Coach,
As the Fall semester draws to a close, most of you are probably focused on just making it to the holiday break. Hopefully you are able to use the break to rest, recover, and prepare to come back for the Spring semester ready to play The Texas Way.
After all, Spring will be here before we know it, and with it comes club sports season. We made some great gains last year in lowering ejections for sports like soccer, baseball, and softball, but we can’t slow down now. Let’s plan to make even greater progress in 2026!
With that goal in mind, let’s talk about three plans you can make now to ensure you start off strong after the break.
Three Ways to Prepare for January
1. Plan to rewatch the videos
August was a while ago. A lot has happened since then, for you and for your student-athletes. Don’t expect that the videos watched at the beginning of the year are still going to be well-remembered after the winter break.
Repetition helps people remember important things, like the three pillars of The Texas Way. Plan to have your team watch them again when school starts back up.
2. Plan to go beyond the videos
To really get everyone on your team onboard with The Texas Way, bring it off the screen and into the real world. For example, the monthly drops include posters that can be printed out and posted in the locker room. Many coaches have their coaching staff and players sign the monthly poster to visibly renew their commitment to playingThe Texas Way.
There are many other resources available through The Texas Way Coach’s dashboard that can help you go beyond the videos. Also, we’ve shared many examples of what other coaches are doing throughout the state of Texas over this last semester with the weekly newsletter. Previous newsletters can be viewed on The Texas Way blog.
3. Plan to become a District of Distinction
This Spring, we will once again be recognizing districts who go above and beyond to play The Texas Way. You can see last year’s winners and honorable mentions on The Texas Way website. To earn the title of District of Distinction, you’ll need three things:
A reduction in ejections
An “Engaged” status on videos (Meaning: you’ve watched at least 70% of the available videos)
An Athletic Director or Coach to tell the story of how you’ve made The Texas Way part of your team, your campus, and your community
Final Thoughts
This will be the final Texas Way Newsletter for 2025. But, we’ll be back in January with more encouragement, more monthly drops, and more ways to help you play The Texas Way!
Thank you for who you are and what you do. If I can help you or your district in any way, or if you want to share your story, email me at Mackey@2Words.tv.