clubs in the top four of the Barclays Premier League choose to spend every year.
This large financial gap is why Arsenal consistently finds themselves punching above their weight. A team whose opening day lineup had 2 players over the age of 24 simply cannot compete with proven superstars in their prime. The past 6 years have shown that although they can be competitive, they just don’t have the resources to win it all. Despite their lack of league titles, I stand by Arsenal and their insistence to not be bullied into pouring money into an inflated and ridiculous transfer market. By creating a model that allows them to compete and be fiscally responsible, their approach is to be admired even if they do struggle to put together a championship team consistently.
Soccer needs to find a way to make their teams more accountable and create a certain element of equity in their league. If this continues, only be a handful of teams will be in competition for the title, and most of those teams will be unable to pay their bills. I am aware that UEFA (Union of European Football Associations) is starting to make a stand with financial fair play regulations, but it will not stop teams like Manchester City finding ways around the rules. They will find ways to put their owners money onto the playing field, and no team will be able to compete without incurring large amounts of debt. To remedy this, an independent accounting firm should be employed to access their accounts and ensure that teams aren’t spending money that they’re not making or going to make in the very near future. Otherwise, the soccer landscape will soon be filled with teams incurring insurmountable amounts of debt with no true way to address the issue.
Matthew Cirillo
Social Foundations of Coaching Class
University of Notre Dame Class of 2012

Life Lessons Through Sport

Based off of personal experience and those of other athletes I have encountered, I have learned a variety of things through sport. At a young age, I was very active and involved in a variety of activities. By being engaged in multiple sports, it allowed me to be taught by different coaches, interact with an array of athletes, and discover myself through various situations.

As an adolescent the first sport I played was soccer. Since I was still young, I enjoyed playing soccer just to run around with my friends and have my parents cheer me on from the sideline. This physical activity gave me an energy release, acted as a confidence booster and was the beginning of my athletic career. As strange as it may sound, playing on my 5th grade soccer team is what ultimately led me to where I am today. It was my soccer coach who suggested I try out for his basketball team because of how tall and lean I was at a young age. This is where I initially learnt to embrace and understand the phrase “never give up”. When I first began playing basketball it was very intimidating because I had no idea how to play. In addition to beginning this new sport, the first team I joined was full of very talented players that had been playing since they first began to walk. At times, I felt discouraged because I could just play soccer, a sport I was good at, instead of being uncomfortable engaging in a sport I was terrible at. But to this day, I still remember coming home from each practice and my father reassuring me that I had the ability to do anything as long as I put my mind to it. I am very thankful to have such motivational parents that were able to help me develop a sense or urgency and drive at such a young age.

"The ultimate measure of a human being is not where they stand in moments of comfort and convenience, but where they stand at times of challenge and controversy."-Martin Luther King Jr.

I also believe the reason I have enjoyed playing basketball so much is because of the amazing people I have been so blessed to meet. From representing my country by playing on the Olympic team to travelling to over 10 different countries, basketball has opened many doors for me to grow as an athlete and a human being. With these many experiences I have learnt: “to whom much is given, much shall be required” (Luke 12:48). To me, basketball has expanded from a mere physical activity to a game I love and live for. A failure to take full advantage of these opportunities would be a waste of God’s given talents. I try to remember that each day is a blessing and because tomorrow is never guaranteed to anyone I must live today to the fullest. As long as I continue to look to improve with each occasion and to remain true to myself, the opportunities are endless.

“God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can and wisdom to know the difference.”
-Reinhold Niebuhr

Natalie Achonwa, ND '2014
Social Foundations of Coaching
ND Women's Basketball

Little League Baseball Fun and Victory

Everyone has some moment in their lives that they remember and hold in great importance, yet to other people these memories may not seem that important. I will never forget my minor league baseball team when I was 9 years old. When you are a kid sports tend to be far more important than most other things in life. I have always been a very competitive person and this was true this season. We entered the season with dreams of winning the regular season championship. We were all new to the league and we all felt like we had just as good of a shot as anyone of winning. Then the games started.
We got destroyed with great regularity. We realized that we just were not as good as we had hoped. We lost almost every single game and they were not even close. We were focused all season on winning and if we lost we thought we failed. As the end of the season tournament started to approach we realized that we only had a few games left and that we just wanted to have as much fun as possible. What followed was like a cheesy Hollywood movie. We ended up running the table and winning the double elimination tournament undefeated. It was not that we practiced more and got better but instead that we just wanted to have fun. And, as any baseball player can attest to, having the right mentality is vital to success. We played carefree, wanting to do our best, but if we did not we shrugged it off and kept on going. I cannot say that we stopped caring about winning but instead that it was no longer the most important aspect of the game. It has showed me that winning should not be the focus and making sports fun should be. Sport can be a beautiful thing as long as we do not ruin it with what we impose on it.
Thomas Kostielney, ND Class of 2012
Social Foundations of Coaching

Special Olympics at Notre Dame

As a varsity athlete at the University of Notre Dame, I am constantly reminded to “Play Like a Champion Today.” As a student in professor Clark Power’s ethics class, I am obliged to question the meaning of such a credo. Too often, the definition of “Champion” is reduced to a mentality of winning at all cost and lacks any consideration of the type of character that merits such a title. Fortunately, the work of the Play Like a Champion Today program is replacing this conception with one that emphasizes an athlete’s physical, mental, social, moral and spiritual growth. While Special Olympics Notre Dame endeavors to promote similar values, we seek also to inspire a more fundamental inquiry. Namely, who should have the opportunity to be a “Champion?”
For the past 40 years, Special Olympics has extended people with intellectual disability the opportunity to engage in sports training and competition. Born of a single event involving athletes from two countries, Special Olympics competition is now found in over 180 countries with over 3 million athletes and 700,000+ volunteers. The most recent 20 years, have brought a growing shift in the sports engagement opportunities of Special Olympics. In addition to traditional competition and training strictly for people with intellectual disability, Special Olympics has enriched its offerings to include sport engagement involving people without intellectual disability not as coaches or support volunteers, but as teammates. In 2009, Special Olympics Unified Sports engaged 324,000 athletes with and without intellectual disabilities as teammates in countries around the world.
The effort now is to bring the power and fun of Unified Sports to university and college campuses. Last year, Special Olympics Notre Dame held the first collegiate unified event in the form of soccer game, in which two teams of athletes with and without intellectual disability participated in four weeks of practice and a game in the Notre Dame soccer stadium. The success of this game has motivated Special Olympics Notre Dame to present this model to colleges across the United States to allow for state, regional and eventually national intercollegiate inclusive soccer leagues.
The formation of a champion requires the opportunity to compete. Unfortunately, athletes with intellectual disabilities are often denied competitive venues, not because of their own physical limitation, but because of societal constraints. The average person regards Intellectual Disability with a paternalistic detachment. Although it is true that coaches and volunteers have something valuable to offer the athletes, the goal of the Inclusive Soccer is the expose the fact the athletes are the true teachers. The lesson is simple, yet profound – everyone can be a “Champion.” With the help of Play Like a Champion Today, Special Olympics Notre Dame is committed to using sport to promote both societal and personal growth. We look forward to watching the inclusive soccer program grow and ask that everyone help spread the word. To close, I will leave you with the Special Olympics motto: “Let me win. But if I cannot win, let me be brave in the attempt.”

Ted Glasnow
Co-President, Special Olympics Notre Dame
SOND@nd.edu

Notre Dame Football Strongman of Notre Dame, The Crown Jewel of Irish Legends

Read a great article written by Jim Sheridan on one a legendary "Notre Dame Man"

"More often than not college legends are measured by wins or touchdowns. Father Bernard Lange quietly made his mark by inspiring others to exceed well beyond their greatest expectations." To read the full article, go to
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/620911-notre-dame-strongman-father-langethe-crown-jewel-of-irish-legends

Enjoy the Article

CHAMPION

Dear Champions,
In our second class meeting, we discussed what it means to be a champion. By definition a champion is, “a person who has defeated or surpassed all rivals in a competition, specifically in sports.” However, a champion is made up of much more than just what he/she does on the playing field. A champion is made up of many different qualities that support their attained abilities to leave them far superior than others. To enhance the discussion of what the makeup of a champion is, I have created an acronym to describe each letter in the word ‘champion’ with a different quality that they should entail on their journey to success.
C  Confidence: A champion must have confidence within their ability, their teammates, coaches, and in the God-given talent that God has gratefully thrust upon them.
H  Humble: A champion must respect themselves and their opponents graciously. They must respect their ability and never take it for granted. They should express gratitude to those who assist them in their success and thrive with them.
A  Attitude: As a champion, one must have a positive attitude throughout their career and understand that there will be good and bad days along with wins and losses, they must keep getting better and continue to encourage others around them.
M  Mental Toughness: As a champion, the game is half mental along with being half physical. As a champion you must attain the mental toughness to persevere through the obstacles that will come with the demands of your sport. Being mentally tough is a hard task, but those who are able to attain it become successful on the playing field and also in life.
P  Passion: As a champion, one must have the passion for the game. All the hard work and dedication should be out of the love and pride you have every time you participate in your sport. When an athlete can go out and love what they do every single day it makes the game more enjoyable and it also makes it easier to become successful.
I  Idol: Champions, nowadays, are seen in the public eye much more than ever before. When being a role model for the ones around you, it is important that you maintain all the qualities that got you to so much success and maintain them throughout your personal life. It is those people who can maintain those attributes that will be able to thrive in life and continue success after their careers are over.
O  Open-Minded: A champion has to be open to new ideas, they can never settle. Hard work pays off, and when you continue to gain success it will continue to pay off. A champion has to be the one who stands out in wanting to get better. Champions have to want to be a champion all the time and have to continue their journey every single day.
N  Noble: As a champion, it becomes more than just athletically performing. As a champion one must have the noble and morally just qualities of a champion every day, because that is what will never be forgotten. It is the character behind the success that will always stick out.
In all, being a champion is a task that takes time to achieve, and as one attains more success it brings more challenges to get better. It becomes the character behind the champion that contributes to the most success. Many people see the athlete for what they are on the playing field, but CHAMPIONS are made with moral qualities that build to success on the playing field, and that will never change!
Kayla McBride, ND Women's Basketball, ND 2014
Coaching Blog, Social Foundations of Coaching Course
Professor Sheehan/Professor Power

Fun, Growth, and Success in Minor Hockey

My youngest 8-year-old brother, Matthew, has just begun playing hockey competitively on a traveling team, and I am so excited for him! After beginning and learning the game in house league during the past two years, so far, according to my parents, the transition onto a more competitive team has been positive for him. His skills and confidence are improving in leaps and bounds. I am disappointed that I cannot be at home right now to witness Matthew’s rapid progression and growth and the joy he is gaining from his new hockey experience, but I enjoy hearing about it weekly from my parents on the phone.
Based on the conversations I have had with my parents about Matthew’s hockey journey thus far this season, I think his positive experience with the sport and team is primarily being shaped by his coaches. Despite coaching a competitive traveling team, it seems as though the coaches have made it a priority to create a fun team environment focused on loving the game and fundamental skill development, rather than winning. The team’s season began at the end of August with a lot of uncertainty, as the team welcomed several new, more inexperienced players like Matthew. With many challenges and much to learn, the team lost four out of its first five games. However, as a result of the coaches’ emphasis on fun, the players are forming strong friendships with one another, are working extremely hard on the ice (the hardest working bunch of kids my parents say they’ve ever seen), and now, in fact, are rapidly improving and more consistently winning. This past weekend, the team was the finalist of a large tournament and, to reach the final game, beat a team 1-0 that they had previously lost to 5-3 – impressive improvement indeed!
I talked to my dad, a long-time hockey player who’s coached many minor league hockey teams himself before, about what he thinks the coaches are doing to make the hockey team experience fun for the kids. First of all, he said that the coaches are not ego-centered and that their attitude is “It’s all about the kids!” They are excited to be at the rink, which makes the kids excited too and intrinsically motivated to work hard. As well, he said that the coaches ensure that the players have equal playing time and also give them the opportunity to play different positions. Matthew, specifically, has greatly enjoyed being moved occasionally from his traditional defensive position to forward, and it’s made a positive difference in the development of his skills and sport-sense.
The benefit of allowing kids to play different positions in athletics can also be seen in my late-blooming 19-year-old hockey-playing brother, Paul. Paul was a left-winger most of the time growing up, but still had the opportunity to play defense occasionally. More recently, after a huge growth spurt, he has specialized at defense on his Jr. A team and is excelling. He will most likely have the opportunity to pursue an NCAA hockey scholarship beginning next year.
The success and positive experiences that my family, especially my youngest brother Matthew, is having with hockey can be attributed to coaches who promote fun and the love of the game and who care about children’s growth and personal development – coaches who adopt coaching styles consistent with the Play Like a Champion Today GROW approach. Thank you to all the youth coaches out there who adopt this style of coaching! You are truly making a positive difference in the lives of the kids you coach!
Natalie Geiger, ND 2012
Social Foundations of Coaching Class

Sports: Childrens Games and A Path to Life Lesson Learning

Sports are so much more than a game in the lives of children; it is also a way to learn important life lessons. Children learn how to cooperate with a team and build positive relationships and communication skills. However, in order to take advantage of the positive power of sports, everyone must play their part.
When I was younger I competed in gymnastics for nine years and this is where I feel I learned most of my skills for life. The gym was where I felt free to be myself and where I learned how to overcome my fears. There are countless times I remember standing on the edge of the balance beam like a statue, trying to battle my fear. Many thoughts go through my head and I think to myself how crazy it is to be doing a back flip on a four inch wide beam four feet off the ground. But this is a thought I have to push past in order to reach my goals. Practicing this throughout my years of gymnastics has given me the confidence to be able to do it in other areas of my life. When I am faced with a challenge or fear, I am able to push it aside and focus on the goal.
Another skill I learned through gymnastics was how to fall and get back up. In order to learn a trick you have to fail at it many times, and this means falling . . . a lot and in many ways. I learned to be patient and to work hard even when success looks far away. Now, when I fail at something, I am able to pick myself up and try again without giving up.
I loved gymnastics so much because it was my sport. My parents loved watching me run and were big influences in my choice to run, however, gymnastics was my sport. Even though they weren’t as into gymnastics they were still very supportive and wanted me to have fun. I believe this is part of why I had more fun in gymnastics because I didn’t feel as much pressure from my parents. I was lucky to have sport parents like this; however, there were many girls on my team whose parents pushed them at young ages in gymnastics and this put pressure on them and made the sport not as much fun. Their parents would be upset when they didn’t do well or try to be their coach. These girls whose parents were too involved and put too much pressure on them tended to quit gymnastics at an earlier age. It is so important that parents are encouraging to their children and help their children have fun so that they will want to continue their sport and be able to gain life skills from it. A lot goes into the success of sports for young athletes and everyone (coaches, parents and athletes) must play their role.
Alexa Aragon, ND 2014
Social Foundations of Coaching

Helping Engage Kids in Running

In the spring on Notre Dame’s campus, you can’t miss the frequent running races for charity put on by dorms, ROTC groups, and academic departments. Every weekend there is at least one event and all of them donate proceeds to charity organizations. At Notre Dame, where 80% of undergraduates were varsity letter-winners in high school, these events are a golden opportunity to exercise and donate to a worthy cause (plus get a free t-shirt and food). Similar events have become more common off of college campuses as well. Websites such as active.com have searchable lists based on zip code, date, distance, and other factors. Events cater to avid runners as well as beginners. Most of the events offer both a 5kilometer or 10kilometer (etc) running race paired with a 1mile “fun walk.” In my hometown, Hutchinson, KS, the inaugural Run for the Rocks half marathon is taking place this coming weekend. In an interview with one of the coordinators Amy Conkling last spring, she told me that 10k and half-marathon distances are becoming increasingly popular for adult runners at many levels. These distances provide a challenge that leaves runners feeling accomplished but at the same time offer an achievable goal. One of the biggest events of the spring at Notre Dame is the Holy Half marathon which is going on its eighth year. The National Alliance for Youth Sports has developed a program to get kids involved in this individual and rewarding activity through their “Ready, Set, Run!” program (www.nays.org). The program teams up with local recreation commissions (or similar) to teach kids ages 8-13 the basics of training for a 5k run event. The program “equips kids with the physical training and goal-setting mentality needed to accomplish their running goals.” Techniques that are useful in any form of sport. Kids learn how to set and achieve personal goals and lead their own sport performance. The program piloted in the spring of 2011 and helped kids approach and accomplish an athletic goal while having fun in a sport that can become a lifelong passion. Becca Page Social Foundations of Coaching Notre Dame Undergraduate Class

ACE Building Dedication Events begin this weekend. Play Like A Champion Today(R) a unit of the Alliance for Catholic Education invites you to the dedication of our new building, Carole Sandner Hall on Notre Dame's campus Friday, September 16 at 3:30pm

An Effective Strategy for Equal Playing Time on a Youth Basketball Team

St. Agnes Basketball Player Rotation:
Dear PLC, I'm sure you get all sorts of resources that coaches/league directors use but I thought this one served me very well this past year after hearing some of your thoughts in Play Like A Champion and I'd be thrilled if other coaches found it useful.

As I moved from coaching junior high varsity where I played kids based on a blend of factors to coaching 5th and 6th grade JV where I knew I wanted to play them all equally, I came across a heck of a lot of problems in my first game. Namely at one point to play everyone equally, I had five forwards and centers who needed to play, none wanted to handle the ball, and rightfully so; they weren't prepared to do that and didn't want to be the fall person for the team not functioning well.

In advance of my next game, I created this spreadsheet. The back page lists all my players, their uniform number (for ease of signing in) and the positions they are able to play. Next is a count of minutes (which are checked off as I create the playing schedule) and a total column. The front is a roster for the game, broken down by position, and into boxes which each represent a 2 minute block of the game (in most occasions I try to schedule the same players for four minutes to allow for continuity, but the beginnings and ends of quarters are often 2 minute segments. What I was able to do is make a team policy that everyone plays equally so the kids know that from the start. To show them I was intent on this, I showed them my spreadsheet.

On gameday, all players are required to show up 15 minutes early to keep games on time, and to warm up, stretch, and go over pre-game prep and what we did in practice. As players show up, I circle their names on the roster. At 15 minutes before gametime as players stretch, I create the first quarter roster from all the players on time. If everyone is there on time, the game is split evenly. If players show up late, they forfeit their first quarter minutes and then the 2nd through 4th quarters are split evenly. By the start of the game, I have my rotations filled in so each player knows when they're going in, which teammate they need to be watching before they go in, who they're calling out, if they're moving any players to new positions, and the man to man matchups that they need to pick up or switch around when they sub in. I find this helps the little guys stay focused, pay attention to player assignments, and to communicate with confidence once they step foot onto the court. My assistant coach explains to kids where they're going next, how they run the play from their position, who they'll be guarding or where they'll be in the zone, and what they can do to help the team on the court.

The one downside to this is that it does require preparation right before the game, but I find once I have that done, I can spend all game coaching instead of worrying about playing time and rotations. Also, kids are penalized about 4 minutes of playing time if their parents are late, but once this was in effect, we noticed a lot more students showing up on time and I never once had to deal with parents questioning playing time.

Alas, at the end of the season we got whooped in the championship game (good character coaching on the other side too, they were just way better) but after the game our kids knew the score might have been closer had our best players played all game like they noticed was the case for the other team. That said, one of the most challenging players on my team pointed out that we came in second place as a true team with everyone being a part whereas the other team really was a combination of three players who did all the playing and another 7 who just tried to keep out of the way. They're catching on and top to bottom, I think this will result in a lot of growth in our students.

I hope you find this useful and feel welcome to use it as much as you'd like and share it amongst anyone you believe will find it useful.

Sean
PLC Coach

Uganda Continued!

Over our other days in Uganda, PLC visited with faculty, administration and staff of Uganda Martyrs University, Makerere Business School and we had the pleasure of meeting Jasper Aligawesa who is the General Secretary of the Uganda National Council of Sport (pictured above with Clark and Kristin). Finally, our trip wouldn't be complete without sharing our group picture taken on the Equator.

2nd Day in Uganda

During the PLC team's second day in Uganda, we traveled with the children of the village to the hospital to receive medical treatments. We played together while waiting for treatment and we all shared lunch together. The children loved learning a new game of "Duck, Duck, Goose" but gave it an African specific name of "Cow, Cow, Goat."

PLC travels to Uganda in Partnership

The PLC team is back under the Golden Dome, but our hearts are fuller and our lives are richer due to the new friendships we have created in the beautiful country of Uganda in East Africa. We began our journey in the village of Kkindu. Attached is a video of the leader of PLC in the village, John Kakande, announcing the official partnership. The village also unveiled a PLC sign at the base of the village for all to see and believe in the philosophy. The village proudly shared their cleared field pictured above and we met the women who weave the Play Like A Champion Today(TM) mats. The whole village celebrated with a shared meal and sport competitions: a bike race, net ball game, sack races and a soccer game. The women and children of the village welcomed us with beautiful songs, drum accompaniment and dancing.
All of this in our first day in the village!

Former ND football player gives back to his community

David Burton of the Denver Broncos is spending the time off during the lockout giving back to his community. 2009 Notre Dame Graduate with a degree in Political Science and Sociology is substitute teaching at his former high school in Dayton, Ohio. To see the full story,
http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/blog/shutdown_corner/post/Broncos-8217-Bruton-spending-the-lockout-as-a-?urn=nfl-wp2141

Uganda update

The PLC team is in Amsterdam on their way home from Africa. Our apologizes for only one blog while we were traveling. We had only one opportunity to get Internet access our entire trip. We will post a full report with pictures and videos in the next few days.
We are feeling grateful and blessed for our life-changing journey. PLC team

UGANDA UPDATE - Just connected to Internet!

After three flights, a 6 hour van ride (totaling 36 hours of travel), the PLC team arrived in the village of Kkindu, Masaka town, Uganda, Africa. On Sunday morning, we celebrated a beautiful mass in the village church with an accomplished choir, dancing, prayer and Eucharist. The village then unveiled a Play Like A Champion Today™ sign at the entrance to the village. John Kakande, the director of the PLC ministries in Kkindu explained to the community that all PLC activities that happen in the US will happen in the village of Kkindu. We then went to see the cleared sport fields and were greeted with more song and dancing. Then, we shared a meal together of rice, cassava, chicken, beef stew and soup. Finally, the sport competitions began: a sack race, a net ball game for the young women of the village, a 30km bike race and a soccer match for the boys. All played like champions while the entire village was entertained with sport.
The next day we traveled with 30 children to the town of Masaka to the clinic for the children to be tested for HIV and for those already diagnosed to receive ARV treatments. We then all shared a nutritious meal together before returning to the village to visit Hopeful School, where orphans and those who otherwise would not be able to attend school, are educated. The parents and students greeted us with love and thanksgiving.
On our third day, we offered a Play Like A Champion Today™ workshop to the coaches, teachers and students in the village primary school.
We have been greeted with love and open arms. We have welcomed the people of this village across the globe into the Play Like A Champion Today™ family.

Marathons: Adults Doing Athletics Right

"The music of a marathon is a powerful strain, one of those tunes of glory. It asks us to forsake pleasures, to discipline the body, to find courage, to renew faith and to become one's own person, utterly and completely."
-George Sheehan

Running was punishment. We ran several laps for being late. Having an attitude or just not getting your head in the game resulted in a few more suicides at the end of practice. Sprints and long runs were devised as torture devices by coaches, right? Well, I believed all of this to be true and thought my older brother tended towards masochism when he ran cross country and track in high school. He then challenged me to join the cross country team my junior year in high school after dropping another sport. Curious as to the appeal and unable to back down from a challenge, I began running over the summer and joined in the fall semester. Since then, I have never looked back. I fell in love with the running culture. I ran two years of cross country and completed two half marathons as well as one full marathon.

There is a culture which surrounds running and within the last few decades has spurred a surge in marathons and shorter distance runs across the United States and the world. The overwhelming majority of participants range from young adults to well beyond middle-aged. In the midst of a society in which kids travel to neighboring states to compete in athletics at an age when cooties are still a very real concern, adults are seeking out a different type of athletic challenge and having the fun. I am not asserting that kids don’t love sports, nor am I attempting to demonize competition at a young age. Instead, I am trying to call attention to the surge of people competing in marathons and emphasize how they are reaping the benefits of athletics—in terms of the physique as well as character—after everyone else has checked them out as too old to “play”. Those who obsess over youth sports could learn from the adults lacing up their shoes, donning their game faces and running 26.2 miles.

Quite a few things make marathon running unique. First of all, it requires infinitely less gear than most other athletic activities. You need a just need cleared space and running shoes. That makes it more accessible to people from all classes. Also, training can be done at one’s own pace and runs can be completed either with peers or all alone at whatever time is most convenient. People can be as fast or slow as they desire and they can still run (with the exception of races like the Boston Marathon). Running is an equal opportunity sport. It’s democratic. A large number of service organizations and charities encourage persons to run and raise money for a greater cause; thus it contributes to the larger society. The race day also has the excitement and atmosphere comparative to a street festival. Marathon races are social affairs! Asking most people who have participated in marathons about their experiences, it is likely to get responses from people raving about how competing in a marathon was a transformative experience.

I am writing this to draw attention to the phenomenon of marathon running and offer it as a sharp contrast to what people criticize about youth sports. The adults have got it right. Marathons are, if nothing else, inspiring—something the world needs. Kathrine Switzer, a women’s marathoning pioneer, said “If you are losing faith in human nature, go out and watch a marathon”. She’s right.


Connie Jones, ND 2011
Social Foundations of Coaching

Consequences of specialization in early ages.

Specialization in early ages is a serious and relevant problem in high school and youth sports due to several reasons. I believe that athletes in young ages should develop different physical skills by participating in various activities and different sports in order to build up the basis for future improvement. The limited range of skills performed during early sport specialization has the potential to limit overall motor skill development. This may affect long term physical activity involvement by decreasing the likelihood of participation in alternative physical activities. In addition, I believe that specialization in youth sport can cause an athlete to burn out at an early age. For example, if a runner is doing a lot of heavy weight lifting too early in his career it can negatively affect his performance on the long term. The athlete will have physical pain and injuries later on because of the excessive forms of training. Finally I believe that early specialization can cause massive drop out of sport because of lack of enjoyment and socialization. Repetitive, monotone and hard practices in early age do not attract youth athletes. Due to the above listed negative consequences of early age specialization, coaches should let young athletes participate in various sports, and focus on creating a fun environment for all kids.

Miklos Szebeny, ND 2011
Track athlete
Social Foundations of Coaching

No Prayer on the Field

I came from a very small public school in Northern California; an area that has only recently adopted a “no prayer in public schools” policy. I had no personal qualms with this subject only because I made the conscious choice to lead a secular lifestyle, but I had friends on both sides of the issue ready to claw each other to death over whether prayer should be allowed in schools or not. As so happened to be the case at my school and schools all over the country, certain high profile faculty members had a habit of reciting a prayer to Our Lady before any athletic contest. The football team in particular did not have any intention of stopping since the prayer was part of preparing them to play. It was tradition, habit, good luck, etc. But the administration soon found a way to get the coach to give up his pre-game prayer, and many team members felt it was unfair. They argued that the majority of the team was already Catholic if not Protestant, and the only non-religious athlete on the team (yours truly) did not mind praying before a game. The administration, however, did not budge on the issue, even less so when angry parents phoned in to harass them. I recall my government teacher and I talk at length over the issue of prayer in school, and we spoke of different ways to interpret the First Amendment. Personally, I hold the belief that the stance on prayer in schools should be taken so that no one denomination or faith suppresses the expression of another one. Yes, this means that the school administration and faculty should not take a vested interest in one religion over another, but this can be argued to include secularism as a basis of faith. I think that the administration should have allowed there to be prayer for the football team or any other team that followed a few simple guidelines, namely, if anyone wants to pray to a different god or deity it should be allowed, and no administration or faculty members can be a lead or be a part of the prayer. The best policy, in my opinion, is to allow students the freedom to choose their religious affiliation instead of trying to suppress it because therein lies a form of exclusionary discrimination. Religion is tied so closely together with language and culture that it seems unreasonable to deny a student the right to show his/her devotion as long as he/she isn’t disturbing anyone. And, in all honesty, praying never hurt anyone; I, an atheist, can attest to that.

Antonio Renteria
Social Foundations of Coaching

WHERE DOES DISCIPLINE FIT INTO THE GROW APPROACH FOR COACHES?

As the face of a team, school or organization one of the largest responsibilities a coach is entrusted with is the position as ethical role model. Every coach is an example for his or her team, and the team philosophy and rules that each coach establishes will inevitably be tested and challenged many times throughout their coaching career. The most difficult decisions that I believe coaches have to make is how to discipline players when they violate team or school rules. However, a coach must also be willing to adapt and change rules over time. Many coaches agree rule making is a constant on-going process that is modified and enforced differently from year to year. With all of that change being said, how do coaches keep consistent and retain their decision-making integrity? Where does discipline fit into the GROW approach?
No matter what age group you are coaching, giving Ownership to the athletes is an essential part of establishing a basis for discipline that will help a coach and teams achieve fairness as a unit. The best opportunity a coach can create for athletes is to give players Ownership by responsibility and decision-making situations to help them GROW. It is important to assign players different jobs to setting up practice, handling equipment, cleaning up practice and other tasks of that nature can give players Ownership of the team and teach them responsibility. Players must see and feel that the team is dependent on each and every one of their actions or else the group as a whole will suffer. If they fail to uphold the team rules and responsibilities under the coach’s watch, it is easier to correct and enforce discipline. The goal is that players will transcend this attitude to their off-field conduct, and realize that if they fail to uphold their responsibilities by affecting the team in a negative fashion, there will be discipline to prevent future occurrences. That is when the coach’s job becomes extremely difficult. The decision contains many elements; how light or how severe a punishment, what type of punishment etc. Every coach will handle their team differently, but I did find an article below that helped me formulate two DON’Ts for discipline that can help guide your future decision making to help keep you consistent and fair.

1.) Caution with physical forms of punishment
I tend to agree that this is a rather outdated form of discipline. With the current generation of youth, I feel like punishments such as extra sprints and other taxing forms of energy are a waste of precious practice time and further distract players. There is also a possibility that a team-wide punishment for an individual violation or shortcoming can create that individual’s teammates to develop resentment against him or her, creating a negative environment that doesn’t help anyone GROW. There are just some cases where the team has no control over their teammate’s actions (e.g. disrespecting coaches or officials) because it is just the character/nature of that particular player and would better be addressed and corrected separate from the team.

2.) Athlete’s deserve an explanation of discipline
In order to ensure that the athlete fully understands what he or she did wrong and why it will not be tolerated, it is important that the coach offers an explanation so that the player and the coach understand each other. Disciplining player’s can often cause a strain in the player-coach relationship, so I believe it is important for the coach to be the “adult” and mature person to assure that the relationship remains healthy. If the player feels the coach is impersonal and is disinterested in the player’s welfare, they will be much less likely to buy into the lessons and team goals that the coach preaches on a day-to-day basis. This player can become a vice to the team, so it is important that the player-coach relationship remains healthy through discipline to stay in accordance with the GROW approach. Consulting with parents/guardians is also an option, and all though it may not be a coach’s favorite way to handle a situation, in some cases it is necessary. Parents are often the most important influences to players. If there is a lack of communication or understanding, players may be influenced by their parents to believe that “Coach doesn’t know what he/she is talking about” or “Coach is not fair.” This doesn’t mean that the parent must agree with your plan of action for discipline, but it is important to make sure the parent feels and trusts the punishment is justifiable. Always keep the GROW approach in mind, and I believe parents would appreciate if they knew that the GROW approach is something you as a coach believed in to develop their children. http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0FIH/is_n9_v65/ai_n18606892/

Nick Conrad
Social Foundations of Coaching
Class of 2014

A Tradition Unlike Any Other

April brings about many exciting things such as the start of spring, my birthday, and one of the greatest golf tournaments in the world, The Masters. The Masters takes place the weekend of the first full week in April at Augusta National Golf Club in Augusta, Georgia. Augusta National is a masterfully designed course that is as beautiful as it is challenging. The tournament was established in 1934 and maintains the notable tradition of awarding its champions with a green blazer that is now synonymous with the tournament. The Masters tournament has adopted the slogan “A Tradition Unlike Any Other” that is used in advertising the event to the public. This slogan signifies the amount of prestige that accompanies this tournament.

I always look forward to watching the Masters in April as a way to get excited for the upcoming golf season. I have played golf for many years and played briefly for my high school team. It is a sport that I have a lot of love and respect for. It is great to sit back and watch the Masters, and while it may be acceptable to take a nap here and there during the first 63 holes (I won’t tell anyone), the back nine on the final day of the tournament are not to be missed. The back nine holes never cease to amaze me and leave me on the edge of my seat. The back nine can make or break one’s streak, and this years back nine did not disappoint. There were eight separate leaders at different times throughout the back nine this past Sunday. The course is so advanced that it makes for a very unpredictable and fast changing round. Rory McIlroy, a 21 year old from Ireland, looked as though he would be the next to take home a green jacket going into Sunday’s back nine. McIlroy had played flawlessly for the first three days of the tournament, but a set back on hole 10 proved fatal. McIlroy gave up his three-day lead with a triple bogey, or three strokes over par, on hole 10 named Camelia. (All the holes at Augusta National are named.) Historically, Camelia is the toughest hole at Augusta National. As McIlroy hit a rough patch, Charl Schwartzel picked up his game. Schwartzel, a 26 year old from South Africa, ended up making birdie on the last four holes of the tournament. A birdie occurs when one completes a hole one stroke under par. Schwartzel went on to win the tournament and is one of the youngest to do so. Other young Master’s winners include Tiger Woods who was awarded the green jacket at 21 years of age in 1997. Additionally, Steve Ballestros and Jack Nicklaus were both just 23 years old when they won in 1980 and 1963 respectively. As the Masters 2011 came to an end, I was reminded of a phrase that is often quipped during the tournament: “drive for show, putt for dough.” Given the events that occurred on the back nine, I would say this adage proved true, at least for this year’s tournament at Augusta National.

Katherine McGraw
Class of 2011
Social Foundations of Coaching

Play Ball!

"People ask me what I do in winter when there's no baseball. I'll tell you what I do. I stare out the window and wait for spring"
-Rogers Hornsby, MLB Player 1915-1937

Beginning with the final out of the previous season's World Series, baseball fans spend the next five months pining for the return of the game they love. This offseason longing process, however, comes in stages. First, they spend up to a month (pending on the success level of their own favorite team) either basking in the glory of or sulking over the previous season. After that, the fans anxiously await a magic day in the middle of February when pitchers and catchers report to spring training, and the road to baseball season officially begins. A few days later, pitchers and catchers are joined by the rest of their teammates. What follows is the spring training season, a time when young players try to earn their roster spot in the major leagues, grizzled veterans try to prove they still "have it", and baseball fanatics' hunger for the game they love begins to get slightly filled. These fans anxiously pore over their team's box score in the newspaper every morning, seeing what hitters they will be able to count on in the clutch and which pitchers might be called upon to be the team's fifth starter or key middle reliever. These games, however, don't really matter. They simply fill that void we have until Opening Day. Opening Day is not simply the first day of baseball season. It is a chance for hope in the hearts of all players and fans alike. Every team starts with a record of 0-0, every hitter has yet to record an out, and every pitcher has an ERA of 0.00. Hitting slumps, losing streaks, and meltdowns from last year are forgotten. For each and every team, "This is our year". It is a chance for the Yankees to see if all the money they spent in the offseason will pay off, and a chance for the Cubs to foolishly think they have a chance at winning the World Series. Opening Day means that as fans, we get to travel on an emotional roller coaster ride for the next six months (or seven, if we are lucky enough to make the playoffs) as we live and die with the athletic performance of twenty-five men that we feel a personal connection to, despite the fact that they will never meet us. Opening Day allows us to again experience the thrill of going to the ballpark and get that rush of adrenaline when, for the first time this year, we walk through the tunnel from the concourse to our seats until the enormous inside of the ballpark opens up in front of us like a canvas. The catcalls of the beer vendors, the smell of the hot dogs, and the perfectly manicured infields welcome us back. Finally, after this long wait, we are home.
Mike Sobolewski, ND2011
Social Foundations of Coaching

Book Review : Spirituality of Sport by Susan Saint Sing

The book Spirituality of Sport: Balancing Body and Soul by Susan Saint Sing was a thought-provoking read. It discussed the idea that sports can be connected to spirituality; however it did not take the stance that sport is religion. To describe this nuance of thought, Saint Sing said that sport should neither constitute its own religion nor replace an existing one. Instead, it should be considered as an avenue to God just as prayer and Mass are. If we are truly Christian, God should be ever-present in our lives, including when we exercise—not just for an hour on Sunday.
Saint Sing speaks with the experience of pushing her body to exhaustion as she ran marathons. She was also a member of the U.S. World Rowing Team. She considers why people push themselves to such extreme limits and proposes an answer: “I believe they do it, we do it, to see what we are made of—meaning to see if there is anything more, anything other than flesh and sweat and blood. We do it to see if there is a soul looking at us in the extreme fumes of exhaustion. As in a near death experience, we go in a controlled fashion into these realms to see, to explore the depths of ourselves, begging of the Other. Like a pilgrimage, a cleansing, a retreat, we emerge more human, more alive, more aware.” I believe this analysis can be true if that’s what we are looking for. From my experiences playing and watching sports, I know that there exists a point at which you think you cannot go on, yet somehow you can find that little extra from deep inside yourself.
The Play Like a Champion Today Educational Series has a mission to develop sports programs in which athletes can grow physically, mentally, socially, morally, and spiritually. It focuses on making youth sports consistent with this mission. Children play sports for fun, but as they become adults, their thinking changes. While fun can still be a goal of sports, there are often new goals that emerge as a priority, such as health, fitness, discipline, and accomplishment. I am not advocating that we push children to exhaustion in hopes of spiritual development as described by Saint Sing in her book. Instead, children should have a positive experience in youth sports, so that as adults, they have lifestyles with physical activity. They should know that they have the option to make sport what they want it to be, even a spiritual experience. Without a foundation for that thinking in early sport experiences, adults will probably not know or realize all the potential sport has throughout life.
Kelsey Murphy, ND 2013
Professors Powers and Sheehan
Social Foundations of Coaching

True Mindset of a Champion

With all of the focus at this time of the year being on March Madness, the NFL lockout, and the opening of the baseball season I figured I’d switch gears a little bit and talk about the football team I have (almost) always loved-Super Bowl XLV Champions, the Green Bay Packers.
Now, being from Milwaukee, Wisconsin, I obviously come from your typical Green Bay packer adoring family; heck, it’s in our blood. In Wisconsin, the Packers have god-like status (if you weren’t aware of this already). Over my lifetime I had developed a strong connection to my beloved Packers, and with that, for all of the good and bad he brought with him, a complete loyalty to Brett Favre. Up until his “retirement” he had been the main man of the Pack since the time I was born! Naturally, once the entire Favre vs. Packers controversy ensued, I was conflicted.
Ultimately, I took Favre’s side; that’s difficult to admit as a Packer fan. But, it just seemed like they gave this man, who brought the Packers from the dregs, to glory once again, the complete short end of the stick. It’s not pertinent here to relive the details of the messy Favre saga, but to sum it up, I became estranged from the Packers for a while. Who was this Aaron Rodgers dude? Who does he think he is coming in and thinking he can replace a legend so quickly? It felt like he was the villain trying to replace and imitate the fallen hero he had just slain. YEAH, that’s really how intense it was!
However, as time went by, I couldn’t help but notice how poised and classy Rodgers was. I started thinking more rationally: ‘I mean, it obviously isn’t the guys fault that he’s in this position, maybe I’ll give him a chance.’ My respect increased for Rodgers. I remember him continually saying (not direct quotes by any means) to reporters, ‘I can only do what is in my control’ and ‘my job is to play football.’ The only thing he emphasized was what was in his control, and the way he worked hard and did the best he possibly could to lead the Green Bay Packers to winning and improving as a team.
After his first season leading the Pack, the team ended up with a very sub-par 6-10 record, yet Rodgers still remained classy as ever. With this attitude, he was able to lead the Packers to an 11-5 record the next season. Despite the talk within the media and amongst Packer Nation that Rodgers would never bring the Packers to where they should be, or that he could not handle the big situations and moments, still Rodgers kept on. When it got tough, he got tougher and worked harder.
Fast-forward to today and the Packers, under the leadership of Rodgers, have just won the Super Bowl. Now, if Rodgers wouldn’t have handled the adversity and all that idiotic drama he and the Pack went through the perfect way in which he did, we would not be Super Bowl Champions. I could go on, and on and on, about the details of Rodgers amazing mindset and attitude, but to conclude, I’ll say it like this: Aaron Rodgers truly possesses the mindset of a champion.
Katharine Mack; Social Foundations of Coaching; Notre Dame Class of 2013

Katharine Mack
Social Foundations of Coaching
Notre Dame Class of 2013

The Power of Community

As everyone is I’m sure aware, the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament started over spring break this year. My parents were lucky enough to get tickets to Notre Dame’s first two games in Chicago, so my entire family enjoyed the NCAA atmosphere. I, however, was in Punta Cana, which I’m definitely not complaining about. Although I didn’t get to experience what it was like to watch the two games in person with my family, I was able to watch both games with 75 other Notre Dame seniors in the Dominican Republic. I knew I would be “blogging” after the beginning of the NCAA tournament, so I was hoping to be able to write about Notre Dame’s success and great wins. Now, of course, due to the loss to Florida State, but more importantly due to the experience I had watching the game with my closest friends, I want to write about how sports can affect a community.
I’m not going to lie, just like I’m sure everyone else in this class, I was pretty disappointed when Notre Dame lost to Florida State. I had them going far in my bracket, as many other loyal Notre Dame fans. Even after the loss in the Big East Tournament, all I heard were things like, “its good that they lost, they have more time to prepare for the NCAA tournament.” When I watched the first game with my friends in Punta Cana, I was sitting in a hotel room, and even though we didn’t look as sharp as we had in the past, everyone was confident it was just first round jitters. My point is that everyone was so confident in the ability of the Notre Dame team because it seems that our community of students endlessly hopes for success. I will never forget my freshman year football season when we would cheer and go crazy for a touchdown because we didn’t experience many wins. So now that we had such a successful team, everyone refused to accept anything less than a deep tournament run.
This is where I want to talk about why I will never forget the Florida State game. It obviously isn’t because of the great win, but because of the game watch experience I had. There were 76 of us in Punta Cana together and on Sunday night, which was our last night, we all took over the “Overtime Sports Bar” and watched the game together. People from the resort kept coming in asking where we were all from and why we were all together. We had pulled out chairs and tables and gotten the game put up on the big pull down screen; each of us loyally watched the game from start to finish. We cheered loudly as if we were at the game, and everyone had a great time, not because we were winning (we were losing by a lot most of the time) but because there were so many of us centered around one hope. The hope that our team, made of mostly seniors, would pull out a win and somehow come back from the deficit. Not until two minutes left did people finally start to give up hope. Even in losing, though, everyone cheered. At the end of the game, I was definitely disappointed, but I realized how great it was that one game could bring 76 people, in a place as beautiful as the Dominican Republic, together to cheer and watch a hopeful Notre Dame win. For me, that game watching experience embodied why I love sports, especially why I love college sports and tournaments, like March Madness.

Mary Ellen Mazza, ND 2011
Social Foundations of Coaching

March Madness

As the March Madness “Big Dance” tournament is rounding the end, it looks as though the underdogs have taken over this season. Though, there were many big wins for teams that were expected to win, there were also a number of huge upsets. I was lucky enough to be able to watch some of these upsets live. I was at the United Center in Chicago, IL when a #11 seeded, Virginia Commonwealth team thoroughly upset the #3 seeded Purdue Boilermakers. The game was intense to watch because the VCU team was only lucky enough to get into the tournament by the extra places added to the tournament just this year in the play-in games. Purdue should have been in control the whole game, and had a quote on quote “easy win” when looking at the game on paper, but VCU was able to get the win out of the game and move on to the sweet 16 games. Not only was VCU a big upset, but as hard as it was for me to watch our Notre Dame basketball team play, they also were on the down side of a big upset as well. The FSU #10 seed really hit hard on our #2 seeded team just moments after VCU beat Purdue. Again, most people went into that game thinking that this would be an “easy win” just because of the rankings and how we had previously played. On paper everything seemed to work perfectly in our favor; even an elite 8 or at the very least a sweet 16 chance was heavily in our favor.
Watching these two games in person as well as watching many of the other upsets that have thus far happened in the tournament got me thinking about the difference between what a team should play like versus what they do play like. It’s hard to imagine on paper a #10 seed beating a #2 seed by over ten points, but when watching it, you clearly saw who the better team was on that specific day. Maybe we could have played better on a different day, and maybe nine games out of ten that we played against that same team we would win, but that one opportunity the team who played best (regardless of their seed on paper) advanced to the next round. I just think it’s incredibly interesting how no matter how hard or long we study the way in which a team plays, it is nearly impossible to pick the perfect winners for each and every round.
Amy Prestinario, ND 2012
Social Foundations of Coaching Blog

Sport Book Review: Find A Way: Three Words That Changed My Life

A great read for any athlete or person who has struggled with rough times in their life is book written by former NFL running back Merril Hoge. The title of the book is called Find A way: Three Words That Changed My Life. The book is your typical autobiography on Hoge's life from the time he grew up in Idaho and all the way to his life after football. The book displays Hoge's unbelievable determination to become a football player in the NFL. From the time he was a child, Hoge nailed up the saying "Find A Way", to tell himself that no matter who told him he was unable to do anything, he would find a way to overcome it.

It is your typical overachieving athlete story, but there is quite the twist on it. When Hoge speaks of his life after football, dealing with concussion symptoms and trying to transition into the working world, you can feel sympathy for the pain and suffering he went through dealing with head trauma. This hit home to me very hard since I went through many of the same issues he did with his symptoms of concussions. The book turns and you see the true strength of Hoge when he is diagnosed with Non-Hodgkin lymphoma. Hoge received the news about his cancer while vacationing in his cabin in Idaho with his family. When the news came, he told his kids exactly what he had and what he would have to go through without sugarcoating it. Hoge's daughter came up to him and told him "Daddy, FIND A WAY." Hoge then knew that he was in for the fight of his life, but vowed to himself that he would destroy the cancer within him.

This uplifting and motivational story of Merril Hoge is truly compelling to anyone who has been diagnosed with or knew someone with cancer, or anyone athlete or person who feel that they cannot power through tough times in their life. Hoge's book gives people hope and teaches one of the most valuable lessons of life, the mind is a powerful tool and a gift, and every person who uses this gift will be surprised at what they can accomplish and overcome.

Daniel Wenger, ND Football
Social Foundations of Coaching

The Long Ride Home

Good day all...

I thought we might switch gears today and examine one of the issues in youth sports that is overlooked more than Bobby Knight's behavior on the bench... the ride home after an athletic contest with parents. Some of the worst parenting and coaching in the world takes place in the privacy of the dreaded car ride home. Parents berate, condescend and over power young athletes to the point that many of them may lose all interest in a sport they truly love.

This was never more evident to me than with my own son. I've been his coach since he was old enough to walk. I've given him, in my opinion, some of the best coaching and advice that can be given to a young athlete. That said there's still a parent-child relationship to foster before athletics. Admittedly, I've always been tougher on my own children than other kids I've coached, but being involved with football the past few seasons has really opened my eyes.

Hmmmmm... where is he going you ask? The answer is really simple. Parents (present company included), always want the best for their kids. However, we can all be a bit over the top when "critiquing" our young athlete's play. He or she may not be living up to whatever expectation we may have, but that's not for us to decide. Although they are children, and to a point they will always be children in our eyes, they need to take some responsibility and figure things out on there own. If it's important to them, they'll go for it. As parents and role models I believe it's our job to give them every opportunity to be successful... that's it. Present the opportunity, provide support and leave the rest to them. Here are a few things to keep in mind during that "long ride home."

PURE RELENTLESS PEARLS OF WISDOM FOR PARENTS

1. Ease up a little -No matter what you say, you will never be tougher on them than they are on themselves.
2. They aren't you - So what you did at that age doesn't necessarily apply in today's sports arena.
3. Let's be honest, some of them just aren't athletically gifted - Just love them for who they are and be fine with that.
4. Ask them... don't tell them "How do you think you played today?" versus "I don't think you played well today." You might be surprised how in tune they are with how they performed.
5. Don't assume - They may not want to play the sport you played as a kid. Their favorite sport could be completely different. Let them decide which direction to go.
6. Always remember to tell them you love them - Sometimes no matter the approach you take, things can get out of hand. Just remind them that you love them and no matter what you're there for them.
7. We're talking youth sports here - nobody is picking up a check at the end of the game... if so, sign me up!
8. Relax and enjoy the game - This one is for me specifically. We've got to remember they're young and even the pros make mistakes. Lift 'em up.
9. If they ask give an honest yet loving answer - If you get them to ask what you think...think before you answer. In some cases they may be hanging on your every word.
10. Youth sports are about the experience and having fun - Never let them lose sight of that. We tell them a lot by how we conduct ourselves.

Our kids are under enough stress and pressure in today's society. Way more than any of us can ever imagine from where we've come. The last thing they need is to be placed on the defensive in the only safe place some of them may have...with mom and dad.

What High School Basketball Taught One Athlete

My sophomore basketball coach was the best coach I have ever had. In my grade we had seven kids out for basketball. Two of those kids were very good so they were up on the varsity. The rest of us were not very good basketball players, but that did not change my coach’s expectations of winning games. What makes this coach the best I ever had was what he did with very little basketball talent. He did not sign up to coach to lose.
The practices that he ran were the most efficient and effective that I have been part of. Since we were a group that was not going to dunk on anyone or make crazy drives to the basket he decided to focus on different parts of the game. The parts of the game that we focused on were parts that could be done effectively on hard work alone.
Every practice we spent half the time going over defense. We would spend a quarter of the time doing rebounding drills. We would spend the rest of the time either shooting threes or going over an aspect of the game that was more cerebral, i.e. spacing on the zone or where everyone should be on the fastbreak.
As a result we played defense and rebounded better than anyone else. We also shot the three very well. Even though our shots looked pretty bad we had practiced it so much that more often than not the ball went in. By the end of the season we were playing very smart and effective basketball.
There a lot of takeaways from this coach, but the most exciting one is that hard work and hustle still pay huge dividends. Our coach instilled in us an attitude that always made our practices intense. We would go after loose balls harder in our practices than most teams do in games. Our coach would always emphasize playing hard and smart. So we would spend about two hours a day at a breakneck pace trying to outhustle each other. Once we got to the game, that switch would not turn off.
The point of this is that as a coach, great talent is never guaranteed. However, through hard work and hustle, games can still be won. My 19-2 sophomore high school basketball team is a testament to how it is possible to win a lot of games through outworking the other team.
Jordan Smith
Social Foundations of Coaching Course
Notre Dame 2011

Learning to Teach While Teaching Series Part VII: Passion

Passion is a very peculiar word. We’ve heard it used in many different contexts over the years. Hmmmmm…let’s see – there have been crimes of passion, we’ve seen passionate outbursts by players and coaches, maybe someone we know has passion for what they do, some have even described passion in a sexual connotation meaning a physical relationship between two people – there’s even “The Passion of the Christ” for our viewing pleasure and critique…but what is the true meaning of passion.

The word passion comes from the Latin word pati which means to suffer. Latin was spoken by the early Romans and this word was used specifically when referring to the suffering of Jesus… some seven hundred or so years later the meaning began to transform into strength of feeling and ultimately what we have come to know today as love and sexual passion.

Ok, now that the history lesson is over, how does this relate to teaching while teaching? I’m glad you so profoundly asked. In the current definitions of passion it is truly important for coaches and athletes alike to have passion for what they do. Having a strong sense of purpose is part of the picture. The purpose is set in the expectation as set by the head coach and then carried forth by the leaders on the team. If all are on the same page, success is inevitable.

We’ve all heard stories of teams that over-achieve, or who did something great when the “odds” were stacked against them. I would argue that in spite of their lack of ability, skill or even numbers the players and coaches all had the same goals, mindset and were committed to achieve. Of course they were disciplined, focused and well prepared, but the ultimate difference possibly came from the passion with which they played.

Let’s see… passion comes from the Latin word meaning suffer and if a player is selfless he or she then puts his or her teammates before themselves. That in itself is an act of sacrifice (coming from the Latin word meaning; to make sacred) for the whole.

At the end of the day, as coaches we want to convey to our student-athletes the importance of giving all they have for as long as they compete. Strength of purpose, selflessness and sacrifice are all ingredients of passion. If mixed in the correct amounts along with discipline, hard work, trustworthiness and respect success is eminent…this is the true breakfast of champions!

Over the past week, the blogosphere has lit up over a video showing John O'Connor, the head basketball coach at tiny Holy Family University, shoving one of his players to the ground during an early morning rebounding drill and kicking him when he stayed down. The nineteen year old Sophomore struggled to his feet, bleeding from his nose and holding a sprained wrist that has now kept him out of the game for over a month. Coach O'Connor was dismissed from the University last week, but has since taken to the airwaves saying that although his tactics went too far, his intent was still a noble one. He insists that his "tough love" approach was designed to prepare his players for life and teach them lessons that extended beyond the basketball court. "Its always been about the kids and teaching and trying to get them to learn that, in life, there's lessons to be learned in this game" he told the Philadelphia Daily News. The incident, and O'Connor's defense of his methods, has sparked a public debate about both the role of coaches and whether or not tough-methods are appropriate. At first glance, it may seem that a ministerial-based approach to coaching would be wholly at odds with O'Connor's behavior. Although certainly it would be inexcusable to physically assault a player whose care and development has been entrusted to you, but what about the concept of tough love? Is the Norman Dale approach from Hoosiers, although unpleasant, superior to a coach who teaches only the techniques and spares his players the discomfort of challenging situations? The Video is linked below.

James Hasson, ND 2011
Social Foundations of Coaching
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ncBckf71Tbs

Learning to Teach While Teaching Series Part VI: Respect

Today we continue to move forward in our Learning to Teach While Teaching Series:

Today’s Topic: Respect

I don’t really think I need to break out into Aretha Franklin’s all time number one smash single “R-E-S-P-E-C-T” for everyone to be able to understand at least in part how important respect is… I mean geez, if there’s a song written about it I’m guessing it must be pretty important. Motown greatness aside, today I want to really examine what respect is all about…and more importantly what respect isn’t.

The given dictionary definition of respect is:

Respect – v

to avoid violation; held high or with special regard; the quality or state of being appreciated

Let’s break the definition down by segment and further examine how we (coaches, parents and student-athletes alike) should show respect to each other. I think we’ll all be interested to see how it all shakes out.

Okay, let’s see… “to avoid violation” - Wow… So, if I violate someone by speaking ill or back stabbing do I truly have respect for them? What if I circulate rumors and filth in order to gain some sort of favor for myself? I am showing respect? Not very likely…but let’s move on.

Let’s look at the second segment of the definition: “held high or with special regard” – I’m guessing that since this is a verb, there’s a bit more to it than just saying I respect someone… I actually have to show it right? How should I go about it? Is there a formula for respecting someone? You know, the “Golden Rule?” Anyone remember that from Sunday school? Man, this is really enlightening…

The last segment simply says: “the quality or state of being appreciated.” The last time I checked if someone was appreciated they were not only told, but were shown in action... more specifically in how they were treated. I think what’s most disturbing is that our words and our actions are polar opposites in some cases. As my students used to say… “that’s totally creepy.”

So from what we’ve gathered to this point, it sounds to me like the basic definition of respect is just to treat people well. Some would argue that the second and third segments of the definition are what have to be earned – special regard and appreciation. I would then argue the mere fact that you’re a human being qualifies you for those segments. I’m sure that sounds Dalai Lama(esk), but I don’t think anyone wants to be violated or unappreciated… that goes without saying – right?

SO WHAT THE HECK IS HAPPENING IN OUR COMMUNITIES?

Why do young people show so little respect for authority today? Why don’t young people respect their teachers? Have coaches forgotten how important their roles are in the lives of young people? Why aren’t parents more respectful of teachers and coaches who, in essence, spend more time with their children than they do? Why are parents, players and coaches so completely out of control at games? Why don’t teachers and administrator respect each other? Why don’t coaches show more respect for student-athletes? Why do teachers have a chip on their shoulders? Why do busy-bodies need so much drama? Why do we dislike the person who is happy? Why does negativity sell? Why does one person feel the need to control another? Why is power so important? Why do jealousy and envy exist? Why is retaliation always the answer? Why is there always an excuse? Why is this list of questions infinitely long?

I don’t know either…

At day’s end respect is something you give and until the other person gives you a specific reason to do otherwise you continue to show it. In treating others with respect we inevitably respect ourselves… if one doesn’t have respect for himself how is it then possible for him to respect someone else…? Instead of reciting “respect isn’t given it’s earned” maybe we should say: “respect is given, but common sense is learned.”

I’m just sayin…