It’s Not a Limitation Problem. It’s a Choice.

I was doing the usual For You Page scroll on TikTok when this clip flashed. I stopped, of course, because I enjoy hearing Nick Saban talk football — but there were two “can’t stop thinking about it” takeaways.

First: the sheer size of this staff. It isn’t shocking (my brother has been a D1 football coach for almost two decades, so I know the numbers), but it is disappointing from a TeamsOfMen perspective. How can there be this many human beings in one program and not a single one tasked with character development? The resource allocation of time and money here feels wildly inefficient if five coaches are watching the same clip of the same position group every day. (Yes, that’s my Business Econ degree talking: diminishing returns, anyone?)

Second: Saban’s teaching mastery is undeniable. The sequencing, the repetitions, the layers of exposure he demands for players to fully learn a concept — it’s the craft of education at its peak. Coaches clearly know how to design for deep learning.

So why don’t we apply that same urgency and detail to reimagining manhood, teaching emotional fluency, or preventing gender violence? With this many people on staff, one 30-minute block per week could change lives. The truth is, this isn’t a limitation problem. It’s a choice. And right now, most programs are choosing not to.

We can — and must — be better.

Coach Prompt

If you’re already sequencing five exposures for a football skill, why not apply the same model to a life skill? What would your weekly progression look like if emotional fluency or respect were “installed” with the same detail?

Player Prompt

Think about the last time your coaches broke something down step by step until you mastered it. What “life skill” do you wish they’d taught you the same way — one you’ll need off the field?