PCA Updates
PCA is fortunate to have had support and advice from some of our favorite professional and college football players and coaches. Tom Brady’s TB12 supports our annual STADIUM STAMPEDE event, the TB12 body coaches are especially popular post-workout. Devin and Jason McCourty and Matthew Slater have supported our annual JEANS + JERSEY event, sharing their thoughts and advice on sports done right.
We celebrated the McCourtys in 2019 and Matthew Slater in 2021 as our Positive Impact Heroes for their leadership on and off the field. Buddy Teevens serves on PCA’s National Advisory Board, and in 2020, Coach Teevens, together with Tom Brady, the McCourtys, and more added their voices to our virtual STADIUM STAMPEDE, you can catch the whole workout here or just a few video clips here.
We have compiled some of the thoughtful advice and inspiration these gentlemen have shared with PCA over the last few years, and encourage you to pass it on to your team.
“Achieving peak performance starts with one thing, mental toughness. It’s a learned behavior that gets better with practice... The real challenge is finding the determination to keep doing it.”
--Tom Brady, NFL Quarterback
“Sports have helped me build self-confidence...still to this day, my self-confidence for games comes through practice and hard work and work with my teammates. I encourage you all to go out there and compete, and love it, and have fun with your teammates.”
--Devin McCourty, 3X Super Bowl Champion, NE Patriots Captain, click here for Devin’s video.
“Sports helped me build resilience....whether it was going through a season where I didn’t win a game, going 0-16 to eventually switching teams the very next year and winning a Super Bowl. Just learning how to work in those down moments, to continue to build myself up, continue to build confidence, continue to work towards my goal.”
-- Jason McCourty, 1X Super Bowl Champion, former NE Patriots Captain now Miami Dolphins Captain, click here for Jason’s video.
“Be a star in your role...the reality is on a football team everybody can’t be Tom Brady...everybody’s asked to do something a little bit different, but if you can be a star and excel in your role then you can really bring some value to the football team…Bill [Belichick] told me what my role was, and it was going
to be playing special teams and so I tried to be a star and excel in my role, and I think that was the best advice I could’ve received at the time….Ignore the noise, set yourself on a path to try to achieve your goals which is going to take a lot of hard work and sacrifice, but don’t let anyone tell you what you can
or cannot do….work hard, be willing to sacrifice, do the right things on and off the field, and see where that gets you.”
-- Matthew Slater, 3X Super Bowl Champion, NE Patriots Captain. For more PCA video clips from Matthew Slater click here.
“Adjust and Improvise, A+I. We use those words frequently as we adjust to changes in the world. It’s on the field as well, things don’t always go the way we like. Do you get down, depressed, upset, angry? No. Focus on the positive, how can we improve the situation, what do we need to do Adjust and Improvise...we all deal with ups and downs. Just roll with it.”
-- Buddy Teevens, Dartmouth Football Head Coach, click here for Coach Teevens video.
Why PCA?
Ryan McManus, MVP/Mobile Virtual Player Director of Sales & Marketing, PCA Associate Board Leader, former Dartmouth College Football player, and Tom Brady’s receiver of choice during Tom’s 4-game suspension says “because sports teach, and for all the reasons Tony Romo shared in his press conference when Dak Prescott replaced him as Dallas Cowboy QB.” Even if you’ve seen Tony Romo’s pivotal press conference before, it’s worth another look and listen. Here’s a bit of it here:
“Football is a meritocracy. . . ultimately, it’s about the team. . . I can remember when I was a kid just starting out just wanting to be part of something bigger than myself. For every high school kid out there or college player, there is greatness in being the kind of teammate who truly wants to be part of a team. . . . there are special moments that come from a shared commitment to play your role, while doing it together, that’s what you remember, the relationships and achievement you created through a group.” Tony Romo, former Dallas Cowboys QB, NFL announcer. Click here for his full statement.
Bring your team together.
