Tonight’s the second annual Mississippi Sports Awards will honor the best Mississippi prep athletes. I’ll play a small part (emceeing) and Tim Tebow will be there. But the true stars will be the athletes in the room. And they’ll be there not just because they excelled in the arena. They’re being honored because of the work they did when no one was looking. The hours of practice. The pain. The dedication.
It’s an evening that honors dedication as much as talent.
And their parents deserve credit, too. All the hours of driving to practice, tournaments and clinics. All the checks written to camps and for equipment. All the encouragement and love.
I’ll be proud of each and every athlete and parent in the room tonight.
Champions are coronated on the field. But they get to the coronation by pushing past what is expected when no one is expecting it — by busting their butts when no one is looking. When the lights are off. And when the crowds aren’t cheering.
That’s a lesson I hope they take into all areas of their lives from academics to family to work.