Team Satay Begins Training

The team and most of the coaches arrived in Xenia, Ohio yesterday to begin preparation for our basketball tour of Southeast Asia.  We have a good mix of bigs and wings with a couple of smart point guards.  If this team can get good team chemistry, we should be pretty fun to watch.

Pierre Sneed may be the most recognizable name for Indiana readers of this blog as he played at Ball State.  Most of the players are small college players, but that diminish their skills and basketball IQ.  The difference between and a D3 or D1 player can be about 3 inches in height.

The facility at AIA is superb with the ability to host soccer, baseball, and football tournaments.  This weekend FCA is hosting a football camp and there are two schools participating.

Last night the weather cooled off, however, the small gym at Xenia Christian H.S. where we practiced was very hot and humid.  Many of the players are used to air conditioning and struggled with the heat and how the ball and floor became slick often.  The coaching staff reminded them that this is the exact type of conditions we will see in Southeast Asia.

We have two more days of practice and we fly out on Monday, lost the day of Tuesday while traveling across the International Date Line and will arrive at our destination on Wednesday.  Wednesday is my wife, Kristi's birthday, so please, if you see her, tell her happy thirty (cough, cough) something.

Jeremiah 29:11

"For I know the plans I have for you....."  That's all I need to know of that Scripture in Jeremiah after March 2.  I believe that God has a plan for all of us, that we are all selected to live his plan if we follow him.  As I prepare to fly to Asia, there are some things that I need to get off my chest for my family to know...to know for sure.  Yes, you have a better chance of dying in a car wreck than in a plane crash, but you just never know when your time has come and that God's plan is for you to move on.

I love my family so much.  It isn't always seen, I know (sometimes even by them) because of the frustrations of life, but I wouldn't change anything in my life right now....ok, maybe a little more money, and a couple of kids to be a little more obedient, but that's it.  What do I want from my immediate family if I weren't to be around any longer?

To my son, Brandon, I want him to grow up and be happy.  I want him to continue doing everything all out and fearless.  I want him to temper a little of his attitude, but only a little because it is that attitude that will bring him success in life in dealing with all of life's ups and downs.  I want him to continue on his path to Jesus Christ and to one day marry a woman who loves God as much as he will.  I want him to be a happy husband and father who doesn't just take his kids to play, but plays with them also.  I want him to be the spiritual leader of his family who will keep our family's legacy continuing.  I want him to love God with all his heart, soul and mind and to love others as he does himself.

To my daughter, Madison, I would want her to grow up happy.  I want her to continue doing those things that make her happy.  I want her to continue on her path in finding God and living for others.  I want her to grow up to find a good man who will take care of her and love her, and loves God.  But I want her also to not have to be dependent on a man, but be able to take care of herself.  I want her to grow up and become a wonderful wife and mother to children that will continue our family's legacy.  I would want her to love God and love others and be as caring and giving as her mother is every day.

I want both of my children to never guess if their father loved them because I do.  I want them to not look at any times we might not have had and be sad, but be so grateful for the times that we did have together playing in the back yard, camping in the basement or some other crazy thing their dad came up with.  If I were not to be around, I would want them to know that I am so proud of them and could not have been blessed with two better children than them.

(that's me hugging the most wonderful woman in the world)

For my wife, I would want her to continue living her life.  I would want her, obviously, to never forget about me, but she should still continue living for Christ and being a great mother.  If some time down the road she were...to...well, I would want her to be happy and continue living.  I couldn't ask for a better wife.  Kristi has been so supportive of me in all that I do and I hope she knows how much I love her and that I would give my own life for her.  She is the reason that I came to know Jesus Christ which is the greatest gift she has ever given me, as well as those two children.

This isn't a farewell note, this is something that I wanted written down not because I am flying in airplanes to Asia soon, but because the day you get up might be your last day.  And it will probably start like any other day as did March 2nd.  And there are so many words that would go unspoken....well, now, here they are and words don't even express my love for my family.

Fearless by Eric Blehm

Thanks to Silver Creek boys' basketball coach Brandon Hoffman on the recommendation of Fearless by Eric Blehm which tells the story of SEAL Team 6 Operator Adam Brown. 

Well worth the read.

Penn State's Shame

(Penn State Assistant Jerry Sandusky with Legendary PSU head coach Joe Paterno)

Where do I begin?  I am going to write this and be as vague as possible because the Jerry Sandusky conviction on child molestation is awful and the details disgusting.  I have coached at every level in basketball and baseball ultimately the varsity boys' basketball coach at Henryville and varsity baseball coach at both New Washington and Borden.  High school jobs are nothing compared to be the head coach of a college program especially one as prestigious as Penn State football, but there are some similarities I can draw from it.

First, in the late 1990's, Penn State Asst. coach Jerry Sandusky was caught by a grad assistant coach doing something inappropriate with an under age male in the showers of the PSU locker room.  I just can't believe that Sandusky would do anything inappropriate in the showers in the late 90's with anyone that was legal, needless to say an underage boy.  This under grad coach reported the incident to head coach Joe Paterno, the Godfather of PSU football, someone almost virtually untouchable at Penn State.

Joe Pa reported this incident to his superiors and apparently that is where it stopped.  I had a discussion with fellow coaches on this and couldn't believe that he wouldn't have followed up again (and again, and again ultimately confronting Sandusky if needed) to make sure HIS superiors were doing what they should be doing, like having Sandusky fired, arrested or banned from the premises none of which happened.  Instead, with newly released email that the university President, trustees and quite possibly Joe Paterno himself, not only didn't stop Sandusky but covered up what he was doing with under age boys, keeping him from being fired, keeping him from being arrested, and allowing him to have a key to the facility even after his resignation.

I don't know all the details and I really don't want to know all the details, but I do know this there are many people at Penn State who should lose their jobs.  Anyone associated with Penn State who knew, covered up and especially were in a position of leadership should be fired period.  And from what I have seen in some of the emails, there just may need to be some people go to jail besides Sanduskey including the President and Athletic Director during this time. 

I hate to think what the players for Penn State football are thinking, I mean, what the NCAA did to IU men's basketball program was drastic for too many phone calls (which by the way is legal again during certain times of the year), what will they do to Penn State football or worse yet, Penn State athletics?  It is bad enough that Sandusky did what he did with under age boys, that he started a faith based group (The Second Mile) to have more contact with under age boys, and that he used Penn State's football facilities as a way to lure boys in, but the people in charge at Penn State from the President, to the Athletic Director, to the Head Coach, what they did is also disgusting.

We are talking about protecting children here, children that were used by an adult with prestige and some star power (Penn State football is huge).  During the 12+ years that Sandusky ran amok on these boys, I guarantee you that where were rumors.  What should have been done?  I am not so sure that I have the answer, but I do know that an answer was not doing anything, covering up, or looking the other way.

So what is the legend Joe Paterno's legacy?  What Joe Paterno did through the years for Penn State that was good could never be listed in this article.  From bringing notoriety in for their football successes to the money raised for the university to money raised for needy people and probably even taking care of needy people in the surrounding areas.  But this happened on his watch and the emails that are coming out is that he knew about it for years.  First, he needs to remain in anything that they put out when it comes to their history, but he does not need to be exalted, at all.  Second the statue of him at PSU needs to come down.  Both are definites for the short term and may be something that changes 20 years from now as we get better perspective and information about what he knew and when he knew it.

We aren't talking about recruiting violations, we aren't talking about phone call violations, we aren't talking about violations of adult women (this too would be awful), we aren't talking about violating ethics or integrity when it comes to coaching or dealing with other adults.  We are talking about violating young people, we are talking about violations that those violated will never completely get over.  We are talking about something so despicable and heinous that I haven't even mentioned here. 

I guess I am writing as a father and don't have much compassion for those involved. I guess I think that if my son had to endure something this bad, that it wouldn't take 14 years for justice to occur, that those in charge would go "the second mile" to ensure that my son was protected. Then if something did happen like this those in charge would do anything to make sure it didn't happen to anyone else....ever.

IHSAA Speaks: Class Basketball Here to Stay...For Now

The Indiana High School Athletic Association's (IHSAA) Commissioner Bobby Cox recently issued his final report on the study of the boys' and girls' state basketball tournament formats in Indiana and I am not sure that it surprised anyone.  What was probably more frustrating to me is that it came in response to Senate Bill 236 in the Indiana State Senate in which state Senator Mike Delph had language in this bill that would make it illegal to participate in a multi class tournament, you read that right....illegal.  This sounds and reads like an attack on the IHSAA itself which doesn't bother me as much as we have state senators getting involved in high school sports.  I am sure Mr. Delph is a very good man, but aren't there more serious problems to deal with?

I am a supporter of multi class sports and probably we need to move to classes in all sports (if it's good enough for football and basketball...well, those are arguments for another time, I guess).  There are so many arguments for and against that I won't go into here because to be honest, it has made me physically ill listening to both sides and how the opposite sides use the same arguments each time with neither side actually listening to the other side (think politics or religion). But what I found interesting is how the IHSAA went about coming to the conclusion of their decision that class sports are here to stay...for now.

They held a series of town meetings and surveyed the IHSAA member schools.  I don't know about anyone else, but the findings in both were not surprising to me.  The town meetings, you know who is going to be motivated to travel to one of these things, it is usually, for the most part those that are not happy with the current set up.  Not only were they mostly attended by those that dislike the current set up, there weren't very many in the first place.  There were 11 town meetings and 514 votes were cast with 68% wanting to return to the one class tournament.  514 votes isn't much when you compare the voting population of the entire state of Indiana.

Secondly, they had principals, athletic directors, coaches and players fill out surveys online.  This was a direct contact with a group that did not surprise me of their findings. A high majority (in 70% of all groups except basketball coaches, but they approved by 55%) supported the current set up.  I don't have the numbers, but I am going to guess that more than 514 people voted with the online survey.  Does that matter?  I mean, it should come down to percentages, right?  Maybe, but what if the 2 million plus people who voted in the 2008 presidential election were given the opportunity to vote on the issue?  That would be considerably more than 514 votes at the town meetings and then would the percentage still be 68% or would it be higher or lower?

I have two ideas to help settle this issue.  1. make it a public referendum in the next election.  Let the people decide and then do what a large percentage wants to be done.  Make it 70%.  If 70% vote either way, we will do what that group wants done and then it would be over with (yeah, right).  But, 2. if the class vote wins, let's do a compromise, a real compromise that I think many people would be behind (put that on the referendum too).  Let's have class basketball, baseball...whatever sports you want to include for the sectional and regional levels.  After that throw the best four teams from each class into one final state tournament.  Smaller schools get a chance for some success in the tourney (that's what most want, it isn't about winning more state championships, it's about having the opportunity for some success) then allows for one state champion. This is known around basketball circles at the Hickory Compromise that HickoryHusker.com's Leigh Evans has pushed for many years.

It would set up small school vs. big school and allow for one state champion.  I mean, it has so much common sense to it, it probably has zero chance of ever happening, but I can dream can't I?

Indiana University Men's Theme for 2012-13?

Rhema Soul (Christian rap group) from the Album "Red", the song is Celebration.  The whole song is good but around the 1:40 mark, they talk about basketball and say "we got the big guns, the young guns to orchestrate The Movement..."