Dr. Hixson & I love watching the KICS student athletes compete in their various sports. Most of all we enjoy the way KICS is represented by its student athletes. Competition can sometimes spark some heat. While plenty of opportunities have risen for our athletes to explode they’ve maintained their composure and most importantly their witness for Christ.
As Football season winds down I’ll share a few reflections on what I’ve most enjoyed relative to the game and our athletes. I’ve got to start with the new kit. If you know me, you know I love the orange. KICS clearly sports the best kit in Kigali. Now some are challenged to fill out their kit and need to have a few more eggs over the summer break to ensure that come time for basketball someone’s sister isn’t stronger then him or some of his crew.
Beyond the team kit, lets look to the sideline for a minute where I wonder if KICS administration should mandate a coaching kit as I’m sometimes having to ask myself if I’m in the midst of the Bermuda palms instead of the Rwanda palms. While I remember the 80’s fondly, I had Dr. Hixson to clean out my wardrobe. Someone else seems to need someone to clean out his.
Then you have the remarkable “Chinese doctor” from South Korea or North America that so energetically sprints to KICS injured while in tow comes KICS coach that at times has looked significantly more injured than the player he yells at from a distance “stay down, stay down” all the while Coach Bermuda delegates to a poor freshman to distribute water among the panting tongues as quickly as possible.
Yes, KICS football has its entertaining moments, which have unfortunately not been as much from balls in nets as from bloodied noses, coaches kit, or celebrated injuries that demand engagement from our favorite Chinaman.
On a more serious note I’ll share some reflections from the game itself as I do enjoy watching and quarterbacking from the hillsides. I’m far from expert so you can take my thoughts with a grain of salt sand. Positive attitude – we’ve got it – most of the time. You believe we can. I believe you can. I see it in you. Although it’s not translated to a V yet I’ve not gone away thinking “it’s not possible.” Instead, I’ve walked away game-after-game thinking. These guys can do it. They are so close. If they can just believe for 80-minutes and 100% of the players on the field engage at 100% for those 80-minutes they are going to surprise an overconfident opponent. Let Alvin’s positive attitude be your example. Make every minute count.
Effort has been there most of the time. There have been spans of 15-40 minutes when 3-6 players lacked what was necessary to call their effort 100%. For a guy giving 110% that can be very deflating. Keep your head up and make yourself a 100% guy not a B or C student. You don’t want to take C’s home to mom and dad. Don’t be satisfied with a C effort in football either. Let Adam’s effort be your example. Make every minute count. You may not be as fast or be able to jump as high as Adam, but everyone is capable of giving 100%.
Get up shake it off and keep playing when you get knocked down. Be the man that the other guy doesn’t want to face because you keep getting back up and keep fighting. KICS athletes are fighters. You fight because you believe in your team. You fight because you want to make a difference for your team. You fight because you believe you can win. I’m not calling you to double up the fists. I’m afraid to tell you that in most cases we’d end up on the short end of that one. What I’m saying is don’t let a goal by the opponent stop you. Don’t let a bad call by an official stop you. Don’t let being flattened on the field stop you. Be like Arnold. Get up when you get knocked down and keep fighting for yourself and for your team.
Another version of fight might be called being scrappy. You don’t have to be the biggest or the strongest to win the ball. You don’t have to be the man-of-the-match to have made a difference for your team if you will be physical, find angels, and check your man while watching out for, and communicating with, your teammate. Let Tanner’s scrappiness and communication be your example. Make every minute count.
Then there is something about the midfield I love but don’t know how to describe. I think I’ll call it “head game”. It is easy to not have your head in the game, to fail to work together with your team, to fail to communicate, to fail to adapt to what the other team throws at you and so on. KICS is anchored by Mr. Head Game himself KC. I don’t know that I’ve seen anyone’s head on the ball more who also consistently shores up the middle. Let KC be your example of keeping your head in the game and finding a consistency your team can count on.
While I could go on and write about everyone what I’ll close with is this. It is not about you. If I wrote about you, congratulations - Now let the pride go and go make a difference as only one of 11 people on the field at a time. If I didn’t write about you, sorry – move on – Go and do something that matters for your team. This is a team sport. Winning with 10 on the field is highly unlikely. You all matter. Winning with 11 on the field and any of you not giving 100% isn’t likely either. Attitude, effort, fight, scrappiness, communication, and head game will all make a difference. Skill is great too, but you could have limited skill and make a difference 100% of the time by ensuring that you are giving 100% in these other areas 100% of the time.
Here’s to wishing you success whether that comes in victory or defeat.
Coach Hixson
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