I was a fan of Deion Sanders when he played football and baseball at the professional level, even though he was usually a member of the “other team.”
I respected him – immensely. His speed and athleticism were off-the-charts, and his dynamic and electric personality made pre and post-game interviews a delight to watch.
Deion Sanders is now the head coach of the University of Colorado (Boulder) football team – who knocked off highly-regarded TCU last weekend. And let me tell you, watching the speeches Sanders gives to his players in the locker room, makes you feel as though you’re witnessing a revival. Indeed, you are.
Many have criticized Sanders and the new transfer portal rule in collegiate sports, that allows a player to transfer from one college to another, without having to sit out a year. I am not one of those critics. I think it’s great for the game.
Why?
Because many college coaches in football and baseball are manipulative, deceitful, cunning bastards. A good many of them recruit and sign players whom they have no intention of ever playing. And they do this for a number of reasons, one of which is to make sure that teams they compete against can’t get the player they signed.
So there’s no checks-and-balances with the coaches. They did as they pleased and if a player who should be playing isn’t, and he wants to transfer, he used to lose a year of eligibility, which in many cases, was a reason for him NOT to transfer. He had to eat the dog dew.
Then along came Joe Burrow, the current quarterback for the Cincinnati Bengals. He was “practicing” at The Ohio State University, but wasn’t playing. He’d given the Buckeyes three years before he wised up and transferred to LSU.
How’d he do after he transferred? Not only was Joe Burrow the starting quarterback at LSU, he led them to the National Championship and won the Heisman Trophy.
Then he got drafted by the Cincinnati Bengals.
How’s he done there? Pretty damn good.
He helped take an almost perennial loser to the Super Bowl in his second season. I was sorry to see his team lose in the Super Bowl, but then again, at least he got there.
So picture this: A superstar is riding the pine at OSU, and he does the smart thing. He gets the hell out of there. If he hadn’t, there would be no national championship for him, no Heisman trophy, and no professional football career – not to mention no multi-million dollar contract.
As the writer of a monthly coaching newsletter, my students hold me accountable as well. If I’m not doing a good job, they unsubscribe and look for someone else to lead them. That’s the way it goes, and the way it ought to be.
Granted, some people will drop even when I’m doing a great job, as they’re not cut out for the job. But the truly dedicated students will stick. Again, that’s the way it ought to be.
On the 7th of every month, my Theatre of the Mind Mastery students receive a power-packed newsletter that they can immediately download, print and read with a pen and highlighter in hand.
From time to time, some of my students forget that the newsletter goes out on the 7th, and they’re jonesing for the latest and greatest. So much so that they write to ask when this month’s issue is being sent. As I read their emails, I can feel their desire for MORE. Without saying so, they’re telling me I’m doing a stellar job – and I appreciate this.
Many students of the Theatre of the Mind Mastery newsletter are also subscribed to my other one, Zen Mastery. This also tells me that I must be doing one helluva job.
The forthcoming issue is packed, per usual. It has to be. I make it my mission to keep it that way because I know there’s a “transfer portal” out there, figuratively speaking. And this portal is a huge motivator for me to make sure I give each and every issue everything I’ve got.
Can’t wait to send out this next one. It’ll blow my students minds.
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Matt Furey
