Make ‘Em Believe

Make ‘Em Believe. That was the slogan on the shirts that the Wisconsin Badgers Men’s Basketball team wore this past season. Throughout the tournament, it seemed the perfect rallying cry for the team and its fans. Until the final buzzer of the championship game, that is. I must admit that I was torn in writing this blog. It doesn’t necessarily fit in perfectly with my other topics of choice, and it was a heartbreaking loss as a Badger fan. Nevertheless, the painful end to their magical season should not be what these Badgers are remembered for. In fact, there are a few valuable lessons we could all learn from these goofy young men.

For starters, be yourself; don’t try and fit in. While this sounds so cliché, how many of us can actually say that we are true to who we are and don’t project a more “acceptable” and “normal” side of ourselves? Whether at press conferences, in the locker room, or in their hotel rooms, there are countless stories of how this group was their quirky, dorky, joking selves. They did not feel the need to act differently now that the cameras were rolling on the biggest stage of college basketball. When it came time to put on their game faces, they did that and went to work on the court. But, off court, they didn’t posture up nor pretend to be anything, but themselves. They embraced who they are. In a society where we are conditioned to be a more likeable version of ourselves, can we be more like the Wisconsin Badgers and be liked for our true version of ourselves? When we allow others to see our weird, goofy, not so “cool” selves, perhaps we can become more likeable for that.

Another recurring theme that made its way into plenty of soundbites and articles prior to and during the tournament was that this team won by playing Wisconsin basketball. In other words, they played basketball the way they were trained to play it and the way they were successful at it. This resonated with me as I was told many times throughout my high school and collegiate running career that I just needed to run “my” race; I didn’t need to go out there and be a hero. You see,  a lot of times when the pressure is on and people (whether as part of a team or as an individual) are trying to accomplish a goal, they think they need to do something far better than they have ever done before, become something “better” than they are. More times than not, this leads to doing worse.  Sometimes by doing what you do and not putting pressure on yourself to have the performance of a lifetime, you end up having a performance of a lifetime. And sometimes you don’t. Regardless, doing your best and not placing unrealistic expectations on yourself will leave you happier and more satisfied.

I would argue that the single greatest factor in the Badgers’ success in the tournament came from their unwavering belief and goal was winning the National Championship. Now I know that they did not win, but they also didn’t settle for avenging their previous season Final Four loss to Kentucky. Beating Kentucky was not good enough for them, even when many people billed that game as the ultimate win for the Badgers. Also, they didn’t let the doubts of others as to whether they could beat Kentucky or even Arizona for that matter. They had a steady target that was nothing less than the National Championship. When I was a freshman in college, I was on a relay team with three other girls that all believed we were going to be All-Americans together that indoor track season. That was what we were going to do. It wasn’t a hope or even a goal. It was just a fact. Even when our coaches were just happy that we made it to Nationals, we knew we would be All-American. We weren’t going to be appeased by just having the privilege to run at Nationals. We were going to stand on the podium, and we did. That was the same steadfast faith the Badgers seemed to have throughout this past season. Clearly, things don’t always turn out exactly how you strive for them to be and sometimes they do. Regardless, at least you aren’t settling.

As a Wisconsin Badgers fan, the bitterness of this loss will slowly subside. There will doubtless be more heartbreaking losses in my lifetime cheering for this university. However, I doubt there will be many more teams like this one that will leave such a positive impact, even after such a traumatic defeat. To think that I learned something from a bunch of boys younger than my youngest brother.