Jason Garrett’s message to the 150 coaches assembled at UTEP’s spring football coaching clinic was direct.
He began an hour-long discussion at the Larry K. Durham Center at the Sun Bowl on leadership by reciting the names of high school coaches who changed his life, the start of a talk filled with anecdotes and stories of excellence he’s witnessed.
Jason Garrett: Coaches ‘change your life’
Here was Garrett’s message to a crowd of mostly El Paso high school coaches:
“The biggest thing is, ‘You’re doing God’s work,'” Garrett said. “You think of the impact the coaches have made on my life. My dad’s a coach; my brothers were coaches; then all the coaches along the way — high school, college, NFL.
“They change your life. They’ve dedicated themselves to doing that. Winning is important, it’s the bottom line, I get all that, but ultimately it’s a profession about changing and impacting people’s lives.
“I wanted to remind them of that and congratulate them on doing God’s work.”
Garrett, the former head coach of the Dallas Cowboys (and a quarterback before that) who is now an NFL analyst on NBC, was in El Paso for the first time since his Cowboys scrimmaged here in the 1990s (’96-98) against the Raiders when he was a player. He came for Thursday’s all-day clinic, which precedes Saturday’s spring game.
Live Like Luke origins
He is a close, long-time friend of program benefactor Babe Laufenberg, another former Cowboys quarterback who is now in his third decade as radio analyst for the Cowboys. Babe’s son Luke was a tight end for the Miners in the spring of 2019 before suffering a relapse of lymphoma and passing that fall.
Babe Laufenberg donated a “Live Like Luke” protein shake station in the football facility that is adorned with a quote from Garrett the day of Luke’s passing: “Luke was an amazing young man. You guys have heard me talk about ‘fight’ a lot. I don’t know that I’ve ever seen a better example of that in my life… This strength is unlike anything I’ve ever seen. Unlike I’ve ever seen in my life… anybody that ever knew him, will be forever inspired by the life that he lived. “
This was the first time Garrett had seen that station, and it meant a lot to Babe Laufenberg.
“It’s great, I always love coming out here, it’s bittersweet,” Laufenberg said. “It brings back fond memories; it also brings back where Luke was when he relapsed, got sick, and we lost him.
“It’s also great to have Jason out here. He’s been a friend for 35 years. He was so supportive of me during Luke’s illness, coming to the hospital, everything he’s done for us. It’s great he finally got a protein shake at the Luke Laufenberg Fight station, where he has a quote on the wall.”
UTEP coach Scotty Walden invited Garrett, whom they saw last year in Dallas, to come out and talk to local coaches, and Garrett jumped at the chance.
“I’m a big fan of Scotty Walden, I’m a big fan of Babe Laufenberg, I’m a big fan of Luke Laufenberg,” Garrett said. “I’m glad I had the opportunity to come out.”
Jason Garrett shares definitions of leadership
He didn’t seem in a hurry to leave. He related stories of his old Cowboys teammates for half an hour, took half an hour of questions, then posed for pictures with coaches for half an hour before addressing the media.
Early on, he shared three definitions of leadership he heard during question-and-answer sessions with three legends.
Don Shula, the NFL’s all-time winningest coach, defined it as credibility and communication. Joe Walsh, the legendary 49ers coach, defined it as poise and cool under pressure. Margaret Thatcher, the former prime minister of the United Kingdom, defined leadership as decision-making, action and perseverance.
Garrett said that, as a head coach, what was important to him was working with players to make them better.
“It’s about caring about your players, investing your life in them, pouring yourselves into them at all levels,” he said. “That’s what it’s about. There’s level of expertise, there’s teaching ability, the ability to communicate, you’re always working on those skills.
“But at its core, coaching is about caring about someone and helping them be their best. That’s what I try to do; the best coaches I’ve been around have done that for me. I want to encourage guys to continue doing that. That’s the life they’ve chosen, that’s what they’re doing already.”
Garrett and Laufenberg stayed through Friday, when they addressed the UTEP football team Friday morning, before heading back to Dallas.
As for the message Garrett is delivering to the team, he wants them to focus on what they have around them.
“It’s an amazing opportunity (for the players) to be here,” Garrett said. “All the work they’ve put in, you do it for a reason, that’s the price you have to pay, the bond you form with your teammates.
“Scotty is fantastic, everything I talk about he embodies — caring about the players and trying to build something special, creating an environment where they can all be their best. That’s what he’s doing here and it’s taking some time but I believe in him. They can build something great here. It’s going to take a lot of hard work, a lot of commitment, but these guys can do it.”
Wladen was grateful to Garrett for taking two days to come to El Paso.
“Phenomenal,” Walden said. “I’m so thankful to Babe and Jason coming out and sharing his insight on leadership and everything he’s doing. The stories (Garrett told) are unbelievable. I’m so excited for him to speak to the team. There are so many stories he can share with them on what it takes to be great.
“More than 100 coaches came out and you could hear a pin drop when Jason was speaking: The amount of knowledge he was sharing about leadership, the experiences from his as a quarterback and him as a coach.
“I couldn’t be more thankful of them taking the time to do this.”
Bret Bloomquist can be reached at bbloomquist@elpasotimes.com; @Bretbloomquist on X.
This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: ‘You’re doing God’s work.’ Jason Garrett shares stories at UTEP clinic
Reporting by Bret Bloomquist, El Paso Times / El Paso Times
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
