Bear Bryant
Bear Bryant
Paul William "Bear" Bryantwas an American college football player and coach. He was best known as the longtime head coach of the University of Alabama football team. During his 25-year tenure as Alabama's head coach, he amassed six national championships and thirteen conference championships. Upon his retirement in 1982, he held the record for most wins as head coach in collegiate football history with 323 wins. The Paul W. Bryant Museum, Paul W. Bryant Hall, Paul W. Bryant Drive, and...
NationalityAmerican
ProfessionCoach
Date of Birth11 September 1913
CityFordyce, AR
CountryUnited States of America
In my lifetime, I may have put too much emphasis on winning, because here I am an old man and the only fun I've had is winning, and that's ridiculous.
Here's a twenty, bury two.
People who are in it for their own good are individualists. They don't share the same heartbeat that makes a team so great. A great unit, whether it be football or any organization, shares the same heartbeat.
The biggest mistake coaches make is taking borderline cases and trying to save them. I'm not talking about grades now, I'm talking about character. I want to know before a boy enrolls about his home life, and what his parents want him to be.
Don't ever give up on ability. Don't give up on a player who has it.
I always want my players to show class, knock'em down, pat on the back, and run back to the huddle.
I don't hire anybody not brighter than I am. If they're not brighter than I am, I don't need them.
It's kind of hard to rally around a math class.
If they don't have a winning attitude, I don't want them.
If I miss coaching that much, I could go to some little school where they didn't recruit, where all the kids wanted to go. I believe I could find somewhere to coach.
I tell young players who want to be coaches, who think they can put up with all the headaches and heartaches, can you live without it? If you can live without it, don't get in it.
Scout yourself. Have a buddy who coaches scout you.
I think I'm telling the truth. I sat by Ray Perkins at the Hall of Fame dinner in New York, and at that time he didn't know he was our coach and I didn't either.
I hope to get out before they start football next year.