AD Drew Tower asks what the goal of a team is. The response is usually around 99% of people saying "win". He and his coaches believe that the true answer is to maximize ability and get the most out of their student athletes. In a coaches' meeting, he asked his coaches to write down the top 5 things that can get in the way of your team maximizing its ability. They were instructed to divide their answers into either "sport-related" or "human-related". Most of the answers dealt with the human and character side and this helped the coaches realize that although skill development and X's and O's were still important, what was actually holding their team back was the human and character side. The coaches compiled a list of top struggles which helped them prepare a glossary of performance skills and character skills. This was the blueprint for what the coaches had to focus on, and it set the framework for the AD and all the coaches and players to understand "what is expected has to be defined". The coaches must be committed to this process. Drew stated that athletic directors and coaches are the most visible people in their schools and that this process starts with them. He finishes with this: "We can't prove that we value it if we don't measure and reward it consistently".
Drew Tower was previously the AD at Brownsburg High School in Indiana.
