Sam Marx

For some reason 20 years later I haven’t forgotten my recruiting trip to Arizona. The Hall of Fame coach Andy Lopez asked me in his recruiting pitch: “Are you a rock… or a jelly bean?” Both are hard on the outside. Jelly bean? Soft in the middle. Rock? Solid all the way through. Reflecting on that… that wasn’t about baseball (okay, a little)... That was about who you are when things don’t go your way. Because a lot of guys look tough… until failure hits. Bad game. Benched. Things don’t go as planned. That’s when you find out. Being a rock doesn’t mean you don’t feel it. It means you’re grounded. You don’t crack. You respond. 20 years later… I still think about that question. So when things speed up and adversity hits… Ask yourself: Are you a jelly bean right now… or a rock? Your response to adversity will give you the answer. I know other players who heard that same question too. Curious your thoughts on it from a great coach. As a fan and competitor, I respected the way he went about it. Be solid. PTLG. @CoachAndyLopez

You rarely see great players:. - Complain. - Blame others. - Cut corners. - Sulk. - Make excuses. - Arrive late.

HS Baseball Players ⚾️ You WILL go 0-3 You WILL make errors You WILL have bad outings Other teams WILL talk crap That’s baseball. It’s built to expose you, and it's built on failure. Don’t get emotional… get better. Because your RESPONSE is louder than anything they say 💯

💯 Bad teammates COMPLAIN about their role. 💯 Avg. teammates KNOW their role. 💯 Good Teammates ACCEPT their role. 💯 Great teammates STAR in their role. GREAT TEAMS HAVE GREAT TEAMMATES! @coachbechler

“Now we’re just supposed to hug and kiss everybody. You know what? Do your job right. Go to class and you won’t hear about not going to class. Kids have so many distractions they don’t stay focused on the task at hand. Accountability is going to be big until I leave,” Tom Izzo

Loyal assistant coaches matter more than most people realize. They support the vision. They protect the culture. They tell you the truth. Great programs aren’t built by one coach. They’re built by a loyal staff that pulls in the same direction.

High school baseball is different. It’s about pride. Your school. Your teammates. Your town. The logo on your chest. It’s about community, brotherhood, and meaning. Play for something bigger.

Leadership is Easy, Until… Until you have to hold someone accountable. Until you face criticism for doing the right thing. Until you have to make a tough decision with no easy answer. Until you take the blame for a mistake you didn’t make. Until you have to lead people who don’t want to be led. Until you’re expected to stay calm when everything is falling apart. Until you have to sacrifice for the good of the team. Leadership isn’t about a title. It’s about showing up when it’s hard. That’s when real leaders stand out. Choose to lead.

“What I tried to emphasize with my children was, it’s not really about winning or being better than somebody else. All I’m interested in is you being the best that you can be. I don’t care if it’s in school, getting good grades, do what the coach says. Be a good teammate. Be the best that you can be,” Nick Saban

INTEGRITY IS NOT SITUATIONAL After a heated loss in Dec '21, Jamal Shead cleaned up his teammate's mess. 2 years later he was Big 12 P.O.Y on nation's #1 team. 𝙃𝙤𝙬 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙙𝙤 𝙖𝙣𝙮𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙞𝙨 𝙝𝙤𝙬 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙙𝙤 𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙮𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜. ~via @AustinRader24 @Thejshead

Marcus Freeman 🔥 “Either you stick together and attack it and you just work at it and trust each other and believe in each other or you do what outsiders would do and point the finger at one person.” Blame divides. Belief multiplies. Trust is a choice.

Champions Know…

“A lion never roars after a kill.” - Dean Smith

Nick Saban - Preparing for Opportunities - Process Oriented vs Outcome Oriented - "What comes first? Playing time or making sure that you're ready to play & create value for yourself when you get the opportunity."

Curt Cignetti shares a universal truth about habits and consequences. "In life - you got freedom of choice, but not freedom of consequence." "First you form your habits, then your habits form you." Every choice and action you take compounds. The small decisions you make daily - preparation, work ethic, and how you respond - those become your habits. And over time, those habits become your identity. You're free to choose. But the consequences of those choices aren't optional. Your habits are shaping who you become. (🎥IU Athletics )

"You can have a bad deal with good people, but you can never have a good deal with bad people." (Via @hoopstudy 🎥)

The Costs of Leadership: Kirby Smart 1. You will make hard decisions that negatively affect people. 2. You will be disliked despite your best attempts to do the best for the most. 3. You will be misunderstood & won't have the chance to defend yourself.

Marcus Freeman said, "You waste time daydreaming about an uncertain future. Who cares?" "The future is uncertain. So focus on being the best version of you today." No one wins tomorrow. They win today - one rep, one habit at a time. (@tbhorka)

“We’re not going to recruit selfish guys, I guys, or guys that don’t want to pay the price. When you surround yourself with achievers and you prepare weekly the way you’re supposed to, anything is possible,” Curt Cignetti The difference is found in your daily discipline.