"No compromise with the main purpose, no peace till victory, no pact with unrepentant wrong." ~Winston Churchill
For the second week in a row, the Freshman "A" team has lost (to Kingwood). And, for the second week in a row, our Varsity will avenge the loss, with extreme prejudice and precision. Despite another setback, I see our players getting better. They're learning the system and the expected level of discipline. And, I see a coaching staff that is determined to stay the course, without panicking. It would be easy to change our scheme up, but our staff seems to believe that the only record that means anything, belongs to the Varsity. (And, they're right.) Freshmen coaches have a slightly different calling.
The freshmen have lost kids due to injury, poor grades and immaturity. There's nothing a coach can do about the first. But, where grades and conduct are concerned, (in the interest of securing wins)it might appear attractive to bend the rules a little to keep kids on the field. To my knowledge, Coach Brown and his staff do not compromise where team rules and standards are concerned. The alignment between team rules and enforcement has been exact. And, for those young men affected by rule-enforcement, it has been unpleasant because players miss their chance to shine and their teammates suffer for their absence.
Coach Brown's staff seems to take a "big picture" perspective. The world is a punitive place. The price players pay for their transgressions today is nothing compared to the price paid for lack of discipline, dishonesty or misconduct as an adult. A hard and painful lesson is a lesson well-learned. Yes, teammates suffer for these lessons. But, if enforcement today makes our boys better and more disciplined as upper classmen, as well as more responsible adults, we may remember these freshmen coaches as some of the most important our boys ever had.
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