Coaching the Multitude
What makes a coach? The definition of a coach given to us by the World Wide Web is “in sports, a coach is an individual involved in the direction and instruction of the on-field operations of an athletic team or of individual athletes” (bestsportscoachingjobs.com). Coaches are given a responsibility to the team and individual. They are responsible for teaching the fundamentals of the sport and guide the athlete to be the best individual on and off the playing field.
Coach Steve Torricelli or Coach Tor is the definition of the word coach. He has strong moral principles to go along with a strong love and knowledge of the game of baseball. “Coach Tor” has been the head of the Springfield College in Illinois/Benedictine University at Springfield for 11 years and is currently in his 12th year.
The Torricelli name is synonymous with the baseball community in and around Springfield. Coach Tor, Coach Jim Torricelli, and Tim Torricelli all have grown up in Springfield, now they are giving back to the community by coaching at Benedictine University at Springfield otherwise known has BUS. Coach Steve Torricelli is the head coach, while Jim and Tim are assistants.
Coach Steve Torricelli graduated from Springfield High and went on to spend his college career at Eastern Illinois University. His mentors at EIU were the late Dan Callahan and Tom McDevitt. From Eastern, he went on to coach and teach at Taylorville High School for 5 years before coming to coach at Benedictine University at Springfield.
Under his tutelage, Coach Torricelli has a record of 312-242 during his tenor at Benedictine University at Springfield. He has many national honors from coaching over the last 11 years. Here are just a few: One of his players was selected in the major league draft, and he has coached three All Americans, three all district players, 14 members of the all region team, 40 all conference selections and he has also coached 23 Academic All Americans and 74 players who were named to the Academic All-Conference team. According to Coach Torricelli though, the two that stand out for him are back-to-back regional titles in 2007 and 2008, and in 2010, the Bulldogs’ cumulative GPA of 3.44earned the program its highest ever national ranking and allowed it to finish second in the nation for the second straight year among 398 College programs.
So to say Coach Torricelli hasn’t done his share of coaching over the years is an understatement.
What keeps a coach going after all those years, titles, and accolades, “The players” Coach Torricelli said with a smile.
Coach Torricelli has always known he was going to end up being a coach. He is what we like to call a people person. The gift of coaching is not easy for some men and women, but for Coach Torricelli it is second nature. He grew up always wanting to help people, and coaching was an excellent way to mold young players into fine young men.
You would think after years of coaching and the awards one would become complacent in coaching or become fed up with it. Here are a few ins and outs of how Coach Torricelli does not lose the passion for coaching. Each year, comes new and interesting challenges to me Coach Tor said. We get new players each year with different personalities, and it is my job to blend those players in with the already existing players.
“I also love adversity,” Coach Tor added. Adversity never gives you a heads up and comes at you head on. I thrive for these situations. “Sometimes you take these adversities head on or you may have to look at it from a different angle and evaluate the situation,” said Coach Torricelli.
Over the years, players come and go like the season of baseball. When asked what do you want your players to remember when leaving your program? His answer will surprise most people. He gave two things he would hope players would remember after leaving the program: their education and exposed to a program that cared about them as an individual.
Once known as Springfield College in Illinois is now Benedictine University at Springfield. This change brought new and different challenges to Coach Torricelli. Coach Tor went from one of the top junior college baseball programs in the state of Illinois to a new and developing NAIA (National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics) baseball program. Recruiting has been a bigger issue for Coach Torricelli. SCI was only a two year baseball program and was easy to recruit players to. Benedictine is a four year baseball program, and it is hard to get young players to commit to a four year school says Coach Torricelli.
This change brought around a different coaching style for Coach Tor as well. “Going from coaching 18-19 year olds to 18-22 and 23 year olds is a major difference,” Coach Tor states. I am now coaching older student-athletes which holds more responsibility on both parties, respectively. Junior college is mostly about starting players out, giving them a direction to go towards. Our new four year program allows me (Coach Tor) to prep and guide players as student-athletes to a career path.
Most players are scared of NAIA programs because it doesn’t have the same label as D-1, D-2, D-3 and junior college programs. “NAIA is not a disease; it is still quality baseball,” Coach Tor sternly stated. That is the biggest hurdle I face when trying to recruit players, I need to guide them away from the stigma of NAIA programs.
All coaches can be asked the same universal question, “What tool or way do you use to keep players driven or focused?” Coach Tor replied, “Creative drills and stay away from redundancy.” All drills are boring but when approached the right way, they can be rewarding. I (Coach Tor) have a certain time allotted for practices. During which, I use a variety of ways to keep each practice different and entertaining for my players. If a player does the same thing over and over again that is when the problems of focus and drive come up. I am very hard on each of my players, and to keep them wanting more you need to have some enjoyment and competition in drills. This keys on the natural competitive nature all athletes have or else they would not be there.
All coaches have their mentors or people of influence to them. Coach Tim Torricelli (brother) is that person for Coach Tor. Tim has been a long time minor league manager and knows the game inside and out. Tim was a big influence on how I go about coaching and what is the best way to communicate with the players. “He (Tim) has been around the game so much; he sees things in a slow motion effect. The ability to see things before they happen on a baseball field is a gift, and Tim has the gift. Which is why Coach Tor has him in the dugout of games every chance he can. “He brings a calming effect to me, and I look for his leadership and help during the course of the game. Experience in coaching is a key component between Coach Tor and Coach Tim Torricelli there is no shortage of experience. This is why Coach Tor brings a sense of family to his players because without family we are all just individuals.
Coaches go about the definition have student-athlete in a variety of ways. Some only look at the athlete part and some look at the student part first. Coach Tor looks at the student-athlete as a whole unit. He says he looks at the student first, but it is student-athlete for a reason. By being an athlete prepares you for other life obstacles that being a normal student you would not necessarily encounter. Failures are inevitable in sports and the way you bounce back from failure is what helps you become a better person. Commitment is vital to the overall make up of a student-athlete. “If they are not committed; I cannot coach and teach.”
Other markings of a great coach are the people he or she makes an impression on; whether it is players, coaches, or others. Through the years Coach Tor has taught not only players about the game and life, but other assistants. One of those assistants is Jeremy Cook. Jeremy Cook has been around Coach Tor for 8 years, and has learned many things from him.
Jeremy said, “I have learned how to study an opponent better from an offensive and defensive perspective. I pay more attention to detail in my own coaching strategies.” Jeremy uses the teachings in organization given my Coach Tor to use in his career at Benedictine, from organizing the camps at Benedictine to the yearly golf outing for the baseball program.
As a coach, you need to hold yourself to a higher standard on and off the field. Coach Tor epitomizes this teaching. I use this principle in high regard Jeremy Cook pointed out. For parents to trust you with their child is hard enough let only not being a professional in your coaching abilities. Also, Cook points out, I have learned all aspects of the game of baseball better under the tutelage of Coach Tor. The best quote Cook takes with every time he coaches is this, “Let the game come to you, never put yourself above the game,” from Coach Tor.
Coach Torricelli constantly preaches “we are a family” to his players. This might be the reason BUS’s baseball program has been tearing up the accomplishments the last few years. Players are brought in as individuals and become one team, one family. Those are the markings of a great coach. That coach is Coach Steve Torricelli.
Thursday, December 1, 2011
op-ed column
Analysis op-ed Column
Our column is on a neighborhood dispute by Mary Schmich of the Chicago Tribune. This is a terrible thing that happened to a family. The family was stacked up against odds, they had no control of. The editorial piece is the tip of the iceberg when it comes to property that the city/government wants. There is not much we can do in the situations such as this one. Cities and government hold all the power and if they want something they will take it without considering the family or families that it affects in the process.
Tim Harrower’s principles are the following: keep it tight, keep it relevant, take a stand, attack the issues not personalities, don’t be a bully, control your anger, and write a strong lead and a solid finish. Keep it tights means do not stray for the topic get to the point and stay on point throughout the article you are writing. I think, Schmich did a good job on staying on topic, she did not stray too far from main point of the article. Keep it relevant to the readers. The more relevant a topic is to the readers the more likelihood of them reading it. Schmich does this, because this could happen to anyone at anytime, anywhere in the world. Take a stand on a topic is pretty much common sense. I liked how Schmich did not give her opinion on the subject until the very end of the article and when she did it was brief and to the point. Schmich gave the opinions of the Harris family and that of the police officers. She supported each side with facts to let the reader decide for themselves which side to take. Schmich attacked the issues at hand without attacking the Harris family or police officers. She presented the facts of both parties involved and did not personal attack anyone in the article. When it comes to don’t be a bully, Schmich lets the audience decide by persuasion. I think she did a great job in this department because, with the facts on both sides, anyone can be swayed against or for the Harris. She plays subtle mind games with the audience. The facts on both sides can persuade the audience a certain way. Controlling your anger is the most important one in my opinion. If cannot be biased when writing an editorial. You have to present the facts correctly without getting steamed about one side or the other. Schmich does a great job with this. She only shows the slightest bit of anger when she says at the end that it shouldn’t have happened this way. You can feel her pain for the Harris family in her writing. Writing a strong lead and finish is the key to any piece. The audience has to be pulled in quickly and feel emotions towards the specific article. If not, the audience will not finish reading the article because it does not interest them. Schmich uses the word “BAM” affectively in getting the audience’s attention; also she gives great back ground information on the subjects. She tells a great story in the first couple paragraphs to keep the reader’s wanting more and more. The finish of Schmich article is her opinion. She gives the reactions of the Harris family to the given situation and then she gives her own reactions to the situation. I liked how she kept the suspense of her opinion until the very end of the article.
I believe Don Murray would be impressed with this particular article. It had a since of grace and balance throughout out the article. Schmich goes by the book and hits every point of principle by Harrower’s stand point. She has a great lead and a fantastic finish. I think that this particular piece is that of craftsmanship thought out and precise.
My overall evolution of the piece is a well-constructed editorial piece. It hits the main points and gives the audience a chance to reply to the article or have an opinion about it. She makes it easy for the audience to see that it is an opinion piece. I actually enjoyed reading this article and kept reading because of the she constructed the editorial.
Our column is on a neighborhood dispute by Mary Schmich of the Chicago Tribune. This is a terrible thing that happened to a family. The family was stacked up against odds, they had no control of. The editorial piece is the tip of the iceberg when it comes to property that the city/government wants. There is not much we can do in the situations such as this one. Cities and government hold all the power and if they want something they will take it without considering the family or families that it affects in the process.
Tim Harrower’s principles are the following: keep it tight, keep it relevant, take a stand, attack the issues not personalities, don’t be a bully, control your anger, and write a strong lead and a solid finish. Keep it tights means do not stray for the topic get to the point and stay on point throughout the article you are writing. I think, Schmich did a good job on staying on topic, she did not stray too far from main point of the article. Keep it relevant to the readers. The more relevant a topic is to the readers the more likelihood of them reading it. Schmich does this, because this could happen to anyone at anytime, anywhere in the world. Take a stand on a topic is pretty much common sense. I liked how Schmich did not give her opinion on the subject until the very end of the article and when she did it was brief and to the point. Schmich gave the opinions of the Harris family and that of the police officers. She supported each side with facts to let the reader decide for themselves which side to take. Schmich attacked the issues at hand without attacking the Harris family or police officers. She presented the facts of both parties involved and did not personal attack anyone in the article. When it comes to don’t be a bully, Schmich lets the audience decide by persuasion. I think she did a great job in this department because, with the facts on both sides, anyone can be swayed against or for the Harris. She plays subtle mind games with the audience. The facts on both sides can persuade the audience a certain way. Controlling your anger is the most important one in my opinion. If cannot be biased when writing an editorial. You have to present the facts correctly without getting steamed about one side or the other. Schmich does a great job with this. She only shows the slightest bit of anger when she says at the end that it shouldn’t have happened this way. You can feel her pain for the Harris family in her writing. Writing a strong lead and finish is the key to any piece. The audience has to be pulled in quickly and feel emotions towards the specific article. If not, the audience will not finish reading the article because it does not interest them. Schmich uses the word “BAM” affectively in getting the audience’s attention; also she gives great back ground information on the subjects. She tells a great story in the first couple paragraphs to keep the reader’s wanting more and more. The finish of Schmich article is her opinion. She gives the reactions of the Harris family to the given situation and then she gives her own reactions to the situation. I liked how she kept the suspense of her opinion until the very end of the article.
I believe Don Murray would be impressed with this particular article. It had a since of grace and balance throughout out the article. Schmich goes by the book and hits every point of principle by Harrower’s stand point. She has a great lead and a fantastic finish. I think that this particular piece is that of craftsmanship thought out and precise.
My overall evolution of the piece is a well-constructed editorial piece. It hits the main points and gives the audience a chance to reply to the article or have an opinion about it. She makes it easy for the audience to see that it is an opinion piece. I actually enjoyed reading this article and kept reading because of the she constructed the editorial.
Analytical Paper
Analytical papers
Donald Murray explains art as a word journalist’s fear. Art is how the application unfolds or the end result of a piece of writing. Craft is what you do and the tools you use it with. This is the application of skill.
In the piece the Boomerang, Michael Lewis uses the definitions of art and craft excellently. He explains the craft is the information he is writing about, which is the financial crisis of Europe and the how the West is going to be affected by this. The art of his writing is the language in which he writes the story. Michael Lewis is an excellent writer in how he can make something as confusing as European sovereign debt interesting for the average American to read it and understand it. Being the average American, I read the story and actually comprehended most of it.
“If Greece walks away from $400 billion in debt, then the European banks that lent the money will go down, and other countries now flirting with bankruptcy might easily follow, destabilizing the regional and world economies further. He also explains why taxpayers in Germany are reluctant to keep bailing out other countries they regard as profligate, indolent and irresponsible” (Lewis 2). Greece should be held accountable for their debt is what I get from reading this statement from Lewis. If not, more countries will suffer and put a strain on all of Europe. Lewis was diligent with his researching this disaster of debt Greece has accumulated. I believe this specific quote is a use of craft. It is giving information to the reader just like Murray states in his book, Writing to Deadline.
Lewis says in the last 12 years the wage bill of the Greek public sector has doubled with the average government job now paying almost three times the average private sector job. Those who work in jobs classified as arduous can retire and start collecting pentions. As early as 55 for men and 50 for women; more than 600 Greek professions have somehow managed to get themselves classified as arduous: hairdressers, radio announcers, waiters, musicians and so on. This is absurd. I believe Lewis is very professional, because if I was doing an article on this it would be one sided as hell. Murray would be proud of the way Lewis is biased in how he approached writing this article. This is another example how Lewis used craftsmanship in his writing. He took information and explained it in a way which we can understand it.
As far as art goes, Lewis does a great job of working with the information he has been given or sought after. He put a story together and made it interesting to hundreds of readers across the world. Lewis’s tools for craftsmanship are uncanny. In the respect of craft, he uses his skills to create a masterpiece. Even though Lewis is a journalist and the rules apply to him, he uses his creativity to make art become alive in his writing because he isn’t restricted.
As a professional, I think Murray would look down upon Lewis as far as technique. I only say this because I believe Lewis is more outspoken then Murray. Murray’s writing style, I feel, is much more subdued then Lewis. I think reporting to Lewis’s story is essential because people need to know what is going on in Greece because this can happen anywhere. People need to be informed of this and Lewis does just that.
The next article I will be doing is California and Bust by Michael Lewis. The first line says it all about this article. “On August 5, 2011, moments after the U.S. government watched a rating agency lower its credit rating for the first time in American history, the market for the U.S. Treasury bonds soared. The public was going out and buying bonds like no tomorrow. This made everything else as far as stocks and bonds free fall. The U.S. government after this was less likely to repay its debt and the solution was to raise the cost of borrowing not for government but for everyone else.
I liked how Lewis went back a year ago and shared this, “the television news program 60 Minutes are a 14-minute piece about U.S. state and local finances. Correspondent Steve Kroft interviewed a private Wall Street analysis named Meredith Whitney, who, back in 2007, had gone from being obscure to famous when she correctly suggested that Citigroup’s losses in U.S. subprime bonds were far bigger than anyone imagined, and predicted the bank would be forced to cut its dividend” (Lewis 1). This is an example of both art and craft. Lewis uses this information and uses it to the end result with his specific writing style. He presented us with a problem and a fact at the same time. Later in the article, I found a eerie similarity to Greece and the U.S. Meredith Whitney had found a pressure point in American finance: the fear that American cities would not pay back the money they had borrowed. The market for municipal bonds, unlike the market for U.S. government bonds, spooked easily. Some of our states are in debt and the for seeing future does not look good for us as a country.
Lewis’s writing style between this article and Boomerang are very similarly. The attitude in which Lewis writes, and how he presents factual information to the readers is exact. I am not sure if he picks topics that are down in the dumps, but I feel like he sees the world as an evil place, where money rules everything. Lewis goes back and uses a statement from Whitney: California is the scariest state.
Murray would give Lewis a good grade as far as professionalism goes, but as a journalists Lewis is one sided in almost everything he writes about. I only know this now while reading this second article. He tries and disguise what he feel, but if you look closely we can tell how he feels about the article. I thought journalists are supposed to be unbiased on anything they report on. Lewis is a mastermind when it comes to using art and craft in his reporting, but I think he comes off mean-spirited and spiteful in his writings. Once again, that could be just what he chooses to write on.
All in all, I believe there is a close resemblance between Lewis and Murray in regards to art and craft. The journalistic writing styles; however, are totally different. After reading a Murray article you feel more like he is personable and you can speak to him easily. When reading Lewis articles, I do not get the same feeling. Lewis comes off more of a jerk, who thinks everything is bad in the world, it might be, but his writings should come off more unbiased then biased.
Donald Murray explains art as a word journalist’s fear. Art is how the application unfolds or the end result of a piece of writing. Craft is what you do and the tools you use it with. This is the application of skill.
In the piece the Boomerang, Michael Lewis uses the definitions of art and craft excellently. He explains the craft is the information he is writing about, which is the financial crisis of Europe and the how the West is going to be affected by this. The art of his writing is the language in which he writes the story. Michael Lewis is an excellent writer in how he can make something as confusing as European sovereign debt interesting for the average American to read it and understand it. Being the average American, I read the story and actually comprehended most of it.
“If Greece walks away from $400 billion in debt, then the European banks that lent the money will go down, and other countries now flirting with bankruptcy might easily follow, destabilizing the regional and world economies further. He also explains why taxpayers in Germany are reluctant to keep bailing out other countries they regard as profligate, indolent and irresponsible” (Lewis 2). Greece should be held accountable for their debt is what I get from reading this statement from Lewis. If not, more countries will suffer and put a strain on all of Europe. Lewis was diligent with his researching this disaster of debt Greece has accumulated. I believe this specific quote is a use of craft. It is giving information to the reader just like Murray states in his book, Writing to Deadline.
Lewis says in the last 12 years the wage bill of the Greek public sector has doubled with the average government job now paying almost three times the average private sector job. Those who work in jobs classified as arduous can retire and start collecting pentions. As early as 55 for men and 50 for women; more than 600 Greek professions have somehow managed to get themselves classified as arduous: hairdressers, radio announcers, waiters, musicians and so on. This is absurd. I believe Lewis is very professional, because if I was doing an article on this it would be one sided as hell. Murray would be proud of the way Lewis is biased in how he approached writing this article. This is another example how Lewis used craftsmanship in his writing. He took information and explained it in a way which we can understand it.
As far as art goes, Lewis does a great job of working with the information he has been given or sought after. He put a story together and made it interesting to hundreds of readers across the world. Lewis’s tools for craftsmanship are uncanny. In the respect of craft, he uses his skills to create a masterpiece. Even though Lewis is a journalist and the rules apply to him, he uses his creativity to make art become alive in his writing because he isn’t restricted.
As a professional, I think Murray would look down upon Lewis as far as technique. I only say this because I believe Lewis is more outspoken then Murray. Murray’s writing style, I feel, is much more subdued then Lewis. I think reporting to Lewis’s story is essential because people need to know what is going on in Greece because this can happen anywhere. People need to be informed of this and Lewis does just that.
The next article I will be doing is California and Bust by Michael Lewis. The first line says it all about this article. “On August 5, 2011, moments after the U.S. government watched a rating agency lower its credit rating for the first time in American history, the market for the U.S. Treasury bonds soared. The public was going out and buying bonds like no tomorrow. This made everything else as far as stocks and bonds free fall. The U.S. government after this was less likely to repay its debt and the solution was to raise the cost of borrowing not for government but for everyone else.
I liked how Lewis went back a year ago and shared this, “the television news program 60 Minutes are a 14-minute piece about U.S. state and local finances. Correspondent Steve Kroft interviewed a private Wall Street analysis named Meredith Whitney, who, back in 2007, had gone from being obscure to famous when she correctly suggested that Citigroup’s losses in U.S. subprime bonds were far bigger than anyone imagined, and predicted the bank would be forced to cut its dividend” (Lewis 1). This is an example of both art and craft. Lewis uses this information and uses it to the end result with his specific writing style. He presented us with a problem and a fact at the same time. Later in the article, I found a eerie similarity to Greece and the U.S. Meredith Whitney had found a pressure point in American finance: the fear that American cities would not pay back the money they had borrowed. The market for municipal bonds, unlike the market for U.S. government bonds, spooked easily. Some of our states are in debt and the for seeing future does not look good for us as a country.
Lewis’s writing style between this article and Boomerang are very similarly. The attitude in which Lewis writes, and how he presents factual information to the readers is exact. I am not sure if he picks topics that are down in the dumps, but I feel like he sees the world as an evil place, where money rules everything. Lewis goes back and uses a statement from Whitney: California is the scariest state.
Murray would give Lewis a good grade as far as professionalism goes, but as a journalists Lewis is one sided in almost everything he writes about. I only know this now while reading this second article. He tries and disguise what he feel, but if you look closely we can tell how he feels about the article. I thought journalists are supposed to be unbiased on anything they report on. Lewis is a mastermind when it comes to using art and craft in his reporting, but I think he comes off mean-spirited and spiteful in his writings. Once again, that could be just what he chooses to write on.
All in all, I believe there is a close resemblance between Lewis and Murray in regards to art and craft. The journalistic writing styles; however, are totally different. After reading a Murray article you feel more like he is personable and you can speak to him easily. When reading Lewis articles, I do not get the same feeling. Lewis comes off more of a jerk, who thinks everything is bad in the world, it might be, but his writings should come off more unbiased then biased.
Tuesday, September 27, 2011
Hunting Blogs
http://www.buckhuntersblog.com/
1. what appeals to me is anything you would want to know about hunting or questions about hunting, you can find your answers on this website. The different topics from day to day keep me guessing and it is never the same thing.
2. Different pro staff members contribute to the blog, but the main blogger is on all the time. He is easy going when he talks on the blog and doesn't try to confuse to much.
3. I need to use the way he blogs in my blogs more often. Short and to the point. he decribes the ins and outs of deer hunting and life in general and how they relate to eachother.
4. Any beginning hunter could use this site to learn much more about the outdoors and deer hunting, then experience would. Many of the questions that first time hunters have are answered very well in this blog.
1. what appeals to me is anything you would want to know about hunting or questions about hunting, you can find your answers on this website. The different topics from day to day keep me guessing and it is never the same thing.
2. Different pro staff members contribute to the blog, but the main blogger is on all the time. He is easy going when he talks on the blog and doesn't try to confuse to much.
3. I need to use the way he blogs in my blogs more often. Short and to the point. he decribes the ins and outs of deer hunting and life in general and how they relate to eachother.
4. Any beginning hunter could use this site to learn much more about the outdoors and deer hunting, then experience would. Many of the questions that first time hunters have are answered very well in this blog.
Tuesday, September 6, 2011
Minas gave us a look into how 9/11 directly impacted his life and those around him. He gives us a understanding of the American dream, he never gave up. After all that has happened, he still wants to go back to ground zero and re-open his shoe store. That is a sign for the American people.
His story should told as an eye opener for America. He looked devistation in the face and beat it. That is what his story should be.
His story should told as an eye opener for America. He looked devistation in the face and beat it. That is what his story should be.
Blogs are your opinions on specific stories your read on the internet. Blogging helps you gain greater knowledge on a specific topic by reading the thoughts of other people. You recieve the story from different perspectives when reading peoples blogs.
Everyone can use blogs for careers, sports, hobbies, or life in general. Blogging is a great way to get your opionion out in the open for the world to see.
Everyone can use blogs for careers, sports, hobbies, or life in general. Blogging is a great way to get your opionion out in the open for the world to see.
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