Bengal Roar
Active member
This was sent to me from a family member.............
The Broncos have a lot to teach us about perseverance and success
By Vincent Kituku - Special to the Idaho Statesman
Published: 01/16/10
If you have watched the Boise State football team become a phenomenal American college football team, your life somehow has to be inspired to reach new heights of personal, professional or business growth. The Broncos' success story, which may soon land the team a chance at a national championship after beating TCU in this year's Fiesta Bowl, can be yours if you are prepared to pay the price and focus beyond the clouds.
You cannot read any sports section of any major newspaper or listen to college football commentators around the country without seeing or hearing something about the Broncos, a team unknown until the 2007 New Year's thriller, aka the 2007 Fiesta Bowl. The Broncos dismantled the game's goliath, the Oklahoma Sooners, by performing ordinary plays in an extraordinary manner.
The team has 10 years of spectacular dominance with 112 wins against 17 losses (best in the nation - better than Texas, USC and Ohio State), 73 conference wins (best in the nation) and a 41.1 points per game scoring average (another national best) among other breathtaking statistics.
What is not mentioned, however, are the tears and heartbreaking losses the Broncos and their fans endured in the formative years of their success. The life of a promising coach was cut short by a rare form of cancer. That 1996 grieving season produced a score card of 2 wins and 10 losses.
The 1997 season, 5 wins and 6 losses and the monumental victory over their perpetual rival, the University of Idaho Vandals, who had humiliated the Broncos for 12 consecutive years, brought a ray of hope. That ray was dimmed when the new coach left at the end of the season.
The spark of glory for the 1998 winning season was tarnished by the curiously executed two-point conversion in overtime by the aforementioned rival.
The 1999 season started with tears. Paul Reyna, a freshman, fell in practice and died a few days later. When a parent escorts a walking child to college only to take him home in a coffin for burial weeks later, the sorrow is too deep to imagine.
It was painful to watch players witness the death of a teammate.
Dirk Koetter, that year's head coach, is a strong man. But his voice and tears exposed his vulnerability for many years whenever the experience of losing a player he recruited came up in our meetings.
Here are the key lessons from the Bronco Express:
® Good endings can come from sweat, setbacks and tears if you don't give up.
® Set clear goals and keep aiming higher. In 1998, the Broncos had seven goals to achieve. It is amazing to see achievement of those goals, and more challenging ones, being sustained for 10 solid years.
® Let everyone involved be 100 percent committed. You win with achievers but lose with uncommitted potential.
® You must believe in yourself even if no one else does. Others will join you once they see your results.
® The foundation of a vision is more important than a short-term fix (head coaches are hired from within - maintaining the long-term philosophy of the program).
® Success is not a direct result of the talents, skills and resources you have but HOW you use the talents, skills and resources you have. The Broncos have beaten more talented teams that have better training facilities and recruiting budgets.
® To succeed, you tap all available resources. (How else can one explain why a coach would ask a Kenyan native - yours truly - who had never seen a football game to speak to a team on how to succeed on and off the field?)
® Your achievement will help you build a community of supporters.
® The pain of the lows of life become bearable if followed by highs that are sustained.
I have been, in a very minor way, part of those unforgettable 10 years.
Vincent Muli Wa Kituku, author of Overcoming Buffaloes at Work & in Life works with organizations to increase productivity through leadership and employee development programs. Contact him at376-8724 or visit www.overcomingbuffaloes.com.
The Broncos have a lot to teach us about perseverance and success
By Vincent Kituku - Special to the Idaho Statesman
Published: 01/16/10
If you have watched the Boise State football team become a phenomenal American college football team, your life somehow has to be inspired to reach new heights of personal, professional or business growth. The Broncos' success story, which may soon land the team a chance at a national championship after beating TCU in this year's Fiesta Bowl, can be yours if you are prepared to pay the price and focus beyond the clouds.
You cannot read any sports section of any major newspaper or listen to college football commentators around the country without seeing or hearing something about the Broncos, a team unknown until the 2007 New Year's thriller, aka the 2007 Fiesta Bowl. The Broncos dismantled the game's goliath, the Oklahoma Sooners, by performing ordinary plays in an extraordinary manner.
The team has 10 years of spectacular dominance with 112 wins against 17 losses (best in the nation - better than Texas, USC and Ohio State), 73 conference wins (best in the nation) and a 41.1 points per game scoring average (another national best) among other breathtaking statistics.
What is not mentioned, however, are the tears and heartbreaking losses the Broncos and their fans endured in the formative years of their success. The life of a promising coach was cut short by a rare form of cancer. That 1996 grieving season produced a score card of 2 wins and 10 losses.
The 1997 season, 5 wins and 6 losses and the monumental victory over their perpetual rival, the University of Idaho Vandals, who had humiliated the Broncos for 12 consecutive years, brought a ray of hope. That ray was dimmed when the new coach left at the end of the season.
The spark of glory for the 1998 winning season was tarnished by the curiously executed two-point conversion in overtime by the aforementioned rival.
The 1999 season started with tears. Paul Reyna, a freshman, fell in practice and died a few days later. When a parent escorts a walking child to college only to take him home in a coffin for burial weeks later, the sorrow is too deep to imagine.
It was painful to watch players witness the death of a teammate.
Dirk Koetter, that year's head coach, is a strong man. But his voice and tears exposed his vulnerability for many years whenever the experience of losing a player he recruited came up in our meetings.
Here are the key lessons from the Bronco Express:
® Good endings can come from sweat, setbacks and tears if you don't give up.
® Set clear goals and keep aiming higher. In 1998, the Broncos had seven goals to achieve. It is amazing to see achievement of those goals, and more challenging ones, being sustained for 10 solid years.
® Let everyone involved be 100 percent committed. You win with achievers but lose with uncommitted potential.
® You must believe in yourself even if no one else does. Others will join you once they see your results.
® The foundation of a vision is more important than a short-term fix (head coaches are hired from within - maintaining the long-term philosophy of the program).
® Success is not a direct result of the talents, skills and resources you have but HOW you use the talents, skills and resources you have. The Broncos have beaten more talented teams that have better training facilities and recruiting budgets.
® To succeed, you tap all available resources. (How else can one explain why a coach would ask a Kenyan native - yours truly - who had never seen a football game to speak to a team on how to succeed on and off the field?)
® Your achievement will help you build a community of supporters.
® The pain of the lows of life become bearable if followed by highs that are sustained.
I have been, in a very minor way, part of those unforgettable 10 years.
Vincent Muli Wa Kituku, author of Overcoming Buffaloes at Work & in Life works with organizations to increase productivity through leadership and employee development programs. Contact him at376-8724 or visit www.overcomingbuffaloes.com.
