MONDAY COMMENTARY – THE CLIMB

(Listen daily for the Rod Pedersen Commentary on Cat Country 98 FM & Rock 98.5 FM)

ONE OF THE GREAT THINGS ABOUT SPORTS IS THAT THEY’RE A MICROCOSM OF LIFE. ESPECIALLY FOOTBALL.

SO I WAS ESPECIALLY GRATEFUL OVER THE WEEKEND WHEN LONGTIME CANADIAN FOOTBALL COACH PAUL CHARBONNEAU EXTENDED AN INVITATION TO SIT IN ON A ZOOM Q&A WITH LONGTIME NFL, CFL & NCAA COACH BOB WYLIE.

THERE WERE COACHES, SCOUTS AND CFL ALUMNI FROM ALL ACROSS THE CONTINENT ON THIS CALL – EAGER TO HEAR FROM WYLIE – SO I’M SERIOUS WHEN I SAY IT WAS AN HONOUR TO BE INCLUDED.

BOB’S TRULY COACHED AT ALL LEVELS INCLUDING A 2009 STINT WITH THE ROUGHRIDERS WHERE WE GOT TO KNOW EACH OTHER. THE RHODE ISLAND PRODUCT ALSO ROSE TO FAME IN HBO’S HARD KNOCKS SERIES, WHICH CHRONICLED 2018 CLEVELAND BROWNS TRAINING CAMP, IN WHICH WYLIE STOLE THE SHOW.

WYLIE’S STINT IN SASKATCHEWAN WAS SHORT, BUT MEMORABLE. HE ROUTINELY ENTERTAINED FLIGHT ATTENDANTS ON ROAD TRIPS WITH CARD TRICKS, ALWAYS BROUGHT HIS WIFE ALONG ON ROAD TRIPS (A RARITY) AND WAS UBER-PARANOID OVER TV CAMERAS ON THE SIDELINES AT PRACTICE. ASK CBC’S GLENN REID!

ANYWAY ONE OF THE FIRST QUESTIONS WHICH CAME UP ON THE ZOOM WAS “WHAT’S THE BEST WAY FOR JUNIOR AND COLLEGE COACHES TO ADVANCE?” THAT SEEMS TO BE A VERY POPULAR QUESTION THESE DAYS, AS IT REGULARLY COMES UP IN OUR BROADCASTING MENTORSHIP PROGRAMS.

BOB WASN’T NECESSARILY SURPRISED BY THE QUESTION BUT SIMPLY RELATED HIS OWN STORY IN THAT WHEN HE GRADUATED COLLEGE AND BECAME A TEACHER, HE COACHED A LOCAL POP WARNER TEAM. (SIMILAR TO YOUR LOCAL MINOR FOOTBALL PROGRAM).

HE SOON REALIZED TEACHING WASN’T FOR HIM AND WHEN HE TRIED TO RESIGN, THE PRINCIPAL OFFERED HIM INSTEAD THE JOB COACHING THE HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL TEAM.

THE REST IS HISTORY AS BOB TOOK IN AS MANY COACHING CLINICS AS HE COULD, STARTING MAKING FILES, BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS AND LEARNING EVERY POSSIBLE THING ABOUT THE GAME.

HIS CAREER TOOK OFF LIKE A ROCKET, STARTING OFF AT BROWN UNIVERSITY AND THEN NFL STOPS IN ARIZONA, NEW YORK, TAMPA BAY, DENVER, CLEVELAND AND MORE.

BUT HERE’S THE PEARL: WYLIE SAID SOME OF THE GREATEST JOY HE HAD WAS IN MINOR FOOTBALL, AND HE WAS SIMPLY PLEASED IF THE LITTLE KIDS BROKE HUDDLE AND LINED UP PROPERLY AT CENTRE, GUARD, TACKLE.

THAT MEANT HE’D DONE HIS JOB! THE TRUTH IS THE HIGHER YOU GO, THE MONEY MAY GET BETTER BUT THE PRESSURE MAGNIFIES EXPONENTIALLY AND THE FUN GETS SQUEEZED OUT OF IT.

SO IT DOESN’T MATTER THE INDUSTRY; YOU SHOULD MAKE SURE TO ENJOY WHAT YOU DO EVERYDAY, AND PAY LESS ATTENTION TO YOUR NEXT JOB.

AND AS THAT NOTED PHILOSOPHER MILEY CYRUS SINGS,

ENJOY THE CLIMB …

THAT’S TODAY’S ROD PEDERSEN COMMENTARY.