Rob Williams - Orangejack

There is a GREAT article in the Orlando Sentinel today from sports columnist Mike Bianchi. It's worth the read. Unfortunately, the Sentinel requires you to do a free subscription to read it. But here are parts of the article...

Winning isn't everything, but being a dad is
Published July 18, 2004

[says Coach Tony Dungy] "There are more important things than being a football coach. Like being a father." Coming from another coach, these words might seem contrived but not Tony Terrific. This is a man who, on the morning after being fired by the Buccaneers, was carpooling the neighborhood children to school. During one of the many head-coaching interviews Dungy had before finally being hired by the Bucs, an obsessive owner asked Dungy: "Is coaching your No. 1 passion?" Dungy's response: "I will try my hardest to win a Super Bowl, but it's not the most important thing. I will not sleep in the office and be here 24 hours a day."

...He recently became the national spokesperson for All Pro Dad, an organization that campaigns to help men become better husbands and fathers. "We endorse Gatorade and tennis shoes in pro sports," Dungy says. "We need to start endorsing fatherhood."

...Dungy is one of those rare coaches who actually puts the game in proper perspective. Sure, they all preach priorities, but none of them really has any. It's like Jimmy Johnson once said: "Coaches list priorities, and they always say religion first, then family, then football. And yet they work at football 15 hours a day, seven days a week. And they spend an hour a week at church and two hours with their family. That tells me football is first, and everything else is second."

I encourage you to read the entire article. Way to go, Coach Dungy.