Student of the Game

Each year in late April the Indiana Basketball Coaches Association hosts the State Clinic at Lawrence North High School. It is a great opportunity to connect with other coaches, re-connect with past teammates and coaches, and evaluate the things that you are currently doing as a coach. I always feel like it is a successful day if I can walk away with one new idea from the clinic. One of my favorite talks at the clinic came from Rick Majerus. At the time Coach Majerus was the Head Coach at St. Louis University. He had coached prior to that at Utah and at Ball State. I will always remember the passion with which he spoke.

(Picture taken from usatoday.com) Coach Majerus was not a small man by any means. As a matter of fact he looked like he could have been a starting tackle on the football team. He walks out on to the floor with gray cotton shorts and a white t-shirt. Before he is even 5 minutes into the talk he is sweating holes in his shirt, and is making everyone laugh. He had a presence. I am not sure what the main topic was that he spoke, but he spent part of the time talking about defense. This was the one thing that I took from the clinic that year. He said, "Every time that you play, you have an opportunity to work on defense. Whether that is playing open gym, playing in the drive way, playing AAU or playing in your regular season games. Defense is something that you can work on all the time. When players play they don't think about that. Talk to your players about playing with a since of urgency at the defensive end all the time. Ask yourself as a player- How many points did my man score? How many offensive rebounds did my man get?" This was something to think about as a coach. We spend alot of time in the off season working on offense, but how much focus do we put on defense? Something to think about. As I approach today I am excited to think about what that one idea will be today that I can use to improve as I move forward as a coach. The line-up this year is filled again with great High School and College coaches. The main speaker this year is Coach Calipari from Kentucky.

Moments You Won't Forget

As the clock ticked under 20 seconds and the crowd started to stand, the crowd came to there feet as their team trailed by a point. The ball got pitched to an unlikely hero in the corner. You see this player had not hit a 3 pointer in nearly 3 months in a game..let alone the Regional Semi-Finals. He caught the ball- eyed it- flyed it- nothing but net! People cheered and went crazy.. the shot..the shot that will not be forgotten!

As you look at this picture..there is great energy... there is excitement.. there is focus.. there is attention to detail.. there is a sense of urgency.. All of these feelings, behaviors, and emotions make us hungrier for that next big moment. How do you prepare for these moments? You live..as John Wooden put it..."You make each day your Masterpiece." What are you doing to make today a day to be remembered? How can you influence someone else in a positive way?

Process > Outcome

I believe it is human nature for us to want the best outcome for every situation. The fact of the matter is we are not always going to get the best outcome. If it is a game, then we may not always win. If it is a test, then we may not always get an A. If it is an interview, then we may not always get the job. If it is a contest at school, we may not always come out as the winner. If it is going to the doctor, then we may not always get the best prognosis. That is why I believe that it is so crucial to have a process minded approach. Many times the results are out of our hands. That is why it is so crucial for you to control the things that you can control. This means having a high level of appreciation for the process. When a negative outcome arises- think about these questions... What did I do to prepare for the situation? What could I do differently if I were preparing for the same situation again? Did I give my best effort? What did I learn from this situation? How is this situation going to make me

better as I move forward? What is important now? These questions are not intended for you to 2nd guess and dwell upon the results. They are intended to help you grow and become better as you approach future situations. I think we tend to focus on these questions more so after a defeat, a loss, or a negative result. The process minded person will also answer these questions after a win, a success, or a positive result. One of my high school coaches used to say we're not playing "Insert a team Name" we are playing against the GAME. In other words you are competing to do the very best you can do in any given situation. If that effort is not enough to win the game or achieve the outcome that you want, then it does not mean that you are a failure. It means that you need to keep plugging away and working at it to get where you want to be!

Move On - Next Play

As I sit here this morning on this beautiful, chilly, sunny, spring Sunday morning in Indiana (picture above from spring break in Florida) I am excited for a new day. There are many instances where it is very easy to get caught up with the things that have happened in our past. One of the quotes that we use a lot with our basketball team is play the next play. In life I think that equates to moving on past our adversities.  We all encounter different struggles on a daily basis, and how we handle those struggles moving forward is very important to our outlook.  I also believe that we should be very cautious about how we move forward after a big success. Many times when we experience success we feel that we have arrived, and that is not always the case. As a matter fact, I believe that as soon as we think we have arrived that will start the downfall of our outlook. In other words we need to keep ourselves focused on what is in front of us. This can be a very difficult thing to do because of human nature. When we do something good it is very easy to celebrate and become overconfident. Confidence is good as we move to our next task but we cannot let it over consume us.  I hope that each of you is able to focus on what is yet to come. I realize that the struggles and challenges for each of us is different, however, we all have the ability to focus and be excited for what is in front of us. On this Sunday I keep these people in my thoughts and prayers: my mother-in-law who is battling cancer, Tiffany Thompson who is healing from brain surgery, Christian Snyder who is also battling cancer, Josh Spidel and his family as they continue their battle, and anyone who is struggling with grief pain or sorrow.  I hope on this beautiful Sunday you are able to Focus on what is ahead of you and enjoy the great plan that God has made for you.  This morning I ask this prayer. Dear God, thank you for this day, thank you for the many wonderful blessings that you have given to us. I pray that you are able to give us strength, the ability to focus on our future, and live each day to its fullest. Please empower us to help others, allow us to be humble, and to serve those around us. Also Lord please allow us to understand that our past sins can be forgiven, allow us to not hold a grudge against others and allow us to move forward in a positive way.  In Jesus name I pray, amen.

Hoping for Maturity and Mental Toughness to Shock March Madness!

As I sit and watch this years March Madness- I strongly root for the FIELD! I am pulling for the Fundamental and Intelligent Badgers, the Izzo Tough Spartans, the Sharp Shooting Irish, the Secondary Break Running Heels, and the Hard Nosed Shockers. All of these teams bring a since of urgency and style that I enjoy to watch. I would like very badly to see one of these groups knock off the GIANTS- KENTUCKY! Why do I want to see Kentucky lose? Because I want Bob Knight's Indiana team to remain as the team to be compared to each year...A team that ran Motion offense..Not a Kentucky that has the tallest team probably in the history of the NCAA. I am not taking anything away from what they have accomplished to this point- they are great shot blockers, great rebounders, and great dunkers. However, I am still not convinced that they are the most poised, or the most qualified to win it all! I do admire that they have had many contributors to their success, and it is an unbelievable accomplishment for them to be 36-0. However, my hope is that a more experienced, more fundamental, and more mentally tough team will Shock the world in Louisville or Indianapolis!

Why Teach and Coach?

I have asked myself this question at different times in my career as a Teacher and a Coach. Why continue to Teach and Coach? With the growing pressures on schools to look at data in order for every student to pass the next up-coming state test, or the anxiety of dealing with an irrational set of parents, or dealing with the daily disruption of an unmotivated student, or coming to the realization that you are never going to make very much money, or the daily stress of tedious paperwork that takes away from your preparation time, or..... I could continue on with the stresses that come with job. However, I have come to realize the reward of growth and maturity dominates all of those negative things above. This past month I have gotten to experience some of the neatest times of my life as a teacher and coach. Recently, I had a student recognize me as his most influential teacher. WOW! That puts things in perspective. Why did this student chose me as his most influential teacher. As I sat at the awards program I was a little bit nervous about what he would say about me. When he took the stage and I stood behind him listening to his speech- I was floored. Here is a Senior boy who I taught when he was a Freshman- he said, "Mr. Brewer allowed me to learn at my own pace, he has used creativity to teach math without using a textbook, and he makes it fun with crazy kahoots." Again, WOW! Seeing a young man like this who has matured and is going on to Purdue- that makes what I do worth it! This past basketball season I also got to experience some of the neatest success. As the Varsity Assistant our team struggled most of the season. However, this group of boys never gave up. They continued to try and improve each day. Going into the Sectional our team was 5-16. That is right we had only won 5 games! The seniors held it together...they brought leadership...they brought experience...and they won their 3rd straight Sectional winning 3 games in a row! On top of that they went on to defeat a team in the Regional that beat them by 20 points earlier in the season! WOW! What an unbelievable experience to make it to the Elite 8 with a group that you have coached since they were Freshmen. That makes it worth it! The reason I teach and coach is to have the opportunity to experience the growth and maturity in student-athletes. The neatest part of the most influential teacher awards was seeing the other 12 senior students get up and give their speeches! WoW! Seeing their growth and maturity-and realizing they are the future leaders of our society..That makes it worth it!