I had the good fortune to have spent the weekend in Durant, OK at a Glazier Football Coaches Clinic. There were HS coaches from OK, TX, Arkansas, Kansas and Missouri that I met. Very friendly and eager to learn. When my 8:30 am session on Saturday morning is nearly full, I know that these guys are serious about being a “student of the game!”
The DC’s from Jenks, OK and Allen, TX (the 6A State Champs in both states!) spent some time with me. The thing that I found most impressive about them was their humility. Both guys have experienced a lot of success and they know how fortunate they are to be at such top-tier programs. But, neither one of them sat there and talked about “me.” They complimented their head coach. They talked about the program as a whole. The only time I heard “me” or “I” was in the context of how blessed I am!!!
The Glazier folks had Cory Cain, the DC at Allen, TX HS, and I go head to head in a “Chalk War” segment on Saturday. It was my Wing T offense vs. his Even-front defense. I got the chalk first. I told him (and the audience) that we wouldn’t stand a chance against his team… so I was going to pull out every trick in the U. of Delaware playbook to try and confuse him! Rather than acting arrogant, he took it in good spirits and we had fun bantering back and forth as I tried to exploit his defensive adjustments and he was aligning his folks to stop us. We had a chance to chat afterwards and I found him to be quite engaging. A coach came up to us, shook both our hands and thanked us for a great session. What I appreciated the most was what the coach said as he left… “2 humble guys just having fun trying to out-coach each other.”
The lesson here? You can be proud that you are a high school coach but… stay humble! In my mind, there’s a difference between being cocky and confident. Someone who is “cocky” is trying to convince himself as much as he’s trying to convince others as to how important he is. A confident person, though, is like a black belt in karate. He knows he’s good! Why? Cuz he has successful experience to back it up. He doesn’t have to walk around proclaiming to everyone how good he is.
The last person I want to talk to is a Know-it-all! Give me someone with a “teachable spirit” who is open to learning and I will pour my knowledge and experience into him. Otherwise, don’t “walk around in my head with your dirty feet!” (A wise saying I heard a pastor once share!)
