The Speech

So, yesterday I coached in a state championship for the first time. As you can imagine, I’m a big speech guy. That’s my role as the assistant at Hopkinton. I fire the boys up. This is the speech that I gave them in the locker room before we went onto the field. 

***

Right now, we have taught you all that we can teach you. You all know what you have to do today. You all know your jobs. So, I don't want to talk to you about lacrosse today. I want to tell you something about life. 

Throughout your life, there will always be more people who doubt you than people who believe in you. I’m going to say that again: there are always going to be more people that doubt you than people who believe in you. 

But not in this room. 

In this room, we all believe in each other. In this room, you have all the assurance that you need. We are with you every step of the way; your teammates have been with you.

Today is the day that I want you to start developing a resistance to the people that tell you you can't do things. The little voice in your head that says you’re not sure or you’re not ready or you’re worried about screwing up…you need to replace that voice with two words:

Screw you. 

(Listen, we all know I said something else, but let’s keep it family-friendly, eh?)

Screw you, I’m going to do it anyway. 

That voice is what you will need today. It’s what you will need for the rest of your life. It will get you through the darkest times. It will drag you to accomplishments. It will get you through hard breakups. Tough assignments. It will make you into great men.

My hope is that when you finally hear that voice, it sounds like us. Not cheering you on. Not rooting for you. But telling you - 

CAPTAINS! What did I text you last night?

“You said you were proud of us.”

What else did I say?

“We got this.”

That’s right. So, that’s what I hope your voice says to you today and for the rest of your life. It’s the last thing I’m going to say to you before we step onto the field. 

We got this. 

***

Unfortunately, we didn’t.

We lost the game 12-10 to Laconia. They put us in a hole early and we had to claw our way out. Just as we reached the last hand up to pull ourselves out of the pit, it was slashed by one final turnover. We didn't do enough to win to game, but damn if we didn’t try our hardest to make it as exciting as possible.

So, why am I sharing this?

Because everyone should know that coaching is about way more than winning. Lacrosse is a game that is about more than just winning. My boys know that. They also know that I’m proud of them. That I love them. That I already miss them. 

I have no idea what I’m going to do with myself at 3:00 p.m. today without a practice or a game to go to.

Bro, manage your pockets better.