View Video- My Hero- Dave Schultz: Part Two

Jeff Jordan here with episode #8 of Wisdom Wednesday for coaches, parents, and even wrestlers. I want to continue the discussion on Dave Schultz, my hero and coach. This past weekend, June 6^th, was his birthday. Many of you know that Dave was tragically killed back in 1996. I was very fortunate to have Dave as a coach, mentor, and friend.

The greatest leaders have an ability to connect with people on an emotional level. Dave Schultz had a magnetic personality that drew people to him. His energy and carefree spirit had a way of infecting everyone around him. Schultzy could take a bad situation and turn it into an awesome memory.

Such an event happened my senior year in college. We had just finished wrestling the Las Vegas Invitational and our nonstop flight from Vegas to Chicago got cancelled. We in turn had to fly from Vegas to Los Angeles and then had a four-hour layover before taking a red eye from LA to Chicago. As we were in route to Los Angeles, I was talking with Schultzy and told him that I had never been to California and had never seen the Pacific Ocean. I also told him that over half of our team had never seen an ocean at all. Schultzy knew California very well because he was from Palo Alto, CA.

When we landed in LA, all the wrestlers crashed on the airport floor dreading the four-hour

layover. Schultzy came up to the team and said, “Let’s go to the ocean boys!”

The whole team crammed into an eight-passenger rental van and Schultzy drove us to the beach. Standing on the shore at 11 o’clock at night hearing the waves was awesome until I saw Schultzy peeling his clothes off. He yells, “What are you guys waiting on?”

We all stripped down to our underwear and sprinted towards the water. Three things I found out, and two of which I discovered right away.

One – I had no idea the Pacific Ocean was so cold.

Two – The water was so salty it singed every mat burn and cut I had on my body. While shivering and walking back to our clothes I noticed an older lady on the beach watching all twelve young men getting dressed. I am glad cell phones were not around then.

Looking back on my wrestling career and reflecting on my experiences as a coach I learned that relationships must be formed between the coach and athlete. Schultzy’s impact was far greater than what he did on the mat with the guys. The bond between coaches and athletes are not just formed on the mat, they are formed off the mat as well. These relationships make the athletes go to war for their coach because of their love and respect.

When Schultzy was in my chair, I felt I like I was a two-point per match better wrestler. I had more confidence and wanted to win more because of him. I want my wrestlers to go to war for me as I did for Schultzy. This is done by building solid relationships that will last longer than a season or even a career.  When done right, relationships should last a lifetime.

Oh yeah – the third thing – I had no idea a three-hour flight could be so uncomfortable because I had sand in places you certainly do not want it in.

Hope you guys enjoyed this episode. Next week I will be continuing my discussion on my hero, Dave Schultz.

Stay safe, keep training hard, and remember, “Noah Didn’t Wait For His Ship to Come in… He Built One”.