07/23/2026
Whether you start or spend most of the game on the bench, you are an integral part of the team.
This clip is from today's Middle School ELEVATE session.
We call this the "Tunnel of Speed."
Timing Fly 10s is something we do every week to measure our athletes' speed progress. But like any repetitive drill, it can become monotonous, and some days it's hard for kids to fully lock in.
Today was one of those days.
So I asked the girls to line up alongside the timing gates and create a tunnel of encouragement—cheering for every teammate as they sprinted through, hoping to set a new personal best.
The result was remarkable.
Nearly 80% of the athletes hit a new PR during the round we introduced the Tunnel of Speed.
It turned into a powerful teaching moment.
Even if you don't play a single minute in a game, you can still have an incredible impact on your team's performance. Standing on the sidelines cheering for a teammate costs you nothing. It doesn't improve *your* stat line, but it might just help someone else achieve something they couldn't have done alone.
It also gave me a chance to observe something as a coach—which athletes were able to generate that intensity from within, and which ones benefited from the energy around them. Neither is good or bad; it's simply valuable information that helps us coach each athlete more effectively.
But more than anything...
Just look at the smiles.
Look at the energy.
Look at the joy.
My hope is that moments like this help these athletes realize that every role on a team matters. Whether you're on the field, on the bench, or on the sideline encouraging someone else, you have the ability to make your team better.
The best teammates aren't always the loudest, the fastest, or the ones who score the most points.
They're the ones who bring out the best in others. 💙🔥
