Coach,
I know it’s only September (or should I say already September?!) but let me say: THANK YOU!
Thank you for how you are working, night and day, to impact young people! The work you are doing is more important now than ever!
As of this writing, 31.8% of the districts across the state are signed-up for The Texas Way! Thank you for being a leader that sees just how important the work of sportsmanship is!
I am stoked about how well The Texas Way has rolled out…but now the REAL work begins.
Now that we know who is on the team, it’s GAME ON!
In this week’s Texas Way Weekly, I am going to share how you can be GAME ON and maximize the impact of The Texas Way for your district. Let’s go!
1. Be GAME ON and PREPARE for Success
At its core, The Texas Way is a tool. A tool to teach and equip coaches and athletes to develop good sportsmanship; a tool to help communities come together around sports; a tool to protect the game.
But a tool is only as useful as it is used.
The Texas Way, on its own, will not change the game. Only when it is put together with all that you as coaches do day in and day out will it make a difference. Sadly, we have already seen coaches that have signed up for The Texas Way, but are not implementing it, much less using it to amplify their work.
I can’t stress this enough: If you fail to prepare, you will prepare to fail.
Three ways you can prepare to maximize The Texas Way:
- Have officials evaluate your coaching staff, players and fans after games.
What gets measured gets improved. If you want to see sportsmanship grow in your program, get real time feedback from officials. Lubbock ISD Athletic Director, Mike Meeks, shared this form that he asks each officiating crew to fill out about the sportsmanship of his teams {https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1NVKN7GS5rqh_-WIiDZI_uy1Pi2UK4FeqnqxVNa-BpoU/edit?ts=665a234a}. You can use it as a template for your own district. - Integrate The Texas Way Pillars into your everyday conversations.
Include The Texas Way into your everyday communications with parents, kids, and school leadership. Don’t let the first time they hear about sportsmanship be when there is an issue. Control the story and tell them about what you and your coaches are doing to tackle this issue. - Prepare for the worst.
No coach wants there to ever be a fight or sportsmanship issue, but the reality is that these things happen. Prepare your coaches and athletes for the worst by teaching them exactly what they need to do should a fight break out. Schedule, document, and practice this protocol. Think of it like a fire drill–you never want to have to put it into practice, but if you do, you will be glad you did.
2. Be GAME ON and TELL the Story
Negative stories are powerful. That’s why social media and news outlets lead with them. And if there is a sportsmanship issue, you can bet the negative story will be blasted from the rooftops. That’s why to maximize the impact of The Texas Way, we must TELL THE STORY before someone else does.
We need to tell the story of just how hard our coaches are working to go beyond the game. Tell the story of how great our kids are. Tell the story that we are not waiting for someone else to solve the sportsmanship challenge, but that we are GAME ON and in the fight.
One way you can do that is by utilizing the more resources tab in your dashboard. {https://portal.2words.tv/texaswayassets}
Here you will find everything from PA announcements and scoreboard videos, to artwork for shirts, stadium signs, to templates for letters to parents and much more.
Another way you can tell the story is to invite your local newspaper or news station to come do a story on what you are doing to improve sportsmanship and build character and leadership in your students. We are collecting stories on our website, {https://texasleadershiptour.com/news} so if you have a media piece done, share it with us so we can tell YOUR story!
3. Be GAME ON and PUSH the Gas Pedal
To be GAME ON is a mentality. This can’t be just another initiative that is rolled out and forgotten. It must be driven. It must be led. The best place to lead this initiative is the AD’s office.
Let’s face it: Leadership matters.
What is important to the AD will be important to coaches. What is important to coaches will be important to kids. And if it isn’t important to the AD…well you get the picture.
One example (of many!) that I love is the way Kody Groves at Mesquite ISD has taken ownership of The Texas Way in his district. Utilizing the artwork on the more resources page, he had shirts made for every coach and stadium worker in the district. They are preparing for success and telling the story. Mesquite ISD is PUSHING THE GAS PEDAL!
Friends, if we are going to do something as BIG and BOLD as improve sportsmanship, we are going to have to be “GAME ON”. This is a giant undertaking. But it is worth the work. That’s why Mammoth Sports Construction has invested in The Texas Way. They know that this work is vital to protecting the game, to protecting coaching, and to equipping kids to become successful adults.
Mammoth’s motto is DO SOMETHING BIG! That’s what The Texas Way is about. Doing something BIG to change and protect the game!
Thank you for being a part of this. Thank you for your work. If I can help you or your district in any way, or you want to tell your story, email me at Mackey@2words.tv.
Until next week: GAME ON!