{"id":75570,"date":"2014-07-14T18:07:07","date_gmt":"2014-07-14T18:07:07","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/rcntv.rcn.com\/?p=75570"},"modified":"2023-04-14T15:04:17","modified_gmt":"2023-04-14T15:04:17","slug":"behind-the-mic-thats-why-you-play-the-game","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.astound.com\/atvn\/behind-the-mic-thats-why-you-play-the-game\/","title":{"rendered":"Behind the Mic: That’s Why You Play the Game"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u201cThat\u2019s why you play the game.\u201d This phrase has been spoken many times in the sporting world after a huge underdog leaves the arena of competition with an almost unimaginable victory. For example, in the early 1900\u2019s, Man o\u2019 War<\/a> had never lost a horse race in its career until it was defeated by a 100-1 long-shot named, appropriately, Upset<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u2022 In 2007, 27-point underdog Appalachian State traveled to Ann Arbor to take on college football\u2019s powerhouse, the Michigan Wolverines. App. State was a 27- point underdog. Appalachian State won the game<\/a> by a 34-32 score.
\n\u2022 Super Bowl III<\/a> was won by Joe Namath\u2019s New York Jets 16-7 over the Baltimore Colts. The Colts were overwhelming favorites. Namath announced his team would win and they did.
\n\u2022 The New England Patriots took a perfect record into the 2007 Super Bowl<\/a> against the Giants. The Patriots were favored by 12. The Giants spoiled their perfect season with a 17-14 win.
\n\u2022 And who can forget perhaps the greatest upset of all when the United States defeated the Soviet Union at the 1980 Winter Olympics<\/a>? The Soviets were a team loaded with experience and players known to be the best in the world. The US was a bunch of random players from college hockey. This is usually listed as the greatest upset ever in sports.<\/p>\n

How does this happen? What is it that would motivate an athlete to achieve what many obviously considered impossible? How can we use some of these lessons to overcome many of the obstacles that fate throws at us in our everyday lives? Perhaps, the answers can be found in a new book titled, The Sky Is NOT the Limit, Discovering the True North for Your Life\u2019s Path<\/em>.<\/a><\/p>\n

First off, I have not yet read the book. It was just published. However, I am very familiar with both authors<\/a>. Dr. Jarrod Spencer is a Lafayette <\/a>graduate who is president and founder of Mind of the Athlete<\/a>, \u201ca sports psychology company committed to the emotional health of athletes\u201d. Jarrod sends me an interesting e-mail every week with tips on improving performance in sports and in life. The book is co-authored by Phil Richards, who is a renowned businessman, a successful author, and a member of Easton High School\u2019s Hall of Fame. He is also my son-in-law\u2019s uncle. I did read his Secrets to Sustainable Success<\/em><\/a>. He just finished Practice on Purpose<\/em>. These are men I highly respect.<\/p>\n

When these men write, the underlying theme is \u2018There are a few rules to govern all you do\u2019:
\n1) Give your best effort
\n2) Don\u2019t be afraid to fail
\n3) Capture your passion for something and it can motivate you to great results.<\/p>\n

You can order<\/a> the hardcover work on Amazon for $29.95. It just might motivate you to \u201cplay the game\u201d no matter the odds, no matter the result, no matter the game!<\/p>\n

ABOVE THE EARS (SOME MUSINGS)<\/strong><\/span>
\n1. I know many caught World Cup<\/a> fever. But 120 minutes of play in the championship final before the first and ONLY goal was scored left me WITH a fever. I already feel better today and I have four years until I risk another soccer malady.<\/p>\n

2. \u201cDefense wins championships\u201d. Another sports adage. The Phillies <\/a>have not committed an error in their last 59 innings. They enter the All-Star break 10 games out of first place and a winning percentage of .442, their lowest since 1997. Defense will not win a championship for the Phils.<\/p>\n

3. Don\u2019t you hate when one of your favorite team\u2019s ex-players comes back and just plays great? And you can\u2019t help but think about the \u201cwhat if he still played for your team?\u201d Former Phillie Jayson Werth<\/a> has been all-world in July \u2013 40 at bats; .375 average; 14 runs scored; 6 home runs; 19 RBI\u2019s; 8 walks! What if\u2026?<\/p>\n

4. Did you notice that LeBron James<\/a> signed with Cleveland<\/a>? If you didn\u2019t, what planet were you visiting the past month? So put yourself in the seat of a Cleveland fan. Your baseball team is playing pretty well, the Browns <\/a>drafted Johnny Manziel<\/a>, and the Cavaliers now have LeBron. The last championship in Cleveland occurred in 1964 when the Browns won the NFL championship. There\u2019s another one coming, baby!!<\/p>\n

5. The Parkland boys\u2019 basketball team won the prestigious Stellar basketball tournament this past weekend, going 6-0. It was the fifth title, but the first since 2009. They won it with talent and depth. Parkland will be heavily favored to win the inaugural season of the Eastern Pennsylvania Conference. By the way, the Parkland girls finished second to Boyertown.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u201cThat\u2019s why you play the game.\u201d This phrase has been spoken many times in the sporting world after a huge underdog leaves the arena of competition with an almost unimaginable victory. For example, in the early 1900\u2019s, Man o\u2019 War had never lost a horse race in its career until it was defeated by a…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_relevanssi_hide_post":"","_relevanssi_hide_content":"","_relevanssi_pin_for_all":"","_relevanssi_pin_keywords":"","_relevanssi_unpin_keywords":"","_relevanssi_related_keywords":"","_relevanssi_related_include_ids":"","_relevanssi_related_exclude_ids":"","_relevanssi_related_no_append":"","_relevanssi_related_not_related":"","_relevanssi_related_posts":"","_relevanssi_noindex_reason":"Yoast SEO Relevanssi index exclude","inline_featured_image":false,"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"episode_type":"","audio_file":"","podmotor_file_id":"","podmotor_episode_id":"","cover_image":"","cover_image_id":"","duration":"","filesize":"","filesize_raw":"","date_recorded":"","explicit":"","block":"","itunes_episode_number":"","itunes_title":"","itunes_season_number":"","itunes_episode_type":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[2,3,4],"tags":[171,414],"class_list":["post-75570","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-behind-the-mic","category-featured","category-sports","tag-dr-jarrod-spencer","tag-phil-richards"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nBehind the Mic: That's Why You Play the Game - ATVN<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"noindex, follow\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Behind the Mic: That's Why You Play the Game - ATVN\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"\u201cThat\u2019s why you play the game.\u201d This phrase has been spoken many times in the sporting world after a huge underdog leaves the arena of competition with an almost unimaginable victory. 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