A few weeks back, Urban Meyer made headlines and waves at his camp by "dropping the mic" with some powerful thoughts on a variety of topics.
Jimbo Fisher recently did something similar to end his camp, sharing some outstanding life lessons with those in attendance, and also explained a bit about what coaches look for in recruits. 247 was in attendance to catch it on video.
What transpires below in the clip is Jimbo dropping great quote after great quote, or "knowledge-bombs" as I like to call them, and some great lessons for both life and football for high schoolers that really resonates on a number of levels.
Below is a run down of some of the finer points in his talk:
- "It's so much about winning, that you forget playing. You can't win unless you play the game. You're so worried about the end result that we don't worry about the process of what is right. Control what you can control, in your life, everyday. What kind of person you are, what kind of person you are and then what kind of player you are. Those three things are what you can control."
- "First and foremost, be a good person. I don't care how good of a player you are, if you're a bad guy, you ain't going to be around long. Bad things are going to happen to ya when you make bad choices. If you make good choices, and you're a good guy, then good things are going to happen to you. You may not be the most talented guy, and you may not be the smartest guy, but if you have a good heart and you do things right, then good things are going to happen to you."
- "There are a lot of things in my job that I don't like to do. Being a head coach, there are a lot of good things to it, and there are a lot of tough things. Whatever you choose to do, there are going to be parts, as a profession, in life, that you don't like. But guess what? If it's part of the deal, you'd better be the best at it. There are a lot of things in this life that you don't want to do, but you've got to do those as well as you do the other and when you learn to do those as well as the things that you like to do, you'll understand how much success you're going to have and I don't care if it's playing football or being a doctor or a lawyer, or a street sweeper. It doesn't matter what you do, just be the best at it and make good decisions."
- "You know why football pants don't have pockets? So you can't reach in an pull out an excuse when things don't go well. There are no excuses. You've got to figure it out." That's what you're going to find out in life when you become a father, a husband, and a leader.
- "I love working with you guys, but what I see in this generation is 'it's not my fault.' Now all these recruiting guys that are around here, I love 'em, but don't listen to them. Quit listening to them. They ain't going to get you no scholarship, I promise ya - I don't care if you're a 9-star. We go based off what we think of you. All the coaches are. Just got be the best you can be, put your head on the pillow and then get up and somebody will find you, I promise ya. See all these cameras around here? Nothing is secret anymore. You play ball, you do well, someone will find you, I promise ya."
- "If you get anything out of this camp, understand that it's not about ability, it's about choices, effort, toughness, discipline and pride. If you do that in every part of your life, you're going to be successful."
- Talking about peer pressure, Jimbo told campers; "If you'd do it in front of your parents, then it's ok. If you wouldn't do it in front of your parents, then it's probably wrong. Don't do it. It ain't brain surgery. Would you do it in front of your coach? Would you do it in front of a policeman? Then you'd be fine, but if you wouldn't, then it's probably wrong to do isn't it?
- "Being cool only lasts for a second. Being right lasts for a lifetime. Understand that."