“No one said that high school sports were going to be easy, but it will be worth it…when we put Jesus in the center of all we do then the successes will fall into place, whether it’s on the field or court, stage, classroom, in relationships, or a relationship with Jesus.”
By Coach Tom Radke, St. James Asst. Athletic Director, Head Football Coach, Dean of JPII Community, Asst. Track Coach, and Asst. Admissions Director
Welcome to High School! How will you get involved in your school? Are you considering a sport? Being a student-athlete in high school is a different experience than what you had with CYO sports or middle school sports or even with your club sports.
The key to adjusting to high school sports is having a PMA: a Positive Mental Attitude. If you find something positive to take away from each practice or game and focus on that, you will be in a much better place than many of your opponents. It’s easy to go home and complain, and it’s really easy to complain to your teammates, but does that help you? Your toughest competition is the person looking at you in the mirror. You may not be the big kid on the block anymore. You may not see varsity playing time early on. Your sole job on the high school team is to learn and get better.
Now, the realities of high school sports. Equal playing time is not a thing anymore. St. James Academy coaches are about developing good Christians, making you the best athlete possible, and winning games. At this level, it’s not about you; it’s about the team and the school. Focus on your job on the court/field. Focus on the schemes your coaches are teaching you, they may be different than what you ran in grade school. Be open to different types of coaches, different types of teammates, and different types of opponents.
Try to be the best version of yourself every day. Try to learn as much as possible, as quickly as possible, and ask your coaches questions. Set a goal to improve on something every day. You will have good and bad days at practice, but always try to find something that you did well. St. James Academy Coaches provide the tools for improvement, the effort comes from you.
If you want to stand out to your coaches,
- Give your best effort in EVERYTHING you do: Practice, games, loose balls, even monotonous drills. This includes your grades as well as your prayer life.
- Compete! Compete in everything that you do. All head coaches are extremely competitive, we despise losing! Show us how much you want to win! Win every sprint, be the first in line for every drill, get the best grade on every test.
- Be organized. Be on time to practice and turn in assignments on time. You must take care of your body, including planning to eat right, plenty of sleep, time for prayer, all while keeping your grades up.
No one said that high school sports were going to be easy, but it will be worth it. Don’t get me wrong it will take a lot of effort, a lot of hard work, and a lot of willpower. As our St. James President reminds us, when we put Jesus in the center of all we do then the successes will fall into place, whether it’s on the field or court, stage, classroom, in relationships, or a relationship with Jesus.
Please remember to thank your parents for allowing you to play, and thank God for your gifts and abilities. Welcome to St. James Academy!
GO THUNDER!
By Coach Tom Radke, St. James Asst. Athletic Director, Head Football Coach, Dean of JPII Community, Asst. Track Coach, and Asst. Admissions Director
Learn more about the St. James coaches and sports programs through summer camps and workouts! Details are found at https://sjathunder.org/summer-camps/.
