Does God Really Care About Football?: The Building of Men and a Program - As Told By a First Time Head Coach

CALL

CHAPTER 1

WHAT IS YOUR VISION?

Write down the vision; make it plain on tablets so he may run who reads it.

Habakkuk 2:2

It all started with a conversation: a simple exchange of words that led me on this journey to becoming what God had called me to be – a head football coach. But this was no ordinary conversation. It was visionary in essence, extreme but subtle. One that – if missed – would not have given me the opportunity to fulfill God’s will for my life. You see, we all have those conversations in life; but without action, those conversations are meaningless.

Sitting at a state championship track meet in 2011, I met two men with whom I’ve never had any dealings with before – who made that vision plain. Those two men were Coach Willie Williams and Coach Kevin Augustine. Both were legends in their own right. Coach Williams is a longtime track coach who had for decades traveled the country in a selfless effort to instill pride and greatness into the young people of Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Kevin Augustine is a longtime middle school basketball coach at Southern University Laboratory School who was the glue to a basketball program run by the legendary coach Joel Hawkins – the winningest high school basketball coach in Louisiana history.

Earlier that month, I had sat in the football office with a coaching buddy of mine who was on our football staff at East Ascension High School. During our talk, he asked me if I had applied for a head coaching position at Southern Lab, to which I replied no. He looked at me squarely in the eyes and said, Nick, I think you should. I believe you’re ready to become a head coach. After our conversation, I walked into the front office and grabbed a newspaper to see if the vacancy had been posted – and lo and behold – the deadline had already passed.

I didn’t give it much thought that day until I went home that night and went to bed. As I fell asleep that night, I had a vision. I could hear a still voice within my spirit saying, Feed my flock. You have what it takes. Submit the application. I immediately rose out of the bed and went to my computer. I stayed up for a few hours until I completed it – but I took it one step further. I began putting together a five-year plan, along with a coach’s manual for the moment I would be called in for an interview. I knew that if my moment finally came to become a head football coach, there would not be time to get ready. I had to BE ready.

In that manual, I outlined what I wanted the program to look like. I wrote down what God had given me as a vision for the program. It outlined goals in every aspect of football operations, things that I believed were essential to creating a Championship Program.

From academics to offseason, teambuilding to fundraising, I made sure every element was covered. The vision was written and plain. I saved it on my computer and went to bed.

Now back to the track meet. Coach Williams and Coach Augustine were chatting at the track meet with Coach Frank

Wilson, the former running backs coach at LSU and current Head Coach at University of Texas San Antonio when I walked up to say hello and catch up with him concerning the past several months’ moves in his career.

Coach Williams pulled me to the side and asked me about the vacant head coach position at Southern Lab, to which I replied, I have everything ready coach, but I haven’t heard anything in return from the school about it. The next few sentences that came out of his mouth changed my perspective about vision. He said, Don’t worry son, that job is already yours. All you gotta do now is wait and be prepared. Give them your vision and they’ll run with it.

One vision, written down, can change your entire life.

As Coach Augustine walked up, Coach Williams mentioned to him that I had applied for the head coaching position at Southern Lab. Coach Augustine, in his nurturing but direct way said, Oh, you applied for the position? I’m gonna look into that for you. Where are you from coach? I replied, I’m from Laplace, Louisiana. Then in his heavy New Orleans’ accent, he said Oh, you from the 504! You my homeboy! I’m definitely gonna get that done for you, Bruh. We gotta look out for each other.

And that was the last I’d heard from both of those gentlemen, until I received a phone call from the school saying that I had gotten an interview for the position.

In the interview process I was able to convince and confirm to the committee that I was the right person for the position. Was I absolutely certain that I’d be chosen? Not by a long shot. But I believed what was given to me to write down was sufficient. I had faith in my why. I also believed the scripture which said, Life and death is in the power of the tongue. I jumped in feet first with all conviction, knowing that where there was true belief mixed with the power of writing things down, success was sure to follow.

On the next page you can see the 5-year Plan to Creating a Championship Culture that was in my coaching manual. It was the focus of the building process. It was very direct, yet malleable. Little did I know that this simple, yet profound vision, would impact the next few years of my life both as a person and football coach.

Within the next several days, I was determined not to wait for my opportunity, but to go for it incessantly. I made phone call after phone call to the school to find out when my interview would be held. There’s an old saying in the sales business that persistence beats resistance. I called so much that the front office secretary and I developed a relationship through all those daily phone calls. She knew me by my name and voice before I ever had a chance to step foot on campus. I never wavered in my faith. I finally received a phone call on a Wednesday morning at around 9:30 am from the principal. He said, Can you come to interview for the football position today? I responded with a confident and eager, Yes, of course. What time shall I be there? He responded, At 11:00 today. I rushed off from strength and conditioning practice, threw on a suit, handed them my vision on paper, and trusted God.

The rest is history. I was selected as the Head Football Coach at Southern Lab in the summer of 2011. The journey was now underway.

Five-Year Plan to Create a CHAMPIONSHIP CULTURE

Year #1

1.  Implement our football terminology to Varsity, Junior Varsity, and Freshmen teams.

2.  Dominate at least 3 games on our schedule

3.  Compete for the District Championship

4.  Make the playoffs.

5.  Have 75% of seniors attend college and/or post-secondary school.

Year #2

1.  Implement our terminology and base offenses and defenses league program/middle school programs.

2.  Dominate at least 4 games on our schedule.

3.  Host a playoff game (Win the District Championship)

4.  Win at least 2 playoff games.

5.  Have 85% of seniors attend college and/or post-secondary school.

Year #3

1.  Continue to implement our terminology and base offenses and defenses in little league program/middle school programs.

2.  Dominate at least 6 games on our schedule

3.  Win a game that we are not supposed to win.

4.  Host more than 1 playoff game. (Win the District Championship)

5.  Have 90% of seniors attend college and/or post-secondary school. At least 1 player qualify for Academic All-State.

Year #4

1.  Continue to influence Freshmen Team and Little League programs.

2.  Dominate at least 6 games on our schedule.

3.  Win the District Championship and compete for State Championship

4.  Have minor advancements in facilities.

5.  Have 95% of seniors attend college and/or post-secondary school. At least 2 players qualify for Academic All-State.

Year #5

1.  Continue to implement our system on lower levels.

2.  Dominate at least 6 games on our schedule.

3.  Have major additions to facilities.

4.  Win District Championship and Win State Championship

5.  Have 100% of seniors attend college and/or post-secondary school. At least 2 players qualify for Academic All-State.

CHAPTER 2

WHAT ARE YOU GETTING YOURSELF INTO?

And David said, What have I now done? Is there not a cause?

I Samuel 17:29

Going into the summer session prior to my first year as a head coach was memorable to say the least. I knew my initial meeting with the football team would be critical. The first impression they got of me was going to be a lasting one. There was no school going on at the time, which made the transition an easy one. I’d met with our principal and stakeholders to get the word out that we would be having an afternoon meeting within the next two days. But on the day before, I’d stopped in the guidance counselor’s office to pull up final report cards and transcripts of our team to make sure there were no eligibility issues going into the season.

Well, let’s just say that I was a bit floored once I received them from her! We had a total of 30 guys on the team and roughly 50 percent of them were ineligible. Our combined team GPA was about 2.0 and we needed a major academic overhaul fast! Academics were a major topic during the interview process, and I felt that in order for us to build a championship program, we had to be champions in the classroom as well. Thankfully we had just enough time to enroll those players into summer school or we would have fielded a team of about fifteen players in 2011.

The team meeting went on without a hitch. We met in the weight room – the place where I’ve always had my initial team meetings, because physical strength is a key component of success in any football program. The young men came in and sat down quietly as we went through the foundational principles and protocols of the program. We stressed academics, discipline, and teamwork as the key to getting to the next level as a program. The kids bought in, and we spent the next several weeks building strong minds and bodies in preparation for the upcoming season.

My first opportunity to meet the parents of our football players came at the initial press conference, which consisted of alumni, booster club members, teachers, players, and the coaching staff. I couldn’t have been any more nervous than I was that day. I knew God had given me a vision for the program, and I wanted to make sure I reiterated that vision to those who had attended the meeting. Our principal introduced me and as I walked to the podium, I felt as if the entire universe was watching.

There’s nothing wrong with following a legend.

During the presser, I thanked God for the opportunity to become the next head coach. I spoke with as much confidence as I could so that everyone there understood what the mission of the program would be. We wanted to raise solid men, capable of success, utilizing football as the ultimate teacher. I ensured the parents that we would do whatever it took to provide a platform for greatness – both on and off the field, and we wouldn’t spare any expense in doing so. We also would stick to our goal – our vision – of creating a championship culture, whereby the greatness of this shield I knew was the backbone of our institutional structure, would be protected at all costs.

There have been so many great men in the history of the school that have been able to lead the program to State Championships, but most importantly they have been great mentors and examples for the students at the school. Larney Owens, Carl Porter, Gerald Kimble, Michael Roach, and Eric Randall have all played important roles in the success of the football program at Southern Lab. These men have produced not only multiple championships, but hundreds of successful men and women who without their guidance, would not be who they are today as adults. Without their calling to lead and their responsibilities to uphold greatness within the football program as well as the institution, I would not have had a foundation from which to go forward in the pursuit of excellence.

One of the most memorable moments of that press conference came during the Q & A period. Of course, most of the men wanted to know about style of play, offensive and defensive philosophies, the upcoming schedule, etc. But there was one mother in the audience who raised her hand with great anxiousness to be heard. Once I beckoned to her she asked a simple question. She asked, Coach Mitchell I have one simple question. Are we still gonna have 4:00 am workouts? I tried my best to control my emotions as I answered with a resounding, 4:00 workouts? I live in Gonzales, Louisiana ma’am. Why would we need to work out that early in the morning? If I ask you to get out of your bed at 3:00 in the morning, I may not be here very long as a head coach and I probably won’t be married very long.

The previous coach at Southern Lab was Michael Roach. Michael Roach was, and still is a legend whom I respect very much. He coached a number of successful young men at Southern Lab, and is a defensive wizard. His program produced great football players such as Marcus Spears, Chad Jones, Ronald Leary, Chris Scott, Frank Alexander, Torian Nixon, Larry Butler, Darryl Johnson, Denmark Reed, and a number of other Division I signees during his stay. He also coached with Doug Williams at Grambling State University and won a number of SWAC Championships along with a few Black College National Championships while there.

Coach Roach put his players through a rigorous offseason program which included early morning workouts with the goal of preparing them for life as a college football player. It was one of his main goals. Get them ready for college ball. And the 4 a.m. workouts were part of the training regimen, which is why so many of his players were grizzled and chiseled for the grind once they departed for college. He and I had a great conversation about the program once I settled in and he was a tremendous asset to my initial transition to success. He is a man of honor and dignity – one of the many coaches in the history of the school whose footsteps I was blessed with the opportunity to follow. I knew I had my work cut out for me if I were to continue the success of a well-established program.

There’s something to be said about using what you have to get the results you desire. Our weight room was probably the smallest I had ever seen as a coach. It was a 15x30 foot room that sat off the corner of the gym. We had no power racks, four bench bars, an incomplete set of dumbbells, and a bunch of jump ropes. But there was one thing we did not have – EXCUSES. I knew, based on the history of the program, that if what we had was good enough to produce great players with great minds and bodies, there would be no reason it would change once I became Head Coach. We were gonna make do and still be successful no matter the obstacle.

What are the odds?

As we prepared for the 2011 preseason Jamboree, I felt pretty confident in our ability to put a good product on the field. We were playing against a well-known rival team, the Scotlandville Hornets, in a preparation and assessment game just before the regular season started. Scotlandville High School was approximately two miles from ours and there had always been some residual heat between the two schools in terms of competition. All of our players knew each other, and many of them played together on the same recreation football teams growing up, so there was a sense of pride and bragging rights even, in this matchup. There was no such thing as a meaningless game between the schools. Whether it was football, basketball, marbles, or any other contest – when you play against Scotlandville you’d better win because you’ll have to hear about it for all of eternity.

We’d had a pretty successful and productive week of practice. We could be pretty vanilla on both offense and defense, but we wanted to be an