The Game of Life

This entry is extremely personal. I have received many thoughts about Coach Thomas from Board members and others about impactful moments with Coach Thomas. I couldn’t help but read those and turn inward in my thoughts. Perhaps selfish, perhaps exactly what I was supposed to do.

I was proficient at running the ball in Coach’s offense. I could run the trap, blast, sweep, and power. While I received some on field glory for that proficiency, I didn’t really care much about it. My motivation was for Coach to be proud of me. He didn’t pat me on the back much, tell me he was proud of me much, instead he pushed me to get better and to work harder. He was disappointed when I didn’t. But, I strove to provide him the satisfaction of knowing I listened and worked and achieved, and in that he would be proud of me.

I will never forget a tough game, the second game of my senior season. It was tight at the half and we weren’t moving the ball real well. Our senior guard had a concussion and Casey was trying to block everyone by himself on certain plays. I had already carried the ball many times. Coach grabbed me just before the second half, his intense face right in mine. He said, “Big fella, you are going to have to tote the mail and carry us.” I said ok. We won the game, and at the end I had tallied 47 carries. At that moment, I knew he was proud of me. It is still the moment in my life that I consider my greatest success. I met the challenge, I stood beside my team and coach, and I helped us achieve victory. The next morning my arms were so bruised that Doc Hoogestraat thought they were broken, and my back was completely purple. I was never more proud of those badges of effort in the face of adversity.

In life, I have lost my way. I have not striven to see my beloved Coach be proud of me. I have not always tirelessly worked to see my Father in heaven proud of my works on earth. I stopped, and I failed. I wonder if any of you reading this confession have lost your connection with the motivation to achieve and be your best on a daily basis? I wonder if any of you need to remember back to those days of youth and work again, drive yourself again, to achieve in life what you worked so hard to achieve in football? I wonder if you have memories like me that need to be rekindled and, like me, you need to find your way back to the gridiron of life.

Coach Thomas, uniquely, made all of his players better people by pushing them, loving them, and relying on them to do a job. Even in practice, his players had a role and he made them proud to do that role to the best of their ability. He never held one role as higher than another. I want to do my role again, I want to strive and be ready when life, my boss, my wife, my kids, my God need me to “tote the mail” for them. That would make Coach proud.