Growing Leaders + IT Daily Dose
[caption id="attachment_28346" align="alignleft" width="217"]
Malik Jefferson. (Will Gallagher/IT)[/caption]
By: Chris Hall
IT Daily Dose - Episode 20: Recruiting momentum picking up
Texas has a lot to offer Charlie Strong. The University has money, fanbase, and tradition in spades. That’s why many people believe Texas to be the top coaching job in the country.
The Longhorns have their own TV network (it’s safe to say that’s rare). Also, a small company called Nike gave them $250 million to keep its “swoosh” on their jerseys. That’s only the largest endorsement deal in college athletics history, no big deal.
But there’s at least one thing the University of Texas cannot offer Charlie Strong: a leader.
He needs a leader who has earned and commands the respect of every player on his football team. It’s something the Longhorns have lacked, and a point Strong has emphasized repeatedly throughout 2015. It may be a message the current seniors are tired of hearing.
On Monday, Strong’s remarks on leadership were brought up with senior defensive tackle Desmond Jackson. Tank’s response: “No comment,” but those two words speak volumes.
It’s the same way linebacker Peter Jinkens responded earlier in the year on the same subject. Senior left guard Sedrick Flowers had more to say, confirming Strong’s evaluation:
“He’s right. He’s been doing this longer than we have. I can say we’re leading, but he knows what it looks like when leaders lead, especially a senior taking control of a team. There’s times when we’re all standing up saying, ‘Let’s get going,’ and there’s times where no one’s saying anything.”
This article is not to throw anyone under the bus. I’m writing this because I’ve been there and experienced it myself. I’ve been on Texas teams when we had leadership to spare. I’ve also been on Texas teams when we struggled to find it all season.
Leading a team of 100+ men is a difficult task to say the least; these kind of leaders are not developed over night.
It Takes Time
Some men are natural-born leaders, but that doesn’t mean they’re born ready to lead. Leaders need adversity and hardship to mold them. They also need to time to earn the trust of those among them.
Football players are modern day gladiators. Respect must be earned in the arena and on the “field of battle.” No one owes you anything unless you’ve proven you deserve it again and again — for years.
Fans make a big deal about recruiting rankings, highlight reels, and All-American games. Truth be told, it adds fervor and excitement to an offseason that would otherwise be dry of football.
However, the actual players on the team care little to nothing about all of it.
If recruits don’t know it already, they figure it out shortly after they arrive. Nothing they’ve done prior to walking on campus matters in the least — not at all, whatsoever.
How many stars they had, how many records they broke, and how many offers they received mean nothing. All that matters is “can you help us win?” If not, they learn to like scout team or transfer somewhere else.
Everybody starts from the bottom and respect has to be earned over a career of time.
That’s what happened with Colt McCoy. If you think he walked into the locker room as a freshman with the team hanging on his every word, you’re wrong. He was an undeveloped, 18-year old kid, trying to figure out his role on the team just like the rest of us.
Vince Young surprisingly left for the draft after the 2005 season, one year early. That meant Colt and an early-enrolling Jevan Snead would battle it out for the starting QB position. Spring ball showed them dead even, but what happened during the summer is what ended up making the difference.
When no one was watching and no one was forcing him, Colt was watching film. He was working extra with the receivers at midday before that night’s 7-on-7. He used every tool and opportunity available to him to make himself better. His hard work paid off.
Colt won the starting job in fall camp and never looked back. He also had a record-setting freshman year behind a veteran offensive line. But make no mistake about it, Studdard, Sendlein, and Blalock lead the offense in 2006. It was their team, they earned it.
But eventually, in my opinion, no one earned that kind of leadership more than Colt McCoy. I watched him play through injuries (more than I’ll dare to enumerate in this article). I watched him fight through adversity (that veteran O-line graduated and he was left with young guys up front, including yours truly). I watched him thrive and lead (’08 was the best statistical year of any quarterback in Longhorn history). I watched him win until his body broke (an injury in the ’09 national championship left him unable to lift his throwing arm).
All of that made him our leader, and every word he ever said carried weight behind it.
Texas’ Promising Future
Unfortunately, Texas doesn’t have that kind of leadership right now. The good news is they won’t be without it forever. But it will take time, I’m not expecting a quick fix.
In the near future (as in next season — 2016), maybe a healthy Dalton Santos can come back from injury and help. Or maybe Hassan Ridgeway comes back and owns that role in his senior year in Austin. He’s definitely produced on the field.
Whoever it is, or whatever combination of guys it is, they need to be tried and proven. They need to be men that younger guys are proud to play next to on Saturdays in the fall. The Longhorns’ current freshmen are talented and hungry, but they need someone to follow who’s been there and done it all before them.
In the coming years (as in 2017 and on), I think it’s possible that Malik Jefferson and Jerrod Heard become all we think they can be. They have tons of talent, tons of promise, and tons of potential. They just need time, adversity, and hardship to mold them into the leaders the Longhorns need them to become.
They can lead right now in a limited way. They can ball out, show up, put the work in, never quit and give everything they have. That speaks. It speaks to a football team when they see it every Sunday, repeatedly in the film room.
Their performance in games and their effort in practice now, will be the weight behind their words when they speak in years to come. That’s what football teams listen to; that’s what commands the respect of modern day gladiators — nothing less.
They’re not there yet, but if you know what to look for you can watch them mature along the way. Even if the Longhorns aren’t stacking wins now, there’s still good that can transpire for 2016 and beyond.
Texas defensive coordinator Vance Bedford put it this way, as only he can do:
“Quit thinking that you’re DJ (Derrick Johnson) and VY (Vince Young). You’re not those guys. That’s not who we are at this time.”
Key phrase: “at this time.”
Derrick Johnson and Vince Young are great. DJ is the Kansas City Chiefs all-time leading tackler; VY has his number retired alongside Tommy Nobis, Earl Campbell, and Ricky Williams. But the point is not that they are great, the point is that they became who they were over time. Gradually, they developed into the leaders and football players we now know them to be.
Malik, Jerrod, and the rest of the Longhorns are nowhere near where they need to be and want to be. I’m looking for how they respond amidst the current situation, and what kind of leadership might develop for the coming years because of it. The best thing they can do now is beat Kansas. Everything else can be handled one week, one game, and even one play at a time.
Malik Jefferson. (Will Gallagher/IT)[/caption]
By: Chris Hall
IT Daily Dose - Episode 20: Recruiting momentum picking up
Texas has a lot to offer Charlie Strong. The University has money, fanbase, and tradition in spades. That’s why many people believe Texas to be the top coaching job in the country.
The Longhorns have their own TV network (it’s safe to say that’s rare). Also, a small company called Nike gave them $250 million to keep its “swoosh” on their jerseys. That’s only the largest endorsement deal in college athletics history, no big deal.
But there’s at least one thing the University of Texas cannot offer Charlie Strong: a leader.
He needs a leader who has earned and commands the respect of every player on his football team. It’s something the Longhorns have lacked, and a point Strong has emphasized repeatedly throughout 2015. It may be a message the current seniors are tired of hearing.
On Monday, Strong’s remarks on leadership were brought up with senior defensive tackle Desmond Jackson. Tank’s response: “No comment,” but those two words speak volumes.
It’s the same way linebacker Peter Jinkens responded earlier in the year on the same subject. Senior left guard Sedrick Flowers had more to say, confirming Strong’s evaluation:
“He’s right. He’s been doing this longer than we have. I can say we’re leading, but he knows what it looks like when leaders lead, especially a senior taking control of a team. There’s times when we’re all standing up saying, ‘Let’s get going,’ and there’s times where no one’s saying anything.”
This article is not to throw anyone under the bus. I’m writing this because I’ve been there and experienced it myself. I’ve been on Texas teams when we had leadership to spare. I’ve also been on Texas teams when we struggled to find it all season.
Leading a team of 100+ men is a difficult task to say the least; these kind of leaders are not developed over night.
It Takes Time
Some men are natural-born leaders, but that doesn’t mean they’re born ready to lead. Leaders need adversity and hardship to mold them. They also need to time to earn the trust of those among them.
Football players are modern day gladiators. Respect must be earned in the arena and on the “field of battle.” No one owes you anything unless you’ve proven you deserve it again and again — for years.
Fans make a big deal about recruiting rankings, highlight reels, and All-American games. Truth be told, it adds fervor and excitement to an offseason that would otherwise be dry of football.
However, the actual players on the team care little to nothing about all of it.
If recruits don’t know it already, they figure it out shortly after they arrive. Nothing they’ve done prior to walking on campus matters in the least — not at all, whatsoever.
How many stars they had, how many records they broke, and how many offers they received mean nothing. All that matters is “can you help us win?” If not, they learn to like scout team or transfer somewhere else.
Everybody starts from the bottom and respect has to be earned over a career of time.
That’s what happened with Colt McCoy. If you think he walked into the locker room as a freshman with the team hanging on his every word, you’re wrong. He was an undeveloped, 18-year old kid, trying to figure out his role on the team just like the rest of us.
Vince Young surprisingly left for the draft after the 2005 season, one year early. That meant Colt and an early-enrolling Jevan Snead would battle it out for the starting QB position. Spring ball showed them dead even, but what happened during the summer is what ended up making the difference.
When no one was watching and no one was forcing him, Colt was watching film. He was working extra with the receivers at midday before that night’s 7-on-7. He used every tool and opportunity available to him to make himself better. His hard work paid off.
Colt won the starting job in fall camp and never looked back. He also had a record-setting freshman year behind a veteran offensive line. But make no mistake about it, Studdard, Sendlein, and Blalock lead the offense in 2006. It was their team, they earned it.
But eventually, in my opinion, no one earned that kind of leadership more than Colt McCoy. I watched him play through injuries (more than I’ll dare to enumerate in this article). I watched him fight through adversity (that veteran O-line graduated and he was left with young guys up front, including yours truly). I watched him thrive and lead (’08 was the best statistical year of any quarterback in Longhorn history). I watched him win until his body broke (an injury in the ’09 national championship left him unable to lift his throwing arm).
All of that made him our leader, and every word he ever said carried weight behind it.
Texas’ Promising Future
Unfortunately, Texas doesn’t have that kind of leadership right now. The good news is they won’t be without it forever. But it will take time, I’m not expecting a quick fix.
In the near future (as in next season — 2016), maybe a healthy Dalton Santos can come back from injury and help. Or maybe Hassan Ridgeway comes back and owns that role in his senior year in Austin. He’s definitely produced on the field.
Whoever it is, or whatever combination of guys it is, they need to be tried and proven. They need to be men that younger guys are proud to play next to on Saturdays in the fall. The Longhorns’ current freshmen are talented and hungry, but they need someone to follow who’s been there and done it all before them.
In the coming years (as in 2017 and on), I think it’s possible that Malik Jefferson and Jerrod Heard become all we think they can be. They have tons of talent, tons of promise, and tons of potential. They just need time, adversity, and hardship to mold them into the leaders the Longhorns need them to become.
They can lead right now in a limited way. They can ball out, show up, put the work in, never quit and give everything they have. That speaks. It speaks to a football team when they see it every Sunday, repeatedly in the film room.
Their performance in games and their effort in practice now, will be the weight behind their words when they speak in years to come. That’s what football teams listen to; that’s what commands the respect of modern day gladiators — nothing less.
They’re not there yet, but if you know what to look for you can watch them mature along the way. Even if the Longhorns aren’t stacking wins now, there’s still good that can transpire for 2016 and beyond.
Texas defensive coordinator Vance Bedford put it this way, as only he can do:
“Quit thinking that you’re DJ (Derrick Johnson) and VY (Vince Young). You’re not those guys. That’s not who we are at this time.”
Key phrase: “at this time.”
Derrick Johnson and Vince Young are great. DJ is the Kansas City Chiefs all-time leading tackler; VY has his number retired alongside Tommy Nobis, Earl Campbell, and Ricky Williams. But the point is not that they are great, the point is that they became who they were over time. Gradually, they developed into the leaders and football players we now know them to be.
Malik, Jerrod, and the rest of the Longhorns are nowhere near where they need to be and want to be. I’m looking for how they respond amidst the current situation, and what kind of leadership might develop for the coming years because of it. The best thing they can do now is beat Kansas. Everything else can be handled one week, one game, and even one play at a time.
