As a new dad experiencing my first Father’s Day, it brought up a lot of good memories and experiences I shared with my own Dad. He was one who introduced me to sports. He played basketball with me in the driveway, videotaped all my youth football games –even in freezing sleet– and simply laughed when I dented his prized ’83 Camaro with a foul ball in little league. He’s the reason I scream at the TV every Sunday, the reason I have this job, and the reason I hope to be half as good of a dad he was and is.
Growing up, my Dad was my basketball coach. I was never the tallest or strongest, but boy could I also not shoot or dribble either. My teammates were in a similar boat of athletic talent, and we faced a steep challenge to win games that year. I’d like to say this story ends as the ‘Hoosiers’ of 7th grade boys basketball, but we lost every single game. And I’ve never had more fun playing basketball in my life.
My Dad worked hard to try and teach us. He researched various offenses and drills for hours every week and did his best to show them to a group of boys who had more interest in seeing who could fart the loudest at practice. He also knew we were there to have fun, and that it’s what youth sports should be about. We were free to take a ‘Steph Curry Three’ whenever we felt the basketball mojo coursing through our veins. And despite our percentage hovering around a 5% make rate, we never got discouraged and neither did he, at least on the surface. Dad let us be ourselves, and I’ll treasure that 0-15 season forever.
Sports and my Dad go hand in hand for me. He took me to all kinds of games. He chatted with me about stats and players for hours. But above all, he showed up.
As a kid I played football, basketball, baseball and more. He rarely missed one. Every game I played I knew I could look up and see him there. He saw my “Grand Slam’, which some may call a single with three errors, but hey, I swung and four guys scored. He saw me get absolutely launched in my first year of tackle football, and saw me average 12 turnovers a game in basketball. He taught me the importance of being there for your kids.
Beyond my love of sports, one of the reasons I write for Badger of Honor is so I can be home everyday for my daughter. As she grows up, maybe she’ll like sports too. Or maybe she’ll like science or music and love to paint. But ultimately I hope to be there for her as much as my Dad was for me. I don’t remember a single score of one my games. But I remember my Dad (and Mom!) being there.
I love you Dad!
And Happy Father’s Day to all the other dads out there!
