The idea behind training camp is that the outside world ceases to exist as the players, coaches and support staff prepare for the journey that will consume the next three-to-four months of their lives. And maybe that idea is successful.
For the family members of the 100-or-so players and the 100-or-so coaches and staff members, the world keeps turning. And that means life keeps happening.
On Thursday, North Alabama head coach Brent Dearman shared a list of major life events -- almost all of them negative -- that have occurred to the loved ones of his players and coaches over just the last week. I count 19 different incidents here, and that's lumping all 12 injuries into one.
The joke(?) of coaching is that so much of the job entails "other duties as assigned," but this is what coaching is about. It's using football as a tool for personal development, and it's being there for the people that need you, in whatever form that may take on a given day -- therapist, counselor, pastor, legal advisor, financial consultant, dad.
In the meantime, North Alabama kicks off its season Aug. 30 at Western Kentucky.