football is back

And so it begins..

Today at 6:30 pm EST...we're back at it!

We officially start our football season! I'm looking forward to it. I'll be back on the sidelines coaching my son, Kameron. This year we'll be playing in the 10 and under division.

Last year, we finished with 9 wins and 2 losses. We made it to the championship game only to lose to a team that we had beaten earlier in the season. I look forward to the challenges that come with coaching. I'll be the first to admit that I wasn't interested in coaching when I first started. I was a player. I put everything into playing every game like it was my last. I had a passion for the game. My first love.

How do you coach someone to do THAT?

You can't. You accept the kids for who they are. While it has been a pleasure coaching Kameron...and now watching his younger brother, Brandon (he plays for the 6 and under team)...I know that no kid can be the player that you were. You can only hope that they develop skills and a love for the game. The rest will take care of itself.

As a team we have some unfinished business to take care of. It hurt to get to the championship game and lose. The tough thing about sports is that you can't just pick up where the previous season ended. It doesn't work that way. The hard work, blood, sweat, and tears start all over again.

So how do you bounce back and get back to the championship game and win it all??

Check back with me in November and I'll tell you how we did it!

a common bond

I watching the ring ceremony for the Boston Celtics the other night. The ring ceremony is when the Celtics, who won the NBA Championship last season, were given their championship rings. They were presented the rings before their fans before the start of their first game of the NBA season. The ring ceremony is also the last time that you are celebrated for the previous years success. This is a new season. Time to defend the title.

Watching the ceremony, I was able to reflect back to the day when I played football for South Carolina State University. During my junior year, we won our conference as well as the Black College National Championship. We were awarded the ring that you see above a few months after our magical season was over. I was blown away when i first saw it (yes..those diamonds are real. LOL.)

Much like the Celtics, through the experiences that we went through...it has created a bond between me and my teammates that will never be broken. We all have strong bonds. We have bonds with our family, crew, hood, frat/sorority, etc. There are only maybe a hundred people who have gone through some of the same experiences that I did to get that ring. I can't put into words how special that bond is. It's not like the bond that I have with my crew or my family. It's strong...but just different. And like the Celtics, when I see or talk to an old teammate...we can reminisce about what we accomplished and what we went through.

Like the Celtics, every teammate isn't gonna be your best friend. Shoot, you might not even like some of your teammates. Some dudes you wouldn't have a drink with. LOL. But at the end of the day, we share that common bond b/c of the experience that we shared together. When we see each other, it's all love...just like the Celtics. There are a select few of your teammates who become like brothers to you. Like I said before...it's a very unique bond.

So...in many ways...we're just like the the Celtics and the bond that we share with others can only be described in one word...CHAMPIONS!