Michael Plank

Every Year I try and have a message for our coaches and athletes on which direction we want to head. For the 2026-2027 Sports Season we are going to focus on the broken window. If our building has one broken window and nobody fixes it, pretty soon, more windows get broken. Why? Because it sends a message. It says… this place doesn’t care. It says… standards don’t matter here. It says… anything goes. And once that message is out… chaos follows. Now let me bring that into our room… into the Elwood Athletic Department… into our standard. We don’t lose because of big things first. We lose because of little things we allow to live. One athlete late to a lift. One missed class. One half-speed rep. One bad attitude. One shortcut. And if nobody fixes it… if nobody says anything… if nobody lives the standard… That’s broken glass. And broken glass spreads. Here’s the truth: Championship teams don’t tolerate broken glass. They fix it immediately. Because they understand something most people don’t What you allow… you promote. What you ignore… you accept. What you accept… becomes your culture. In the Elwood Athletic Department… that’s not who we are. We are TPW – Tough People Win. Tough people don’t step over broken glass. They pick it up. Tough people don’t say “that’s not my job.” They say, “That’s not our standard.” So here’s the challenge: When you see it… fix it. When you feel it… address it. When you’re tempted to be it… fight it. Because this isn’t about perfection. This is about ownership. Every locker… every rep… every class… every conversation… We are either building something elite… Or we are letting broken glass pile up. And I’ll leave you with this: We are not trying to be average. We are not trying to be good. We are building a program that people respect… that people feel… that people know is different the second they walk in. That only happens when the standard is protected… by everyone. So don’t walk past it. Don’t ignore it. Don’t be it. Fix it. Because around here… Tough ELWOOD People Win.

We are going to give it a shot! Home opener tonight at 5pm vs. Cowan! Go Panthers! Come out and support!