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—Introduction—
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Two days before Christmas 1974, Don James seized the reins of a University of Washington football program in disarray. In his 18 years at Washington, James compiled a 153-57-2 record en route to becoming the most successful football coach in the history of UW and the Pacific-12 Conference. He took his teams to 15 bowl games (10-5) including nine straight from 1979-87. He guided the Huskies to six Rose Bowls and is one of only four coaches to win four Rose Bowl games.
His 1991 team finished the season 12-0, beat Michigan in the Rose Bowl, and was named National Champion by USA Today/CNN, UPI, the Football Writers, Sports Illustrated, and several computer rankings. President of the American Football Coaches Association in 1989, James was National College Coach of the Year twice. He was inducted into the Husky Hall of Fame in 1993 and entered the College Football Hall of Fame in 1997.
As but one measure of his coaching skill, Sports Illustrated once named the three best college football coaches in the country: No. 1, Don James; No. 2, Don James; No. 3, Don James.
As a player in James’ second recruiting class at Washington, I was fortunate to have been part of what James would later describe as “the cornerstone” of his program. In summer training camp before my freshman season, Coach James told us we were there to fulfill our destiny, to be a part of something great, to play in the Rose Bowl and, importantly, to win it. We believed him and it came to pass.
Under James’ leadership, our teams beat Michigan in the 1978 Rose Bowl and Texas in the 1979 Sun Bowl, and he helped establish Washington as a perennial powerhouse for nearly two decades. With James as our coach, we knew we had a chance to beat any team, any day.
The Thursday Speeches: Lessons in Life, Leadership, and Football from Coach Don James Description:
The pregame speeches that Coach Don James used to transform the University of Washington football program from mediocrity to national champion are compiled in this new book, written by Peter Tormey, Ph.D., a three-year letterman linebacker for James (1976-1979). This book puts readers in the room with the legendary 18-year Husky coach, revealing the words he used to inspire the Huskies to slay the football giants. Packed with inspiring stories and invaluable life lessons, the book is a must-read for all coaches and leaders.
James uses a wide range of stories and topics to engage the Huskies, including approaches to goal-setting by Freud and Frankl, Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, the benefits of suffering; the importance of attitude, keys to problem-solving, the meaning of fun, among others. He draws from figures including George Washington Carver, Benjamin Franklin, Julius Caesar, Vince Lombardi, Helen Keller, Romano Banuelos, and many others.
James, who died of pancreatic cancer in 2013, wrote the speeches before practice each Wednesday, by longhand, on 11-by-14-inch legal pads. After making final edits on Thursday, James recited them – typically with fierce intensity – to his teams. James made the speeches available exclusively to Tormey, and participated in several in-depth interviews with Tormey on a variety of leadership topics explored in this book.
