History. Tradition. The age-old tenets of the Clay Center Community High School Tigers. It is our way of doing business. It is who we are. It is what we do. It is us being defined by our predecessors, following the character and the expectations passed from generation to generation, from decade to decade, and from season to season.
A young man lamented to me last month about how he felt they had no traditions at the high school anymore. He was frustrated. He didn’t seem to fully comprehend what it all means or how awesome it is to be a part of this wonderful tradition. #TigerFamily means more than a hashtag; it means more than just a catchy slogan.
There is a deep, historical standard in Clay County, KS. Not being a native citizen, I tried to learn as much as I could when I was an active part of the Tiger sports coaching family. I’ve heard the stories from former athletes, young and old. I’ve studied the Blackie (Lane) Book and Coach Otto Unruh’s How to Coach Winning Football more times than I dare count. What follows is my feeble attempt to distill all this tradition and all this history into a list of principles and beliefs on the meaning of Tiger Family.
Current and future Tiger Family members, we sit in the middle of a rarefied tradition in Clay Center. The torch is passed. The flame of tradition and history is now in your hands.
What are you going to do with it?
The Tenets
- Outwork everyone.
- Earn everything. Expect nothing to be given.
- Hit your opponent like a cannon shot, from the opening gun to closing bell.
- Never back down, never give up.
- Every man, every play.
- Get better every day.
- When the opponent puts their head on the chopping block, cut it off.
- Hustle everywhere. Hustle is an attitude. Intimidate with hustle.
- Take care of your own !@#$ business. Do your job.
- Think explosive, train explosive, play explosive.
- Be who you are while being part of the whole.
- Earn respect, command respect.
- Challenges, direction, discipline, and limits will make you better. Accept them.
- Be relentless.
- Luke 11:23 “He who is not with me is against me.”
(There is no order or rank of importance. All are equally important.)
THE COACH HAYS 