New Head Football Coach Todd Graham arrived in Tempe last December determined to turn a struggling program into a winner.  The first step was to teach his way of doing things.  What we didn’t know at the time is that he would be teaching all of Sun Devil Nation a new language.  A seemingly foreign language in these parts that would routinely use words and phrases that would come to help translate and define his style of coaching. 

We were served heaping portions of things like, “High Octane”, “Own the Football”, “Trust”, “Discipline”, “Accountability”, “Left Lane, Hammer Down”, “All In”, as well as a very abstract, “Speaking Victory”.

If you’ve paid any kind of attention in class this off-season, every one of those signature words and phrases has become very tangible and definable as they pertain to Sun Devil Football…Well, all of them except what it means to “Speak Victory”.  After being at countless practices, scrimmages, and scouring every media outlet I could find, I still had no idea what that meant.  I never actually heard anyone define it.

It wasn’t until I sat down and started to do an analysis of some of the off-season happenings, and how this season might shake out, that something occurred to me. I thought about Brandon Magee recovering from a ruptured Achilles tendon causing him to miss all of last season. When asked if he would fully recover to pre-injury status, the best linebacker on the team stated very emphatically: “NO, I’ll be better”.  That is speaking victory.

Days after Graham’s arrival in December, Junior Onyeali was suspended indefinitely for behavioral issues and was given a strict, long pathway to earn his way back to the team.  I saw him observing every practice and scrimmage from the sidelines during his suspension. He took it like a man. Instead of playing the victim, he put his nose to the grindstone and paid the price. He spoke victory without saying a word. After executing a complete overhaul of both his on and off-field attitudes over an eight month period, Junior was reinstated into the program.

The 2010 Pac-10 Defensive Freshman of the year has since earned his starting job back at defensive end, and the program is better for it.

Credo

I realized that there is no specific set of words that can contain it. Speaking Victory is a state of mind… a state of being. It transcends football. It can’t be measured, and it is wholly a part of a cultural change anchored in attitude and accountability. It means that we all have to start thinking, talking and supporting our program with a genuine sense of pride and a demand for excellence in action.

They say have a winning attitude and act as if you’ve been there before. But we have been there before, and speaking victory will help everyone including this program find their way back.

Coach Graham wants to win championships at ASU.  I believe he will.  Despite a flood of optimism throughout Sun Devil Nation, it’s not going to happen this season. But a sturdy foundation is being laid for something bigger.

Having very clear support from legendary coach Frank Kush is a great indication that the ship is being steered by the right captain. Tradition is being renewed, lettermen are being honored, history is being embraced…Victory is being spoken. There is an important part for every DieHard Sun Devil to play. Are you doing your part? Prove it.