Coach Carter is the true story of Ken Carter. Ken Carter was a star basketball player who played at Richmond High School. Carter is seen teaching his players discipline, respect and the importance education throughout the film.
Carter is shocked to learn that players are disrespectful and rude towards him. Carter teaches respect to his players by calling them “sir”. Respect is something that I believe coaches must teach their athletes because it’s not just a trait for sports, but applies everywhere. Everybody should learn how to respect other people and become a better human being.
Carter teaches the team discipline. He gives each player their contract at the beginning of practice. The contract binds the players to the rules and regulations he’s set for them, including being on-time and maintaining at minimum a GPA 2.3. In the event that players do not meet this requirement, they will face punishments and consequences as a whole. This includes being required to do too many push-ups. Carter doesn’t treat his son any differently than the other players if he wants him to join Richmond and transfer schools. Carter expects that his son maintain a GPA higher than the other players because he believes he can do it. Carter treated his son the same as any other player, even though it was his child. Favoritism is a bad thing for your team. Your players will turn against your and think you are treating them unfairly.
Carter becomes angry when he reads that his players are getting incompletes or failing classes due to their inability to attend class. He reminds them that academics are the priority and that they signed contracts as student athletes. Carter sends his players to the library for homework and to do their studies to improve grades. He cancels games and locks down the gym. Parents are outraged when Carter cancels the most important game of the year and they complain to the board. The schoolboard votes to end it. Carter walks into the gym and discovers that his players are studying in their desks rather than playing. Eventually, the players get better grades and can play again. Despite losing the championship by just two points, both athletes and academics feel they have accomplished a lot. Academics should always come first when coaches are coaching school sport. Many coaches don’t really care about their athletes’ grades, but only if they have a good athletic ability. I would stress the importance of education if I was ever to coach sports at a school.
A recent article, “Richmond Rebound/High-school Basketball Players Hit the Books, Coach Lifts Lockout,” discusses Carter’s reasoning for the lockout. Also included are the opinions and thoughts of others who agreed and disagreed with Carter. Carter was interviewed in an article entitled “Just Call Him “Sir”. He talked about his opinion of the movie and his thoughts on self-talk. Carter explained that he would often ask his players “What do you fear?” to encourage them to have a more positive self-talk. Self-talk helps boost confidence and is something that coaches need to pay attention to. Coach Carter shares his coaching strategies and philosophy in a question-and-answer session. He stressed the importance of education and why his players were so hard-pressed.
The articles and movie I watched taught me how to be an effective coach if I decide to return to coaching. Just like Carter, I’d focus on respect, education, and discipline. To be a great coach you have to do a lot. Sometimes it’s helpful to study other coaches and their philosophies.
