Coach's Corner with the Baltimore Mariners Chris Simpson

Published on June 4, 2010 under American Indoor Football Association (AIFA)
Baltimore Mariners News Release


BALTIMORE, MD (June 4, 2010) - "If you can find a path with no obstacles, it probably doesn't lead anywhere."

Adversity is something we face every day of our lives. It can either tear a man down or make him stand tall and strong. My father once said, "The measure of a man is not whether he succeeds or fails. The measure of a man is how he handles success and failure."

Some may ask how a team that remains undefeated has any adversity? Trust me, we face it every day. It's how we handle it that makes this team so different from any other I have coached. My players and staff are people first and employees second. There are forces outside the walls that affect us on a daily basis. I believe that helping individuals deal with those forces is just as important as teaching them the X's and O's.

I also believe that football can be sanctuary. For just a few hours a day, you can leave everything else aside and focus on just being a football player. I preach this to my players and staff on a weekly basis. Not because I take their personal issues lightly but, because, every once in a while, you need to take a mental break from all of things that demand your attention. Nothing eases my burdens more than stepping on a football field. Adversity reintroduces a man to himself and a player or coach to his team.

Our trip to Richmond this past weekend proved to be more of an opportunity than a major inconvenience. During the four and half hours that we were "stuck", not one player or staff complained. Each understood what they needed to do to stay prepared and focused. Those that felt some frustration simply removed themselves from the group so they would not affect the whole. To me, that showed great maturity.

When written in Chinese the word "crisis" is composed of two characters. One of the characters represents "danger" and the other character represents "opportunity". Ralph Waldo Emerson once wrote, "When it is dark enough, you can see the stars."

It is amazing how clear the vision is once we set aside the difficulties. We face challenges every week. Our mentality is to translate those into opportunities. Our focus has always been on the big picture; winning the AIFA championship

Four games left in the regular season. Erie, a team we have not faced yet, stands in our way of clinching a first round bye and home field advantage in the playoffs. At this point, we are not concerning ourselves with anything else but winning this weekend. To us, the Mariner Family, nothing else really matters.

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American Indoor Football Association Stories from June 4, 2010


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