Leadership
Posted: Sat Oct 21, 2017 8:25 am
Way off topic but still a good discussion point. My wife is going for her MBA and is in a class on leadership. It is fascinating discussing these concepts: what is a leader, when a is a person a leader instead of a manager, how can you identify a leader? And it all got me thinking.
Who throughout Bowling Green Football history would you call a leader? As in, based off what you've seen and what you know of any given team, who just has that leadership factor? Who has the respect of the team around them? Who identifies a situation where leadership is needed and steps into the role? Who establishes an environment to develop as a person and a player that is safe from the outside factors? And more importantly, why would you call that person a leader?
I pose all this for a few reasons ...
- it's a nice topic, a change of pace away from the football season
- sports are such a good metaphor for real life. So many great lessons to learn from sports, leadership included
- it can be hard to step up as a leader, so maybe something on this thread could turn the right gear for somebody reading
I'll start. Freddie Barnes.
Rewind back to 2009, the Humanitarian Bowl. Freddie set the NCAA record for most catches in a season. He had already caught two TDs in the game, both crucial in a tie game. All the coverage of the BG offense is all about Freddie and his accolades. Tied at 35 with a hair over a minute to go in the 4th, 3rd and long around midfield, Freddie goes deep down the left side. Sheehan is looking for a receiver and heaves it deep towards a wide open Freddie Barnes. Freddie catches it and runs in to score. BG is up 42-35. The BG crowd is exuberant. My buddies and I watching the game go nuts. The comeback is complete - BG was down two possessions not long before and now is set to win the game.
And then Idaho puts together a long drive in the final minute, completes a TD pass, goes for 2 and gets it. Final score: Idaho 43, BG 42.
Freshman corner Adrian Spencer was inconsolable after the game. He gave up a long play on Idaho's winning drive. I think he got beat on the TD, and he might have even been beat also on the 2 point conversion. He pins the loss on himself. Freddie Barnes, awarded player of the game in the losing effort, forgets all his accolades, steps away from the limelight, and goes to talk with the inconsolable corner and tells him some good wisdom: in this very moment, God is making you a better player and a better person. (I would link the audio but the clip no longer shows up on the athletic department website - it is too old.) Freddie cared less about his individual glory and about losing his final game than he did about a freshman on the team. Quite simply, the greatest receiver in the nation and an all-time NCAA record holder was willing to put everything about himself aside and instead be a senior and a leader to a freshman who needed guidance. Freddie Barnes is not just the best receiver in Bowling Green history. He might be the best leader I've ever seen wear the orange and brown.
So who would you say is a great leader? And more importantly, why?
BTW, this is a gripe-free thread! Let's use this to celebrate the great leaders in this program and maybe learn a thing or two about practical leadership ourselves.
Who throughout Bowling Green Football history would you call a leader? As in, based off what you've seen and what you know of any given team, who just has that leadership factor? Who has the respect of the team around them? Who identifies a situation where leadership is needed and steps into the role? Who establishes an environment to develop as a person and a player that is safe from the outside factors? And more importantly, why would you call that person a leader?
I pose all this for a few reasons ...
- it's a nice topic, a change of pace away from the football season
- sports are such a good metaphor for real life. So many great lessons to learn from sports, leadership included
- it can be hard to step up as a leader, so maybe something on this thread could turn the right gear for somebody reading
I'll start. Freddie Barnes.
Rewind back to 2009, the Humanitarian Bowl. Freddie set the NCAA record for most catches in a season. He had already caught two TDs in the game, both crucial in a tie game. All the coverage of the BG offense is all about Freddie and his accolades. Tied at 35 with a hair over a minute to go in the 4th, 3rd and long around midfield, Freddie goes deep down the left side. Sheehan is looking for a receiver and heaves it deep towards a wide open Freddie Barnes. Freddie catches it and runs in to score. BG is up 42-35. The BG crowd is exuberant. My buddies and I watching the game go nuts. The comeback is complete - BG was down two possessions not long before and now is set to win the game.
And then Idaho puts together a long drive in the final minute, completes a TD pass, goes for 2 and gets it. Final score: Idaho 43, BG 42.
Freshman corner Adrian Spencer was inconsolable after the game. He gave up a long play on Idaho's winning drive. I think he got beat on the TD, and he might have even been beat also on the 2 point conversion. He pins the loss on himself. Freddie Barnes, awarded player of the game in the losing effort, forgets all his accolades, steps away from the limelight, and goes to talk with the inconsolable corner and tells him some good wisdom: in this very moment, God is making you a better player and a better person. (I would link the audio but the clip no longer shows up on the athletic department website - it is too old.) Freddie cared less about his individual glory and about losing his final game than he did about a freshman on the team. Quite simply, the greatest receiver in the nation and an all-time NCAA record holder was willing to put everything about himself aside and instead be a senior and a leader to a freshman who needed guidance. Freddie Barnes is not just the best receiver in Bowling Green history. He might be the best leader I've ever seen wear the orange and brown.
So who would you say is a great leader? And more importantly, why?
BTW, this is a gripe-free thread! Let's use this to celebrate the great leaders in this program and maybe learn a thing or two about practical leadership ourselves.