Leadership System

Leadership System (Captains) Being a team captain means accepting responsibility for your team. You become the team leader and must set the standard of what it means to be a great teammate. Team leaders are essential to executing your vision for your team and setting the tone for your teammates. I had the pleasure of picking the brain of Coach Ron Crook, assistant football coach at the University of South Dakota. Coach Crook has been at some of the elite brands at the FBS level, most recently at the University of Cincinnati. During their magical run, we shared a lot of stories on what made them special that season and why they won back to back AAC titles 2020, 2021. He said that Head Football Coach Luke Fickell drove home the point of what you PERMIT and PROMOTE will show up on film. But here are a few things listed below that we discussed. Communication with Captains: • Meet with Captains every Sunday • The captains have to make it their plan (Expectations/Standards) • Making sure everyone in the locker room “master the simple” (energy, effort and enthusiasm) • Communication drives everything (Words, attitude and beliefs) General Thoughts on leadership: • How are we going to live on and off the court? • How are we going to practice? • How are we going to play in games? • Give yourself daily instructions to follow (If you do this for the next 90 days, you will take the next step)

The conversation with your captains: • Setting the Tone with your attitude (positive or negative) • What behavior are you modeling? • Consistency (Be the same everyday) • Talk about the vision, beyond a motivational speech or quote • Communicating that vision in the locker room • Understanding your expectations and habits • Defining / Modeling Championship Behavior • Understanding Sacrifice • The importance of “Buy in” • Having a “next play” mentality Points of emphasis: Keep a journal and be able to refer back to the beginning. (Words and actions have to match) The best is yet to come Things will be HARD before they get easier on the road to championship The body will follow the mind (quitting is not a option) Shortcuts will always lead to you getting exposed