Alright, alright, alright.
Ah the simplicity of Matthew McConaughey in the cult classic Dazed and Confused. And even though he didn’t stay the same age, that became a catch phrase for the Texas-born actor that took him all the way to the stage to accept the Academy Award for, wait for it, Best Actor.
Sure enough, McConaughey also used that line during his commencement speech at the University of Houston where he shared some, um, interesting knowledge on the stage in front of the Cougars’ class of 2015.
As you look through the actor’s speech there are several bits of McConaughey-isms that, oddly enough, really relate to the 2015 Houston Cougars football team.
“Turn the Page”
This one seems easy enough. The Cougars can’t help but the page this season as new head coach Tom Herman takes over. Anyone who is still around from the Tony Levine era must quickly, if they haven’t already, turn the page into what appears to be an exciting chapter in Cougars football. It’s not just new faces and new plays, it’s a new attitude Herman is trying to impress on this team. In his speech, McConaughey said “You are going to make mistakes – own them, make amends and move on.” That applies to Herman and his players. But, hey Matthew, you may not have scored many points by bringing up the University of Texas in your speech.
“Unbelievable is the stupidest word in the dictionary”
You hear it all the time. “What an unbelievable catch,” or “what an unbelievable comeback.” People used that second one a lot when the Cougars mounted a comeback for the ages to beat Pitt in the Armed Forces Bowl. Mr. Dallas Buyers Club himself says “It just happened, you witnessed it, you just did it, believe it.”
This could apply to many of the players on this year’s team, but let’s single out quarterback Greg Ward, Jr. This time last year Ward was a wide receiver. By the end of the 2014 season he made a complete transition to quarterback and played a huge role in saving Houston’s season. He fit well in the previous system, but could this converted wide out possibly succeed in the system that produced three NFL-caliber QBs last season? It could be a question of whether Ward believes it.
“Define success for yourself”
What is a good season for Houston this year? Bowl eligible? 10 wins? Winning the division in the newly-formatted AAC? There are already a lot of prognosticators rattling on about what they think the mark of success will be. Truth is, just like any other program going through a coaching change, it’s nearly impossible to set a goal from outside the program. This is a situation where Herman and his coaching staff need to make their own goals and share them with the players. Now that could change over the course of the season depending on results. If they come out of the gate 4-0 we’re talking about a whole new set of expectations than if they come out of the gate flat.
Some may find it hard to take advice from the man who gave us such gems as “How to Lose a Man in 10 Days,” but dang it this sure applies on and off the football field: “We have to define success for ourselves, then we have to put the work to maintain it.”
“Give your obstacles credit”
You could look at this a couple of ways. First, there are the obstacles right in front of a player; the weight room, the two-a-day practices, learning the playbook… then there are the obstacles the Cougars will face every Saturday (or sometimes Thursday or Friday) this fall. The AAC may not be a “Power 5” conference, but it is certainly no pushover and is getting stronger by the season. Cincinnati and Memphis in back to back weeks (both at home, thankfully). A trip to UConn. A game against new AAC member Navy and the never-easy-to-defend triple option. And, oh yeah, the Coogs go out of conference to face Louisville and Vanderbilt.
I’m not saying Herman and the Cougars aren’t giving these teams credit, but the tenacity of these obstacles should be addressed often; not as a mountain too steep to climb, but as a challenge that can be taken head-on. McConaughey also told grads to “dissect your successes,” which fits hand-in-hand with the weekly obstacle course that is the college football season.
Is this a bunch of cliché from a guy who sells Lincolns and plays the bongos in the buff? Maybe. But, then again, maybe there is just enough wisdom embedded in the man’s words that will help inspire the Class of 2015 and a Cougars team looking to do more than just “keep on livin.”
Add The Sports Daily to your Google News Feed!
