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In The Arena

May 4, 2012
May 4, 2012
Tustin vs. El Toro at the Southwest Division CIF Championship Game 2011

Tustin vs. El Toro at the Southwest Division CIF Championship Game 2011

With the book complete except for the very end, writing its conclusion consumes me. When I saw Coach Miller this past week we talked about the process. This week marks the one-year anniversary of the first interview with his former players Sam Baker and Ricky Miller when the book was nothing but ideas and a few hours of stories on tape.

Miller said to me, “No matter what happens, the important thing is that when you’re sixty you won’t wake up and say to yourself, I wish I would have written that book.” Then he suggested that I read this poem by Teddy Roosevelt:

In The Arena
It is not the critic who counts;
not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles,
or where the doer of deeds could have done them better.
The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena,
whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood;
who strives valiantly;
who errs,
comes up short again and again,
because there is no effort without error and shortcoming;
but who does actually strive to do the deeds;
who knows the great enthusiasms,
the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause;
who at the best knows in the end
the triumph of high achievement,
and who at the worst, if he fails,
at least fails while daring greatly,
so that his place shall never be with those
cold and timid souls
who neither know victory nor defeat.

-Theodore Roosevelt

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Player Quotes

I remember that this is where it all started.  When you’re here—when you’re the kid—you don’t see the effect of Miller, but later, that’s when you see it.  Once you start applying life lessons that he’s taught you, then you realize this guy is very effective.  Coach Miller was a focal point in my career.
DeShaun Foster, Running Back
Tustin High School
UCLA
Carolina Panthers
San Francisco 49ers
I know what works for me and I like Miller’s training. There’s something special about his weight room and his attitude, and when he’s around watching I lift harder. By myself I’m driving, but when he’s there I want to impress him.
Sam Baker, Offensive Tackle
Tustin High School
University of Southern California
Atlanta Falcons
I took Coach Miller to meet Harbaugh when I was at the Ravens. I introduced him as my high school coach and Harbaugh asked him, ‘What’s your secret?’ and Miller said, ‘Hard work.’ We were a family, which is the other reason I think why guys buy in to the approach. We cared for each other.
Chris Chester, Offensive Guard
Tustin High School
University of Oklahoma
Washington Redskins
It’s really fun to think how much Coach Miller means to me and how much work he put into all of us. Coach Miller—he might have four kids—but he really doesn’t because he has all of us. He has put hands on all of our lives for a lifetime. He touched our lives in such a way that half of us wouldn’t be where we are if it weren’t for him. Whether it’s monetary or spiritual, he’s always there with advice. He’s a grand wizard.
Beau Bell, Linebacker
Tustin High School
University of Nevada, Las Vegas
Cleveland Browns
BC Lions
Coach Miller is not only a great football coach, he’s a great man, a great teacher, a great father, a great husband, a great role model, and an overall great person.
Zack Bell, Linebacker
Tustin High School
University of Nevada Las Vegas
The world needs more guys like Myron teaching them to put their heads down and grind it out by working hard. Without that I don’t think I’d have the work ethic, stamina, or persistence to be able to provide for my family.
Frank Frappier
Tustin High School
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Player Quotes

I remember that this is where it all started.  When you’re here—when you’re the kid—you don’t see the effect of Miller, but later, that’s when you see it.  Once you start applying life lessons that he’s taught you, then you realize this guy is very effective.  Coach Miller was a focal point in my career.
DeShaun Foster, Running Back
Tustin High School
UCLA
Carolina Panthers
San Francisco 49ers
I know what works for me and I like Miller’s training. There’s something special about his weight room and his attitude, and when he’s around watching I lift harder. By myself I’m driving, but when he’s there I want to impress him.
Sam Baker, Offensive Tackle
Tustin High School
University of Southern California
Atlanta Falcons
I took Coach Miller to meet Harbaugh when I was at the Ravens. I introduced him as my high school coach and Harbaugh asked him, ‘What’s your secret?’ and Miller said, ‘Hard work.’ We were a family, which is the other reason I think why guys buy in to the approach. We cared for each other.
Chris Chester, Offensive Guard
Tustin High School
University of Oklahoma
Washington Redskins
It’s really fun to think how much Coach Miller means to me and how much work he put into all of us. Coach Miller—he might have four kids—but he really doesn’t because he has all of us. He has put hands on all of our lives for a lifetime. He touched our lives in such a way that half of us wouldn’t be where we are if it weren’t for him. Whether it’s monetary or spiritual, he’s always there with advice. He’s a grand wizard.
Beau Bell, Linebacker
Tustin High School
University of Nevada, Las Vegas
Cleveland Browns
BC Lions
Coach Miller is not only a great football coach, he’s a great man, a great teacher, a great father, a great husband, a great role model, and an overall great person.
Zack Bell, Linebacker
Tustin High School
University of Nevada Las Vegas
The world needs more guys like Myron teaching them to put their heads down and grind it out by working hard. Without that I don’t think I’d have the work ethic, stamina, or persistence to be able to provide for my family.
Frank Frappier
Tustin High School
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