Sunday, December 4, 2011

UNDERRATED ROLE: COACH'S SPOUSE

This comes from an article on ESPN.com written by Ivan Maisel.  So much is written and spoken about the sacrifices made by coaches and athletes but not nearly enough about the spouse of a coach and the role they play in the success of programs.

On the day before Bedlam, Oklahoma State football coach Mike Gundy received a text from Kurt Budke's wife, Shelley.

"Mike, I got your number through Kurt's Contacts," Gundy said, reading from his phone. "I know everybody is excited about Bedlam. I don't want to put any pressure on you, because I know you have enough. I just want you to know how excited Kurt would be for this game. He was so bummed out that they moved Bedlam to this weekend.' -- He would have to play in Indiana tomorrow," Gundy explained.

"'I have to say this for him. Good luck. You've done a great job. Believe in yourself, believe in God, and believe in the team.'

"How about that?" Gundy said. "That's the kind of person she is. When Kristen and I went to see her the next morning, she said, 'I'm so sorry about the game.' I thought, that's a typical coach's wife. She had enough to her, she had to text because she knew Kurt wanted it."