THE IMPORTANCE OF ROLES

Here are some great thoughts on role players from the book "Toughness" by Jay Bilas:

A great role player and a tough player must determine what he would sacrifice to win. What task is too small? What role is beneath me? Is there anything I am not willing to do for this team to win, or for this team to operate at its highest level? To be a great role player and a tough player, you have to embrace that championship teams are “we” driven and not “me” driven.

Kansas coach Bill Self also assigns players to the roles he expects them to play, but he is careful never to take away or limit their games. He encourages them in what he wants them to do, but he tries to avoid telling them what not to do. “Your role is different from your value,” he said, “and there are so many times that players have to be able to break out of their roles. A role shouldn’t be a limitation.”

Boston Celtics head coach Doc Rivers said, “Every player has to believe his role is the most important role on the team. We cannot win without each player executing his role to the best of his ability.”

9 BLOG POSTS TO IMPROVE YOUR OFF-SEASON

Here is a series of blogs that we posted in the past to help coaches maximize the off-season:

John Maxwell on Making the Most of Your Off-Season
Everyone that follows our blog knows how much we admire and respect John Maxwell.  Here are five areas he says for us to work on between seasons.

Rick Majerus Concepts of Summer Pick Up Games
A great set of guidelines for Coach Majerus who was obviously dedicating his team's off-season to pressuring the ball and the passing lanes.  The key question is what guidelines have you gave your team to help develop in the areas that important to you.

Individual Ball Handling Drills from Coach Don Meyer
No better teacher in the game than Coach Meyer.  Here is one of our blog posts that includes a video of some of Coach Meyer's players executing some of his dribbling maneuvers.

The Advantages of Individual Workouts
Here is a short post with some great concepts from another great teacher -- Bill Walsh.

Morgan Wooten: Post Season Evaluations
The ability to take a reflective look back on the season and be able to decide what needs to be adjusted is a key to growth. Here is a good checklist from one of the greats in our business.

Muffet McGraw on Players Expanding their Roles in the Off-Season
Several excellent excerpts from a book written by Coach McGraw on how she motivates players through the off-season with the goal of expanding their roles through work and development.

Aggie Summer Pick Up Guidelines
Here is our list of summer pick up guidelines that we go over and give to our team.

Off-Season Shooting Program
This post has some good guidelines for how to operate a summer shooting program as well as a good video of a shooting drill by J.J. Reddick .

Creative Strength & Conditioning
Good stuff here from the Florida men's basketball program.  Strength and conditioning in the summer is difficult -- it has to be for gains.  But it can be made enjoyable for competitive athletes.  There's a video attached of some of the stuff done at Florida.

A GREAT STORY OF WORKING HARD UNTIL YOUR OPPORTUNITY ARRIVES

One of the things I enjoy when I can is listening to Coach Mike Krzyzewski's "Basketball and Beyond with Coach K on SiriusXM."  Coach K always has great guest and ask the best questions.

NESN.com provided some excerpts of his upcoming interview with Patriots head coach Bill Belichick discussed scouting Malcom Butler. The full interview airs Thursday at 6 p.m. on SiriusXM channel 91.  What I found fascinating was that Butler was on and off the roster the entire season.  We constantly talk to our players about staying in the moment -- about preparing for your opportunity.  Butler could have many times fold the tent up.  First he wasn't drafted.  Then he was invited to camp.  Then there were a few games he was deactivated.  But he obviously maintained the work ethic and attitude needed for Belichick to keep him around.

Here is a brief look at Coach K's conversation with Coach Belichick:

Krzyzewski asked Belichick, “How do you find Malcolm Butler? How is he in that play in the Super Bowl from where he was, where he came from?”

“You know, Mike, that’s a great question,” Belichick said. “When we scouted him at West Alabama the information on him wasn’t accurate and somehow or other his times and kind of athleticism got lost in the shuffle as sort of a slower corner that was just an OK athlete.

“After the draft we signed a lot of free agents, and we had really no spots on our roster, and we invited about 20 players who weren’t drafted in for a weekend workout. He was one of those players and in order to sign him to our roster, we had to release somebody that we had already scouted and put on our team. But we just thought that Malcolm would be able to be competitive based on his athleticism and ball skills and how quickly he picked things up in the couple days that he was with us.

“So we didn’t even have a roster spot, we created one. He came in and he played well in the spring, carried that over into training camp, ended up making the roster and was on and off the roster at different times during the year. There were a couple games he wasn’t active for. He kept competing, he kept getting better, and from West Alabama to Arizona and the Super Bowl is a long way. But he did it with a lot of hard work and he had an opportunity and he took advantage of it so it is really kind of a dream story for him and, you know, for all kids that play sports.”

BE READY FOR YOUR OPPORTUNITY BUT MASTER YOUR ROLE IN THE MEANTIME

I had the honor of knowing Garrett Temple at a young age because of my relationship with his family.  You knew that no matter what Garrett decided to do in life that he was going to be successful -- he had the right attitude and mindset.  His father Collis Temple was the first African-American to play at LSU and Garrett's older brother, Collis III, was an outstanding student-athlete as well.

The following is an excerpt of an article written by Jorge Castillo for the Washington Post (you can read it in it's entirety here).  It speaks of Garrett's desire to play and compete but his maturity in understand that a professional not only accepts the role he or she has but masters it.  His ability to step in and start early in the season speaks to his being ready when his opportunity came.  I'm a big Garrett Temple fan -- here's why:

Garrett Temple understands his role on the Washington Wizards. He was re-signed over the summer to provide depth at both guard positions as a defensive specialist but, most importantly, to bring a professional presence in the locker room. Temple has fulfilled those duties. He has played sparingly over the last two months but has maintained a positive attitude. He is often the first player applauding his teammates and constantly provides words of encourage. He plays the role to perfection.

But Temple believes he can be more than just a morale booster. He thinks he can contribute on the floor and points to the 13 games he started at the beginning of the season as evidence. He supplied further proof in the Wizards 106-98 loss to the Phoenix Suns Wednesday, captaining an all-reserve unit that trimmed Washington’s deficit from 17 to four points in less than five minutes to start the fourth quarter.

“I know I can play in this league,” Temple, 28, said. “Hopefully I showed that I deserve to play. I’ll get my chance but like I said, I’m going to be a great team player. Whenever I get a chance to play, I’ll go out there and give it my best and that’s basically it.”

“I want to play. I always want to play,” Temple said. “In the NBA you have to have some kind of confidence to be here and I know I can play in this league and I know I can help this team. But at the end of the day, it’s a team sport and we have a lot of guys that have that same mentality.”

Temple was a mainstay on the floor at the beginning of the season. With Bradley Beal sidelined due to a fractured left wrist, Temple started the Wizards’ first 13 games and reached double figures in four of Washington’s five games before his offensive production tapered off. Since then, he has had to adjust to impacting his team through other avenues.

"Me and Drew Gooden talked about this a few weeks ago; you can always affect the game,” Temple said. “If you’re not playing you can affect [a game] by how you act on the bench. If you’re smiling, you’re up being positive, that affects the game. If not, if you have a frown on your face, if you’re looking upset, you want to get into the game and you’re pouting, that’s going to be a negative effect on the game. So whatever I do, I’m going to affect the game in a positive way however I can."

A LITTLE BIT OF EVERYTHING

Here's some really great stuff from Mitch Cole of the Texas A&M men's basketball staff.  Mitch puts out an outstanding email newsletter and if you haven't signed up for it your missing out.  Email Mitch and request to be on the list and you will regularly get stuff that will help your program.  Here is some of what's in this week's edition:

As I gathered some notes from various clinics, conversations and roundtable discussions this off-season, I wanted to pass on a few random phrases and thoughts that I jotted down as I heard them from different coaches, leaders, and basketball people during the past few months. I thought you might find some of them interesting:


ON LEADING A PROGRAM:

-Fight for your culture everyday.

-Be "relentlessly self critical" as a leader.

-in the off-season, teach the players: 1. How to work 2. How to love one another.

-Most leaders vastly UNDER-communicate their vision.
 

ADVICE FOR COACHES:

-Establish key roles for players that don’t revolve around scoring.

-Coaching is taking a player where he can’t take himself.

-Embrace the other coaches in your department.

-The best coaches continue to learn.

 

ON DEFENSE:

-“I’ve never heard a coach say “hey, you need to dribble more”. Therefore, we want to deny all passes to make the other team dribble more!”

-If you are a help team, the HELP cannot get beat.

-Have your "nose on his top hip" when guarding the wing.

-Always convert on any steal in practice.

-Pressing coaches need to have “amnesia.” You might give up a layup, but forget about it.

-Always Chart contested shots and deflections.

-Use more film, less drills.

 

ON OFFENSE:

-Shot selection is a HUGE factor in offensive rebounding.
 

-Goal is to get 45% of misses back vs Zone Defense.

-2 things that will not be tolerated: 1. Lazy cuts 2. No effort on offensive glass.

-Work on pivoting to finish, and pivoting to pass.

 

ON EVALUATING PLAYERS:

-Need on court and off court selflessness.

-Need players I don’t have to rev up every day. Motor!

-Can he guard his position? More than one position?

-Does he have a realistic view of himself?

-How does he handle adversity?

 

ON DEALING WITH SOCIAL MEDIA:

-Players are now concerned with THEIR BRAND more than their game.

-Confront the disillusionment of a player’s ego.

-Social Media is a privilege. Your BRAND is not bigger than OUR BRAND.

-Most players are not equipped to handle it. If you like taking compliments, you better be ok with taking criticism.

OFF-SEASON THOUGHTS -- DAY #4: COACH McGRAW ON PLAYERS' EXPANDING ROLES AND COACHES GROWING IN THE OFF-SEASON

OFF-SEASON THOUGHTS -- DAY #4: During this 10-day period, we are going to load up our blog on thoughts that are relevant to developing or improving your off-season program.  We will delve on off-season topics from player development and drill work to motivation and team building.  It will be our sincere wish that over the next 10 days we can provide you with at least one item or thought that will help you and your program.

The following comes from "Courting Success" which is a book written by Notre Dame coach Muffet McGraw.  It was written in 2003 following their NCAA Championship season and is one of my favorites because it delves into the philosophy that she has used to create an elite program. I have added some comments in bold italics:

"A player who refuses to accept her role will be unhappy, and usually ends up transferring.  I also tell them that if they don't like their role, then they should use the summer to change it."

I think this is critically important.  Players don't have to accept a current role as permanent.  They need to know that consistent, deliberate work in the off-season can add to their game and thus expand their role.  The thing that has to happen though is the communication of this concept from the coach.  Year-end meetings are necessary to help give a player motivation and vision for the off-season.  It must be communicated to the player exactly how you see her/his game.  Never assume they know how you feel -- that is a recipe for disaster.  Let them know what they did well and where they need to improve.  The next step is to give them a blueprint.  Be very detailed in the areas you want them to improve and be specific and how they can improve.  We give our players summer booklets that detail what we want them to work on including specific drills for them to use.  Each book is created individually to meet the needs of that particular student-athlete.

More from Coach McGraw:

"Great players work more individually outside of practice than the average players.  The really great players are the ones who come in early, stay late, and come in on their own.  Beth Morgan, Ruth Riley, and Katryna Gaither are examples, and it's obvious why they were the best players.  They knew their weaknesses, and they worked on those weaknesses.  We've had good players who came in and worked hard in practice.  But after those two hours are over, they leave.  The only way you can improve as a player is by what you do on your own.  To that extend, I believe that players are made over the summer.  If you put the time in over the summer, when the coaches aren't allowed to be there, that's when you really see the improvement.  It's very evident who put in the extra effort."

What I liked about Coach McGraw's passage above is that she called out the names of the players on her team that had excelled in the off-season.  As a coach, it's important that you acknowledge those that are dedicated in the off-season.  First, because they have earned your compliment.  And second -- and more importantly -- that you let your entire team know that you as a coach recognize those that are putting in the work.

And as Coach McGraw points out, the off-season is also a time of dedicated work for a coaching staff as well:

"At the end of the season, we begin preparing practices for the next year.  We review our offenses and defensed.  We watch a lot of game film.  Then we try to decide, based on which players will be returning, what will work and what won't next season.  We might talk about introducing new things depending upon our personnel.  It's important to do this because we can spend the summer learning.  We visit coaches and go to clinics.  If we think we'll be able to press in the upcoming season, for example, I'll assign an assistant coach to go visit Rick Pitino to learn more about presses.  In other words, for coaches, summer is for homework."

Again, the obvious approach of Coach McGraw and her staff in the summer is to work and continue to improve.  But the other positive effect to this is that her players see that the coaches are dedicated to off-season growth as well.  There is a reason that continuously successful programs continue to be successful -- it's a year-round occupation!

LEARNING YOUR ROLE, EARNING YOUR TIME

The following is an excerpt from NFL.com by Daniel Kim.  It speaks to the fact that many players that are successful must start at the bottom, learn the game and work to earn their playing time.  I thought Coach Saban's quote at the bottom was outstanding

In an interview with CBS Sports Radio's Jim Rome last week, McCarron said he thought elite prospects tend to enter college with the idea that they're too good to sit on the bench. "It's a little entitlement, and when they don't play off the bat, they get a little ticked off and they don't want to work," McCarron said.

Nick Saban didn't necessarily disagree with McCarron, but he said he remembers McCarron wasn't that different in his first few days with the Crimson Tide.

"When they were freshmen they had the same issues," Saban said, referring to McCarron and other Crimson Tide stars. "I remember when AJ came up in my office all upset because he was the third-string quarterback after the first scrimmage. So, you know, sometimes we forget what it's like to be a teenager."

McCarron arrived at Alabama as a four-star recruit. After redshirting in 2009, he served as a backup the following season before taking over as the starting quarterback in 2011. He went on to lead the Crimson Tide to two national titles as a starter.

Saban, of course, has plenty of experience managing the expectations of elite prospects.

Said Saban: "We want everybody to have goals and aspirations for everything they want to accomplish here. We just want them to be realistic about what they have to do to accomplish those goals, and to understand the competition here is actually going to help them be successful and help them to be better."

3 THINGS TO LEARN FROM COACH K

I ran across an absolutely great article written by Jesse Burkhart for the Triangle Business Journal.  Burkhart is doing a piece on Coach Mike Krzyzewski and how his philosophy can relate to businesspeople. You can read Burkhart's blog piece here but I am certainly looking for his article that will appear later.  Here are some excerpts from his blog:

Based on the things we discussed in our conversation, here are three things I think businesspeople - and really, everyone - should borrow from Coach K’s playbook:

1. Never stop building trust.
When I asked Coach K to describe his leadership style, he told me that it’s “constantly changing” based on the people he’s leading, but “the basic foundation of it is the development of trust.”

“In other words, you’re always truthful with the people you lead,” he said. “You’re always prepared. I think you should always show courage and have a value-based leadership that can be trusted. If you have trust from the person or the people you’re leading, good things are going to happen.”

2. Understand that your job and your role aren’t the same thing.
Coach K understands that Duke University employs him to coach the basketball team, but that his role at the school and in the community goes well beyond the court.

As an example, Coach K pointed to his role as an executive-in-residence with Duke’s Fuqua School of Business and the part he played in helping build a leadership center there called COLE (Center for Organizational Leadership and Ethics). He also helps raise money for the Duke University Medical Center, and has been enlisted by Dr. Victor Dzau (CEO of the Duke Health System) in the recruiting process of doctors.

“I look at my job as being an ambassador for our university, and hence, our community," he said. "As a result of being seen on TV with your games, the many interviews you do and the shows you’re on, you end up being the most visible person to the public. Not the most important person, by far, but the most visible person. I understand that I’m representing my school and my community when I’m doing those things.”

3. Reinvest your success in the people around you.
Coach K’s humanitarian and civic-service efforts are well-documented, and he clearly has a soft spot for children.

The Emily Krzyzewski Center, the Durham educational nonprofit established in 2006 and named after Coach K’s mother, remains priority No. 1 for both Coach K and his wife, Mickie, whom he credits for organizing his off-the-court obligations. And when I spoke with Dr. Richard Brodhead, president of Duke University, he specifically mentioned Coach K’s continual involvement in the Duke Children’s Hospital.

“I get credit for quite a bit because I’m always out there (in the public eye),” Coach K said. “For (Mickie and I), we’d rather not get any credit at all. If you’re doing something to get recognition for it, you’re not doing it for the right reasons.”

HAMMERS AND HUGGERS

The following comes from an outstanding book I'm reading titled "Damn Few" by Rorke Denver, the former head of Basic and Advanced SEAL Training.  The book, which I haven't quite finished yet is a great read into how the SEALS train.  If was fascinating to know that  not only did they develop roles within the SEALS but in the instructors as well:

 

The students have a term for the most fearsome instructors, instructors who demand the most, yell the loudest, and seem the most impossible to please.  They are the "hammers" -- loud, hard, and unyielding.  They are the opposite of the "huggers," instructors who are warmer, friendlier, and kinder.  The truth is that BUDS/S (Basic Underwater Demolition/SEAL) need both.  The BUD/S huggers, who'd be considered hammers anywhere else, motivate with support, encouragement, and understanding.  The hammers motivate by demanding more and more and more.

DEFINING AND DEVELOPING YOUR CONTRIBUTION

I actually posted this in our blog for players, Hoopboost but after reading it, I think it is just as important for assistant coaches, support staff, managers and others who have important roles in successful program.  So when you read "player," think "assistant coach" or whatever role you are filling...

The mindset of a player who wants to contribute to a team's success is much different than a selfish player that is just looking to be a start and standout.

The following comes from "On Managing Yourself" which is a book sponsored by the Harvard Business Review.  This particular passage comes from the great Peter Drucker who believes we must start with the first essential question:

What should my contribution be?

To answer it, they must address three distinct elements:

#1 What does the situation require?

#2 Given my strengths, my way of performing, and my values, how can I make the greatest contribution to what needs to be done?

#3 And finally, what results have to be achieved to make a difference.

Drucker's questions seem quite simple but it takes a truly honest, self-evaluating team player to ask these questions.  Then it takes a committed, team-oriented player to go about doing the work necessary to create the contribution that he/she wants to truly make.

COHESION

"Unit cohesion is one of those terms that everyone thinks they understand.  In truth, most people don't have a clue.  It is definitely not about everybody liking each other or being nice.  It means you have a pride in the ability of your group to function at a higher level than possible for the individual.  The unit doesn't shine because you're a member, you shine because you're good enough to be a member."

-John Roat, Navy Seal

DO YOUR PEOPLE KNOW HOW THEY FIT INTO THE BIG PICTURE

I love this passage from John Maxwell.  It speaks to how we must properly develop each and every role that we have on our team.  Every single person involved is important -- we know this -- but do they know this.  Does the primary screener know on your team know that without her you primary scorer will struggle to get open.  How about members of your staff?  When was the last time you told your managers your secretary how they make a different and why they are so necessary for us to be successful?  Here is how Maxwell frames it:

Field Marshall Bernard Montgomery, a leader of troops during World War II who was called a "soldier's general," write that "every single soldier must know before he goes into battle, how the little battle he is to fight fits into the larger picture, and how the success of his fighting will influence the battle as a whole."  People on the team need to know why they are fighting.

John Maxwell from "The 17 Indisputable Laws of Teamwork"

A STEP UP ASSISTANT COACHING SYMPOSIUM: SYLVIA HATCHELL

North Carolina's Sylvia Hatchell was the 2nd Keynote Legends speaker (Brendan Suhr was the first) at A Step Up Assistant Coaching Symposium:

Coach Hatchell created her own "thank you tour" where she went around and met everyone that gave her an opportunity.

"I'm not a good loser.  After 5 losses at Francis Marion I actually applied for a job with UPS because I could stand the losing."

Characteristics important for being an assistant coach:

1. Most important quality is loyalty

2. Discipline...she told a story of Charlotte Smith who missed curfew the night before the National Championship game...Charlotte hit a 3 at the buzzer to win the National Championship game...following the National Championship celebration, Charlotte had to run for missing curfew.

Coach Hatchell talked about starting out as a head coach where she had to drive the bus, wash uniforms and sweep floors.

3. Chemistry...it's like the win -- you can't see it but you can see results...treat them the way you want to be treated.

4. Priorities

5. Roles -- know and accept

6. Passion

Coach Hatchell's roles
    #1 The Players I have
    #2 Recruiting
    #3 Everything else

UNDERSTANDING AND APPRECIATING THE IMPORTANCE OF YOUR ROLE

Here's a great story about attitude and understanding the importance of your role from Jon Gordon's "The Energy Bus."

There’s a story about when President Lyndon Johnson visited NASA and as he was walking the halls he came across a janitor who was cleaning up a storm, like the Energizer bunny with a mop in his hand. The president walked over to the janitor and told him he was the best janitor he had ever seen and the janitor replied, “Sir, I’m not just a janitor, I helped put a man on the moon.”

DON MEYER: SERVANT LEADERSHIP TOUR 2012 (PART II)

ROLES

1. Roles: Define, Understand, Accept, Fulfill

2. On a good team a few guys do the dirty jobs.  On a great team everyone does the dirty jobs.

3. Brad Stevens on Eli Lily: "Do your job the best you can and everything else will work itself out."

4. You have to know what you know and what you don't know.  Knowing what you don't know is probably more important than knowing what you know.  Know who you are and what your game is.  A person has to know their limitations.

5. I am a setup man now and I must learn to use other people's talents in order to use my own.

Please be sure to check out: www.CoachDonMeyer.com

JOE TORRE - LOOK TO YOURSELF: KNOWING YOUR SKILLS, LIMITS, AND POTENTIAL

Managers must know the people they manage, but as a team player you must know yourself, and by that I mean acknowledging your skills, your limits, and your potential.

Recognizing your own talents is crucial.

The successful ballplayer knows his strengths and skills, and he avoids fruitless attempts to be someone he isn’t.

Part of knowing yourself as a team player, therefore, is accepting your limits.

Stay within yourself.

Recognizing our limits can also be a way to recognize our strengths.

Most high achievers have a specialty.

Add knowledge of your own strengths to a maximum effort to improve, and you have a formula for success.

LAWRENCE FRANK ON PROCESS AND ROLES

Here's a couple of great thoughts I got from Lawrence Frank at Coaching U Live this summer in Washington D.C.  Granted I had over 20 pages of notes from his two sessions but here are just a few that I'll share.  I don't mean to be redundant, but if you can at all possibly swing it, find your way to Coaching U Live next summer!

As a process oriented coach, I loved this thought:

"Don't let the wins and losses get in your eyes."

"We will be at our best when times are at their worst because of our habits, attitude and chemistry."

In regard to your philosophy and system of play:

"It not enough to verbalize.  Put it in writing -- be transparent."

"Everyone has problems.  Who's causing them and how do you handle it."

"What are your non-negotiables...offensively...defensively...in regard to your culture."

In regard to roles:

"If you can add value, they will listen."

"It is not enough for a player know his role...he must buy in."

Coach Franks also said this about roles:
     1. Entire team must know every one's roles
     2. 5 things -- 1st is always defense
     3. Laminated in their lockers

RICK CARLISLE ON ROLE DEVELOPMENT

Rick Carlisle on how to get your players to conform to their roles:

• At some point you’re going to hit a touch stretch and guys are going to complain about their roles.

• We laminated cards with exact definitions of each player’s roles:

“Player's Name: Leader, scorer, rebounder, defender, game closer.”

ULTIMATE COACHES CLINIC: PAT SUMMITT

In 2008, Pat Williams, the GM of the Orlando Magic and a tremendous motivational speaker put out a book, "The Ultimate Coaches' Clinic." It is a fascinating book because of the style Pat utilized. He surveyed over 1000 coaches and administrators for insights to what is important to successfully do their job. It is a great book to own and I highly recommend it. Here are some thoughts from Pat Summitt:

•Communicating is not just about giving great speeches. It’s about allowing others to express themselves. Often a strong, dominant leader is the worst listener. He or she is too busy telling everyone else what to do and what to think. The more I have listened to our players, the better I have known them and understood them, and the easier it has been to know the right things to say to them. While you are listening to someone, don’t just take in the words. Study the speaker. Be aware of the speaker’s voice and mannerisms. Notice what his effect is on you. Become aware of your own voice and body language too.

•Coaching, parenting, and working in an office are all alike in one respect. To be credible, you must be consistent. Any sign of inconsistency and you instantly lose credibility.

•Your competitors make you better. Having worthy adversaries stimulates your work ethics, and bring out qualities you may not have known you had. So don’t resent them. You should love your competitors. And you should thank them.

•People will perform so much better if they understand their specific role and what is expected of them. It’s like the potluck dinner: It doesn’t work if it’s disorganized and unclear. If people don’t know what they’re supposed to bring, you don’t get a good dinner. Some people bring too much, others bring nothing at all.

RANDOM COACHING THOUGHTS (PART VI)

RECRUITING

ROY WILLIAMS: “I recruit character as much as I recruit ability. And if you’ve built a team of character, they can handle moments that others cannot and they accept coaching on how to manage pressure.”

RELATIONSHIPS

BILLY DONOVAN: “The first thing you must understand is that the person being motivated must have the feeling that the one doing the motivating really cares about you.”

RESPECT

ANSON DORRANCE: “Invariably, the route to becoming liked is through respect. And I think one of the great mistakes that all the young coaches make as they are entering the profession is the feeling that they have to be liked.”

RESPONSIBILITY

TOM OSBORNE: "The players felt a responsibility not only to the program but to the men who had preceded them as well. Our players and coaches cared about the program to an unusual degree and were willing to pay a great price to ensure a continuation of excellence. Once a football program or organization reaches a point where the people involved begin to feel that type of loyalty, great things begin to happen."

ROLES

PHIL JACKSON: "It's just trying to keep everybody prepared to contribute. Sometimes you can only play a guy a couple of minutes. They just have to understand that whatever they have to do, to go in there and play is an important part of it. A coach can always read disappointment on a player's body language. But this is a team that wants to win and they know to do so they have to be willing to put 'me' second to team. That's an important aspect of it."

RULES

DALE BROWN: “The fewer rules the better. Rules reduce freedom and responsibility. Enforcement of rules is coercive and manipulative, which diminishes spontaneity and absorbs group energy.”

SACRIFICE

BEAR BRYANT: “If it’s worth playing, it’s worth paying the price.”

SALARY

BO SCHEMBECHLER: "When you're just starting out, it's better to make peanuts for a great leader than it is to make some big salary from a mediocre one."

SCHEDULING

DON MEYER: "Scheduling can give your early success but you can't overdo it. Remember, you can't build anything picking up sticks but you can get killed when the big trees fall."

SELF-DISCIPLINE

DICK BENNETT: “It is a paradoxical statement, but it takes incredible personal discipline to play with great freedom.”