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 Words of Wisdom |
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NCAA CLEARINGHOUSE
WHAT IS THE NCAA CLEARINGHOUSE?
You must register with the Clearinghouse before your senior year in high school if you want to be considered an eligible recruit for an NCAA School. The Clearinghouse certifies that you have met all academic requirements. There is a onetime fee to register and you can call 888-388-9748 for a free copy of the NCAA Guide. Once you are cleared, the Clearinghouse will send your eligibility status to any NCAA D-I or D-II school that asks for it.
SEE YOUR HIGH SCHOOL COUNSELOR TO REGISTER or REGISTER ONLINE AT THE NCAA CLEARINGHOUSE.
LIFE LESSONS
HEALTHY EATING & YOUNG ATHLETES
Proper eating habits will help an athlete grow, build muscle, avoid injury, and recover from injury faster.
THE FOUR AGREEMENTS BY DON MIGUEL RUIZ
BE IMPECCABLE WITH YOUR WORD
Speak with integrity. Say only what you mean. Avoid using the word to speak against yourself or to gossip about others. Use the power of your word in the direction of truth and love.
DON'T TAKE ANYTHING PERSONALLY
Nothing others do is because of you. What others say and do is a projection of their own reality, their own dream. When you are immune to the opinions and actions of others, you won't be the victim of needless suffering.
DON'T MAKE ASSUMPTIONS
Find the courage to ask questions and to express what you really want. Communicate with others as clearly as you can to avoid misunderstandings. sadness, and drama. With just this one agreement, you can completely transform your life.
ALWAYS DO YOUR BEST
Your best is going to change from moment to moment; it will be different when you are healthy as opposed to sick. Under any circumstance, simply do your best, and you will avoid self-judgement, self-abuse, and regret.
TRUE WORDS OF WISDOM
From Vince Lombardi
"IT'S NOT WHETHER YOU GET KNOCKED DOWN, IT'S WHETHER YOU GET UP."
TODAY IS A NEW DAY... MAKE IT A GREAT ONE!
From Thomas Jefferson, 3rd President of the United States of America
"YOU CANNOT STOP THE MAN WITH THE RIGHT ATTITUDE. YOU CANNOT HELP THE MAN WITH THE WRONG ATTITUDE."
"THE VISION OF A CHAMPION IS SOMEONE WHO IS BENT OVER DRENCHED IN SWEAT WHEN NO ONE ELSE IS WATCHING!"
From Aristole
"WE ARE WHAT WE REPEATEDLY DO.
EXCELLENCE THEN, IS NOT AN ACT, BUT A HABIT."
From Dan Marino
"THE WILL TO PREPARE, THE GUTS TO RISK, AND THE DESIRE TO BE THE BEST. THESE ARE THE TRADEMARKS OF CHAMPIONS!"
From Colon Powell
"THERE ARE NO SECRETS TO SUCCESS. IT IS THE RESULT OF PREPARATION, HARD WORK AND LEARNING FROM FAILURE."
From Michael Jordan
"YOU HAVE TO EXPECT THINGS OF YOURSELF BEFORE YOU CAN DO THEM."
From Akeem Olajuwon, Houston Rockets, Twice NBA Champion
"I'VE ALWAYS FELT IT WAS NOT UP TO ANYONE ELSE TO MAKE ME GIVE MY BEST."
From Ted Williams, Last Man to Hit .400 in Baseball
THE FIRST COMMANDMENT OF HITTING - GET A GOOD PITCH TO HIT!"
From Unknown 18G Softball Player
"NO GREATER GIFT CAN ONE PLAYER GIVE A TEAMMATE THAN SELFLESS DEDICATION OF PREPERATION FOR VICTORY AND SUPPORT VITAL TO TEAM ADVANCEMENT, SACRIFICING PERSONAL GLORY & ACCOLADES TO BECOME CHAMPIONS AND MOST IMPORTANTLY TEAMATES FOR LIFE."
"IT'S AMAZING WHAT A TEAM CAN ACCOMPLISH WHEN NO ONE CARES WHO GETS THE CREDIT."
HARD WORK BEATS TALENT WHEN TALENT DOESNT WORK HARD"
"SUCCESS COMES IN CANS... NOT CAN'TS."
"SOME TEAMS ARE HAMPERED BY MISSED SIGNALS, MIX-UPS ON COVERAGES, POOR PITCH SELECTION, INEPT BASE-RUNNING. THE TEAMS WHO ADVANCE TO SUNDAY MINIMIZE THOSE MISTAKES. THE TEAMS WHO WIN ON SUNDAY DON'T MAKE THEM."
The Gypsy Ghost
YOU TRY, YOU FAIL... YOU TRY, YOU FAIL... THE ONLY TRUE FAILURE IS WHEN YOU STOP TRYING.
Coach K
DISCIPLINE IS DOING WHAT YOU ARE SUPPOSED TO DO IN THE BEST POSSIBLE MANNER AT THE TIME YOU ARE SUPPOSED TO DO IT.
John Wooden
"WHAT IS COMPETITIVE GREATNESS? IT'S BEING AT YOUR BEST WHEN YOUR BEST IS NEEDED. IT'S ENJOYING THE CHALLENGE WHEN THINGS BECOME DIFFICULT, EVEN VERY DIFFICULT. TRUE COMPETITORS KNOW IT'S EXHILARATING TO BE INVOLVED IN SOMETHING THAT'S VERY CHALLENGING. THEY DON'T FEAR IT. THEY SEEK IT. IS IT FUN TO DO THAT WHICH IS ORDINARY, EASY, SIMPLE, SOMETHING ANYONE CAN DO? NOT AT ALL. YET MOST OF THE TASKS WE DO IN OUR EVERYDAY LIVES ARE VERY SIMPLE. ANYBODY COULD DO THEM. THEY WILL NOT PRODUCE THE JOY THAT COMES FROM BEING INVOLVED WITH SOMETHING THAT CHALLENGES YOUR BODY, MIND, AND SPIRIT. COMPETITORS LOVE THAT CHALLENGE. THEY KNOW IT OFFERS THE CHANCE TO PRODUCE THEIR VERY FINEST. IT BRINGS FORTH THEIR COMPETITIVE GREATNESS."
Lisa Fernandez
"FROM MY EXPERIENCE AS AN ATHLETE, MY ADVICE WOULD BE TO KEEP YOUR SCHOOL WORK AS A PRIORITY, BECAUSE SPORTS WILL GET THE COACHES TO LOOK AT YOU AND EVEN OFFER YOU A SCHOLARSHIP, BUT ONLY GRADES WILL GET YOU IN TO THE UNIVERSITY. GOOD LUCK!"
Vince Lombardi
"I FIRMLY BELIEVE THAT ANY MAN'S FINEST HOUR, THE GREATEST FULFILLMENT OF ALL THAT HE HOLDS DEAR, IS THE MOMENT WHEN HE HAS WORKED HIS HEART OUT IN A GOOD CAUSE AND LIES EXHAUSTED ON THE FIELD OF BATTLE - VICTORIOUS."
IT IS NOT PERFECTION, BUT THE ASPIRATION THAT IS IMPORTANT. NONE OF US WILL EVER ACHIEVE PERFECTION. WE ALSO WILL NEVER ACHIEVE OUR FULL POTENTIAL IF WE DON'T CONSTANTLY STRIVE FOR PERFECTION.
GREAT COACHES
Some of sports greatest coaches ever. Their philosophies and wisdoms cross the boundaries of their sports and are applicable in all athletic endeavors, and indeed, all aspects of life and society.
JOHN WOODEN
His Pyramid of Success is looked upon as one of the greatest coaching tools ever devised.
"What is competitive greatness? It's being at your best when your best is needed. It's enjoying the challenge when things become difficult, even very difficult. True competitors know it's exhilarating to be involved in something that's very challenging. They don't fear it. They seek it. Is it fun to do that which is ordinary, easy, simple, something anyone can do? Not at all. Yet most of the tasks we do in our everyday lives are very simple. Anybody could do them. They will not produce the joy that comes from being involved with something that challenges your body, mind, and spirit. Competitors love that challenge. They know it offers the chance to produce their very finest. It brings forth their competitive greatness."
VINCE LOMBARDI
"Winning is not a sometime thing; it's an all the time thing. You don't win once in a while; you don't do things right once in a while; you do them right all the time. Winning is a habit. Unfortunately, so is losing."
"Mental toughness is essential to success."
"Once you agree upon the price you and your family must pay for success, it enables you to ignore the minor hurts, the opponent's pressure, and the temporary failures."
"Confidence is contagious and so is lack of confidence, and a customer will recognize both."
"It is essential to understand that battles are primarily won in the hearts of men."
"The harder you work, the harder it is to surrender."
"Individual commitment to a group effort-that is what makes a team work, a company work, a society work, a civilization work."
"Teamwork is what the Green Bay Packers were all about. They didn't do it for individual glory. They did it because they loved one another
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"People who work together will win, whether it be against complex football defenses, or the problems of modern society."
"The achievements of an organization are the results of the combined effort of each individual."
COACH K
During critical periods, a leader is not allowed to feel sorry for himself, to be down, to be angry, or to be weak. Leaders must beat back these emotions.
Discipline is doing what you are supposed to do in the best possible manner at the time you are supposed to do it.
You develop a team to achieve what one person cannot accomplish alone. All of us alone are weaker, by far, than if all of us are together.
There are five fundamental qualities that make every team great: communication, trust, collective responsibility, caring and pride. I like to think of each as a separate finger on the fist. Any one individually is important. But all of them together are unbeatable.
Encourage members of your team to take the initiative and act on their own.
It takes courage not only to make decisions, but to live with those decisions afterward.
Too many rules get in the way of leadership. They just put you in a box . . . . People set rules to keep from making decisions.
HITTING WISDOMS
ON BEING READY TO HIT - BEST ADVICE YOU WILL EVER GET ABOUT HITTING
From Head Coach Mike Candrea, Team USA & University of Arizona
I think the big thing is just trying to keep their heads clear and their heads screwed on. Its being prepared to do something when your next at bat occurs. Some kids walk up to the plate and if they do have some failure, they re-evaluate why they did. Instead of sitting around pouting about it, theyre making plans and getting ready for their next at bat. I think its truly paid off.
THE BRAIN: IT CAN HELP OR HURT YOUR HITTING
From the Precision Baseball Academy
Ever notice when you get into a slump in any athletic endeavor the amount of people are eager to help you? Fall into a 1-for-25 slide in baseball and it seems everyone has a solution for you, from your teammates to your coach to your parents. Your head is pulling out. Your stance is all wrong. Your bat is too heavy. You name it: Everyones identified the problem. The problem is, of course, that you can do more damage and prolong your slump by taking too much advice. Listening to everyones suggestions often only clogs the mind. This is when the brain can get in the way of hitting. If the brain is trying to process too much information, the message it finally sends to the body is slowed. And hitting is all about timing and quick reactions. You want that message from the brain to the body to occur instantly. The point is this: When mired in a slump, be wary of taking in too much advice. Dont create an information overload. Hey, the truth is, everyone goes into a slump. Everyone. Even the great hitters. In baseball, as with any other sport, you have to accept a certain degree of failure. As youve probably heard a million times, the best hitters in the game, the .300 hitters, fail seven out of 10 times. What keeps a great hitter great is his ability to fight through slumps. As Ive pointed out before, there often is a mechanical reason for why a hitter isnt hitting well. Maybe hes not starting his swing soon enough. Maybe his top hand has become too dominant. But sometimes slumps occur simply because of your mental approach. You cant be successful at anything unless you first believe you can be successful. Yes, I believe in mind over matter. Your brain can do wonderful things if you let it and convince it to.
A FULL MIND IS AN EMPTY BAT
When a player becomes a batter (aka hitter), he or she is now the focal part of the game. An at bat demands the players FULL attention and imposes very clear responsibilities to the team and its mission. Each player must build their own approach to hitting with a strong commitment to getting the job done.
1. You must want to hit and be confident that you WILL get a hit.
2. Have a distinctive purpose with each at bat.
3. Listen to and watch your base coach(es).
4. Be alert and responsive to signs and EXECUTE.
5. Focus on the ball and visualize a hit: A full head equals an empty bat.
6. Control your bat and avoid lazy and stupid mistakes.
7. Do NOT argue with the umpire (includes a no smirk attitude). Adjust to his strike zone
he will NOT change.
8. Get on for the next guy.
9. SCORE
10. Have good eyes! See it, hit it!
11. Be adaptable with each at bat and adjust on the fly!
12. On a wild pitch or passed ball, signal the runner on third base as to action.
13. ON DECK (as the next batter): Remove the bat after the batter hits; coach the runner coming home (slide, up, etc.); time the pitcher and his delivery and focus on his release points. PREPARE TO HIT!
WHAT IS THE INFIELD FLY RULE?
An INFIELD FLY is a fair fly ball which can be caught by an infielder with ordinary effort, when first and second, or first, second and third bases are occupied, before two are out. If the hit becomes a foul ball, it is treated the same as any foul. If a declared Infield Fly is allowed to fall untouched to the ground, and bounces foul before passing first or third base, it is a foul ball. If a declared Infield Fly falls untouched to the ground outside the baseline, and bounces fair before passing first or third base, it is an Infield Fly. The umpire's judgment must govern, and the decision should be made immediately. When an infield fly rule is called, the batter is automatically out and runners may advance at their own risk.
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