People assume having the best athletes on your team equates to winning the most football games. I assure you that’s not always the case. In all my years wearing a helmet, from high school to college to the pros, I have found that the most consistent predictor of winners, losers, and champions is the coaching staff’s ability to develop a successful game plan every week.
Fans enjoy seeing the touchdowns, but any player will tell you that big plays on Sundays start in meeting rooms on Tuesdays. It’s important to develop and stick to a strong game plan if you desire success. That strategy is even more important off the field. My wife, Rachel, and I have been married 13 years and have four great kids. We developed a family game plan called L3H3, which represents the family core values we want to embrace. The three L’s stand for things we want to love and the three H’s are attitudes to embrace. Here are 3 loves and attitudes, our family core values, and how we put them into practice.
Who We Need to Love
Love God
Faith is my foundation. I get on my knees and count my blessings daily. Rachel and I pray for how we best can raise our kids. Making simple requests like “Lord, help me be a good dad today.” settles me and helps me be more patient and kind with my children.
Love Family
My wife and I sat down with the kids and helped write a family mission statement recently. It was such a fun experience. It gave us the chance to really think about what a gift it is to be together and lean on each other during difficulty. I sat out 2023 because of an elbow injury. During the recovery, I knew my family had my back. We pull for each other in everything. We are definitely not perfect parents, but we are intentional about our time together.
Love Others
When we sit around the dinner table, we often ask, “How did you love others today?” It’s something I think about a lot in the locker room. I’m grateful for the conversations I had and relationships I developed with my teammates, coaches, and even opponents. Loving others means listening intently and showing genuine interest in people.
Attitudes We Need to Embrace
Humility
Early on, I was taught the importance of humility. Elevating ourselves above others introduces pride into the equation, which never draws people closer to you. Staying humble cracks the door to having maximum positive influence on the people around us.
Honor
Having honor for others means treating people with admiration and respect. We can honor people even if we don’t know much about them. Each person we interact with has value, and we can’t forget that.
Hard Work
Florida State head football coach Mike Norvell addressed his undefeated team after the ‘Noles were left out of the 2024 College Football Playoff. He told his players, “Hard work does not guarantee success. It doesn’t. It never will. But it absolutely will put you in the best position to achieve it.” He’s totally right. That’s why I want my kids to try their best at everything. It starts with me. I have to model that for them.
No matter what is happening around my kids, I want them to know if they consistently love God, family, and others and prioritize humility, honor, and hard work, they’ll find themselves with a winning game plan.
Sound off: What are some of your family core values, and what would you include in your own family game plan?
Huddle up with your kids and ask, “What does it mean to love others?”