Big Blue Nation and the University of Kentucky recently won its’ 8th NCAA men’s basketball national championship (editor’s note: originally published on April 26, 2012). Head coach John Calipari and his much-publicized dribble drive offense finally got his first national title after a near miss with the University of Memphis in 2008 against the Kansas Jayhawks. Though Coach Cal added to his already spectacular career, the dribble drive did not really add a national championship to its resume.
Why Pat Summitt is the Best
(editor’s note: published on April 18, 2012)
Today is a sad day not only in the state of Tennessee but across the nation. Pat Summitt, all of 59 years young, 8 national championships, nearly 1,100 wins (most all-time, men or women) and countless branches on her coaching tree, stepped down from being the Lady Vol head coach. Coach Summitt’s associate head coach, Holly Warlick, will take over the reigns full-time. Head Coach Emeritus is the new title that Coach Summitt has earned. Just like everything else she has done in her career, I am sure that she’ll be the best at this position. [Read more…]
15 Best Books for Coaches
“It’s what you learn after you know it all that counts.”
(John Wooden)
In a previous post, I talked about some of the best books for leaders, whether you are a coach or not. Today, I will recommend the books that will help a coach in nearly any sport at any level. A couple of the books may seem sport specific, but contain information and insight that can help you regardless of what you coach. Even if you are not an avid reader, flip through some of these books and steal one or two ideas to implement with your teams or to strengthen your coaching philosophy. These are 15 books that are different than my list for leaders. However, I would definitely suggest looking at those books as well.
Greener Grass?
In his book WINNING EVERY DAY, the former Notre Dame football coach, Lou Holtz, tells the story of the Trappist monk who was allowed to say only two words every three years.
After the first three years, he met with the his order’s Brother Superior and said, “Bad bed!”
3 years later, he came back to say, “Bad food!”
After 3 more years of silence, the monk said, “No TV!”
Another 3 years passed. This time, when the monk met with Brother Superior, he handed him his robes and sandals and announced, “I quit!”
Brother Superior said, “Well don’t expect me to try to dissuade you. You’ve done nothing but complain since you got here!”
What’s Important to You?
“It is true that integrity alone won’t make you a leader, but without integrity you will never be one.” (Zig Ziglar)
An Ohio State student and University of Michigan student were taking a graduate school entrance exam.
Afterward, the proctor called both of them into an office and proceeded to tell them that they both missed only one question on the test, but that the Michigan student was receiving an “A” and that the Ohio State student would fail.
Another Leader “Crashes”
(Originally published on April 11, 2012)
Joe Paterno, Jim Tressell, Bruce Pearl, the list goes on and on. You can now add former University of Arkansas head football coach to the list of great coaches . . . great leaders, that fell short of their obligations as individuals of character.
Defense Wins Championships
All of us sports fans have heard it said that “Defense Wins Championships”. Though that axiom has a lot of legitimacy, it is hard to say whether it is 100% true. Lots of things go into winning a championship. However, I must say that this year, it seemed that I noticed more winning coaches praising their team’s defensive efforts as the main reason for their success. This has gotten me to thinking about my team and whether or not we should emphasize defense even more next year. It probably can’t hurt. Regardless, here are some of the examples that I am talking about when it comes to defense helping a team win a basketball championship.15 Best Books for Leaders
“I do not think much of a man who is not wiser today than he was yesterday.” (Abraham Lincoln)
As a basketball coach, I have a tremendous opportunity to lead and influence people every day. Certainly leadership involves a great many things, however, I have found that constantly learning and re-learning methods, strategies, and insights gives me a better chance to lead in a positive manner. Reading books is one of the key resources that I utilize in trying to sharpen my leadership skills. Every once in awhile, I’ll even read a book again because it was so good. Below are some of the books that I’d recommend highly for anyone seeking to be a better leader.
Championship Lessons Learned at NAIA National Tournament
(originally published on March 27, 2012)From March 10-20, I spent time serving on the NAIA National Tournament Committee. It was a bittersweet experience. Meeting all the coaches, watching all the games, observing many practices and helping the tournament run smoothly was great. However, it was difficult watching the teams play knowing that we had been fairly close to qualifying ourselves. If only we’d won 1-2 more games, we might have been one of the 32-teams that earned a bid. I must say that Rob Edmission’s Oklahoma City University team was extremely impressive throughout the entire tournament. They beat Union University in the championship game, which is no small feat. As I watched the games and thought about how to get my team to the tournament, I came up with some observations. In no particular order, I have listed them below.
Best Basketball Coaches Not on TV
(originally published on March 7, 2012)
A recent blog posting by Helen Wheelock got me thinking about coaching job searches and who administrators hire. Seems like most of the talk always centers around the DI coaches, especially the “up-and-comers”. I do not profess to know exactly what makes a good coach in all situations. Good coaches in a bad situation can lead to struggles and failures, whereas unproven coaches (i.e. assistants) in good situations can lead to success and excitement.