Blazer Football Philosophy
Football at Sarasota Christian is much more than a competitive game that young men play. It is an intentional curriculum that uses football to build men. The intent is to produce men that will live with reckless abandon for Christ in all things at all times; men that will be the same in public as they are in private; men that will be great husbands and fathers in the future; men that will learn to build deep meaningful relationships that will be used to sharpen each other and hold each other accountable for a lifetime. Our success will not be measured in wins and losses, but in how well we close the gap between our potential and our performance as players and as men. In fact, it will probably take ten years or more to
determine just how successful this season really will be.
Goal
The goal of Blazer Football is for every player to know Christ and to make Him known.
Purpose Statement
The purpose of Sarasota Christian Football is threefold:
- Use football to teach principles and values that will result in the building of courageous men who will live sacrificial lives to the glory of God both on and off the field
- Purposefully build deep meaningful relationships that will last a lifetime
- Develop each player to be the best football player he can be
Theme Verses—Football is Worship
- Colossians 3:17 – “And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.”
- Colossians 3:23-24 – “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving.”
Biblical Football is Competing
- By the Power of God
- According to the Word of God
- For the Glory of God
Excellence in Competition
If we are going to worship through football, then we must pursue excellence on the field. We must strive to put the best team on the field, with the goal of exceeding our potential as individuals. We will strive for excellence as coaches by developing the best offensive and defensive schemes to fit our personnel.
Values
Love, Faith, Humility, Perseverance, Commitment, Trust, Encouragement, Contentment, Courage, and Servant Leadership
Principles
1. Called to Love
- 1 John 4:18-19—“There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love. We love because He first loved us.”
- I Corinthians 13—Love Never Fails
- Matt 22:36-39—Love God, Love Others
- Our responsibility is to Love: Coaches must love the players, and players must love each other.
2. Relationship Driven
- Romans 15:5-6—“May the God who gives endurance and encouragement give you a spirit of unity among yourselves as you follow Christ Jesus, so that with one heart and mouth you may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
- Be intentional about building community, encouraging and motivating through love.
- Players will be called to publicly encourage one another.
3. Servant Leadership
- Matthew 20:28—“The Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve.”
- Captains will serve the team, and the varsity will learn to serve the middle school team.
4. Humility – Be First to Give All
- James 4:10—“Humble yourselves before the Lord, and He will lift you up.”
- Philippians 2:3-4—“Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests but also to the interests of others.”
- Faithful, Available, and Teachable
5. Live Lives of Sacrifice
- The player must die to themselves for the sake of the team.
- John 12:24—“Unless a seed falls to the ground and dies, it cannot bear fruit.”
- John 15:13—“Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.”
- Being part of a team is being part of something bigger than ourselves.
- Being part of team means we give up rights and gain responsibilities.
6. Success is measured in how we “Close the Gap.”
- We are competing against our own best self to close the gap between our potential and our performance.
- We want a player’s best every day in every situation, but what God desires for us is greater than that—it is perfection.
7. Persevering with Eternal Perspective
- 2 Timothy 4:7—“I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.”
- Pursuing excellence on and off the field through Christ is a lifelong journey, not a short-term goal. Success is a road, not a destination.
- You can always do one more: one more block, one more tackle, one more sprint.
8. Live with Passion
- Revelations 3:16—“So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth.”
- God want us to give the maximum effort in all things, at all times.
9. Love to Lose
- Malachi 3:3—“He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver; he will purify the Levites and refine them like gold and silver.”
- We love and want to win every game, but it is only a by-product of true success; therefore, we are free to play at our best because there is no fear of losing.
- God’s victories often come through our defeats and, as a result, our character gets refined.
Putting It into Practice
- Team and position group prayer and encouragement after practice
- Weekly theme and scripture verses
- Weekly testimonies from coaches, dads, and others in the community
- Team groups to provide leadership, accountability and mentoring opportunities
- Build relationships and partner with local churches and high school youth groups.
- Team service projects to allow players to love their community.
- Continually challenging and educating players through team events, meetings, huddles and chapels in the “how to” of being godly men, both on and off the field.
- Coaches that are focused on teaching biblical values through football
The Coach’s Challenge
- Share the gospel in every practice
- Motivate through love
- Encourage every player every day
- Future focused coaching: Always correct in an uplifting way
- Communicate the reason for every drill
- Put players in positions to succeed
- Be approachable and coachable
I hope you will consider becoming a part of what God is doing through football at Sarasota Christian, whether it is through having your son play for the team, coming out to our games, supporting our booster club, or through prayer. I would prefer you do all four, and I look forward to partnering with you in the future as we work to build men through football.
This philosophy contains the thoughts of many people who deserve credit:
- InSide Out Coaching by Joe Ehrmann—Former NFL All Pro with the Baltimore Colts and founder of Coach for America, http://www.coachforamerica.com
- Season of Life: a Football Star, a Boy, a Journey to Manhood by Jeffery Marx
- Bruce Brown—Proactive Coaching, author of Teaching Character Through Sports and other resources
- Frosty Westering—Former Head Football Coach, Pacific Lutheran University, and author of Make the Big Time Where You Are
- John Wooden—Former Head Basketball Coach, UCLA
- Scotty Kessler—Former Head Football Coach, Greenville University (IL)
- Eric Hehman—Head Football Coach, Olivet Nazarene University (IL)
- Jason Hahnstadt—Former HS and College Football Coach
