Butch Jones as a Leader of Men

#26
#26
Volosaurus rex said:
In the months that Butch Jones has been our head coach, I have observed that there is tactical purpose behind everything that he does. Having stated that, I do not question his sincerity or motivations in the slightest. In another thread, I learned tonight that “UT coach Butch Jones invited the seniors to his house for dinner Thursday night. It was the first time the seniors had dinner with a head coach.” I was strangely reminded of an incident which occurred over 2300 years ago and, to me, has always represented the quintessence of leadership. In 329 BC, Alexander the Great was leading his troops back from India. They were in the process of crossing the brutal Gedrosian Desert, an area which straddles the border of modern Iran and Pakistan, and “was the poorest and least hospitable of all the provinces of the Persian Empire.

Toward the end of the march, when officers and men alike had all but given up hope of escaping the desert alive, some scouts found a small spring with only enough water to fill a single helmet. The patrol was so thankful that they had found even this that they brought it before Alexander, who was as thirsty as anyone. As wretched as his own state was, however, he knew his men were suffering even more. Therefore, . . Alexander refused to drink when his army could not. He took the helmet of precious water and poured it on the ground in full view of his army. To the parched men, for the king to share in their suffering in this way meant more than the water soaking into the sand. They were so heartened, says Arrian, it was as if they had each drunk every drop that he poured on the ground” (Alexander the Great by Phillip Freeman, pp. 292-294).

Now, I can hear the cynics in Vol Nation saying that there is no comparison whatsoever between what Alexander and his men experienced and the week-to-week, year-to-year tribulations of a football program. In large measure, I agree. However, this account, which was recorded by the ancient Greek historian Arrian, distills the essence of leadership. A leader of men asks no more of his men than he is willing to give of himself. The measure of a great leader is the degree to which he can inspire men to achieve more than they believe themselves capable. In Butch Jones we have found a superb leader!!
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I enjoyed the story. Thanks!
 
#29
#29
In before the "how dare you compare football to war" stupidity ensues.

Hey, at least there were no Nazi references, so no one had to invoke Godwin's Law. And I liked the historical reference.
 
#30
#30
Very interesting story. Alexander fascinates me to no end. Men who had been beaten in battle by him would join his army and do almost anything he asked. Certainly a tactical genius, but many generals fail because the guys down the line do not execute the plan. Not so with Alexander.

One of Alexanders greatest victories came against King Porus in India, who had one of histories greatest assemblages of battle elephants.

Most armies just ran away when they saw they elephants, but Alexander's stood fast. Of course he used naptha to burn and scare the elephants, so we probably won't be allowed to employ that against Bama. :p
 
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#31
#31
No, it may not be like crossing a desert, but I bet to these young men going from 5-7 to respectability and competing seems like crossing a desert. It sure seems we have been lost in one for a long time now. Good for Coach Jones to connect with these guys any way he can. It seems the more we are finding out what is going on now is so revealing to the recent past. Kiffin was all about Kiffin and appearances. Dooley was too focused on this as a business and distancing himself. Now we have a coach that cares about the program, the players in it and our traditions. Whether he turns out to be "the coach" or not, I will respect him for what he is doing and the way he is doing it. In the end, I believe he will get us back to competing for championships, and will win a few.
 
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#33
#33
BigPapaVol said:
There were no parallels, of any kind, in the situations.
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To quote myself, since you obviously missed this point: "I can hear the cynics in Vol Nation saying that there is no comparison whatsoever between what Alexander and his men experienced and the week-to-week, year-to-year tribulations of a football program. In large measure, I agree. However, this account, which was recorded by the ancient Greek historian Arrian, distills the essence of leadership. . ."
 
#34
#34
Volosaurus rex said:
It is comforting to know that we now live in a society where incessant sarcasm is the literary weapon of choice, metaphorical thinking is passé, and we have become incapable of drawing historical or crosscultural parallels.
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At least you didn't get my favorite of the self-absorbed, short-attention spanned crowd, "too long didn't read".

I appreciated your post.
 
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#36
#36
Nashvol2 said:
General Neyland did it all the time. In fact he believed football could be won by treating the the game and the players as he would a war and his soldiers. I seem to remember him winning alot of games also.
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Yes, indeed. Just check out Football as a War Game: The Annotated Journals of General R.R. Neyland (Football as a war game: The annotated journals of General R.R. Neyland: Andy Kozar: 9780972674904: Amazon.com: Books) by Andy Kozar, fullback on the '51 national championship team and longtime faculty member at UT.
 
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#37
#37
Volosaurus rex said:
To quote myself, since you obviously missed this point: "I can hear the cynics in Vol Nation saying that there is no comparison whatsoever between what Alexander and his men experienced and the week-to-week, year-to-year tribulations of a football program. In large measure, I agree. However, this account, which was recorded by the ancient Greek historian Arrian, distills the essence of leadership. . ."
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Could you quote yourself again, please. I'm still not getting your point.
 
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#38
#38
#39
#39
BuckheadVol1 said:
I think we now know where Dooley received his history lessons from for his analogies.
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Nope, I never had contact with Dooley in any form or fashion. Furthermore, I don't recall him using analogies from ancient/classical history. However, since you opened the gate, I will take the bait. Yes, I believe that we have found our own "Desert Fox" in terms of his grasp of tactical, motivational and leadership strategies.
 
#41
#41
volfannga said:
No, it may not be like crossing a desert, but I bet to these young men going from 5-7 to respectability and competing seems like crossing a desert. It sure seems we have been lost in one for a long time now. Good for Coach Jones to connect with these guys any way he can. It seems the more we are finding out what is going on now is so revealing to the recent past. Kiffin was all about Kiffin and appearances. Dooley was too focused on this as a business and distancing himself. Now we have a coach that cares about the program, the players in it and our traditions. Whether he turns out to be "the coach" or not, I will respect him for what he is doing and the way he is doing it. In the end, I believe he will get us back to competing for championships, and will win a few.
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Thank you. Metaphorical references to "wandering across a desert" or "exile in wilderness" are replete within literature and can be utilized effectively even if the scale of objects under comparison is extremely uneven.
 
#42
#42
Mr_Henley said:
I'm borrowing this for an article I am writing tommorrow. I hope "Rex" is enough credit.

I like the analogy. It's a little out of proportion, but some of the concepts are the same. Here's to hoping these kinds of things we keep seeing from the coach make an impact on the football field. Undoubtedly they will have lasting impressions aside from and after their careers.
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If you prefer a more formal citation, e-mail me at daschmit@indiana.edu.
 
#43
#43
Volosaurus rex said:
In the months that Butch Jones has been our head coach, I have observed that there is tactical purpose behind everything that he does. Having stated that, I do not question his sincerity or motivations in the slightest. In another thread, I learned tonight that “UT coach Butch Jones invited the seniors to his house for dinner Thursday night. It was the first time the seniors had dinner with a head coach.” I was strangely reminded of an incident which occurred over 2300 years ago and, to me, has always represented the quintessence of leadership. In 329 BC, Alexander the Great was leading his troops back from India. They were in the process of crossing the brutal Gedrosian Desert, an area which straddles the border of modern Iran and Pakistan, and “was the poorest and least hospitable of all the provinces of the Persian Empire.

Toward the end of the march, when officers and men alike had all but given up hope of escaping the desert alive, some scouts found a small spring with only enough water to fill a single helmet. The patrol was so thankful that they had found even this that they brought it before Alexander, who was as thirsty as anyone. As wretched as his own state was, however, he knew his men were suffering even more. Therefore, . . Alexander refused to drink when his army could not. He took the helmet of precious water and poured it on the ground in full view of his army. To the parched men, for the king to share in their suffering in this way meant more than the water soaking into the sand. They were so heartened, says Arrian, it was as if they had each drunk every drop that he poured on the ground” (Alexander the Great by Phillip Freeman, pp. 292-294).

Now, I can hear the cynics in Vol Nation saying that there is no comparison whatsoever between what Alexander and his men experienced and the week-to-week, year-to-year tribulations of a football program. In large measure, I agree. However, this account, which was recorded by the ancient Greek historian Arrian, distills the essence of leadership. A leader of men asks no more of his men than he is willing to give of himself. The measure of a great leader is the degree to which he can inspire men to achieve more than they believe themselves capable. In Butch Jones we have found a superb leader!!
Click to expand...

Good job VR!!!! :good!: Thanks!
 
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#44
#44
Volosaurus rex said:
I believe that we have found our own "Desert Fox" in terms of his grasp of tactical, motivational and leadership strategies[/COLOR][/B].
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Clearly. I mean, guy invited his players over for taco night.

Just think, in a few hundred years, really smart dudes like you will be referencing this dinner in discussions about the great historical leaders.
 
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#45
#45
Jaytrain5 said:
Clearly. I mean, guy invited his players over for taco night.

Just think, in a few hundred years, really smart dudes like you will be referencing this dinner in discussions about the great historical leaders.
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Stop it, Jay! My sides are killing me!
 
#46
#46
Jaytrain5 said:
Clearly. I mean, guy invited his players over for taco night.

Just think, in a few hundred years, really smart dudes like you will be referencing this dinner in discussions about the great historical leaders.
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And, in a few hundred years, if the caliber of intellectual discourse on VolNation is any indication, we, as a species, will have degenerated to narcissistic "dudes" incapable of symbolic thought, an attribute which anthropologists have long considered to distinguish our species from other primates.
 
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#47
#47
GahLee said:
It was just a dinner. None of those kids are starving to death. May be putting a little too much thought in to it.

Nice history lesson though.
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I don't think so. Not to be harsh but somewhere I feel that you miss the point. Never was about the food.

Leadership. A lot of what he is doing is out of the leadership handbook. No doubt about it he is building a team. Look at the earlier BBQ for the defense. This is the way to build leadership within the ranks, as team and as a family.

Why give it lip service. CBJ is not and he is following through on this brick by brick. Several coaches in the past have done just that Lip Service or just going through the motions and calling it Tm Building.

Great story Rex and yes it does apply here.
 
#48
#48
Alex the Great was a homo. You trying to call Butch a homo?

(even though I know butch can be used in reference to homo in some contexts)
 
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#49
#49
Volosaurus rex said:
Nope, I never had contact with Dooley in any form or fashion. Furthermore, I don't recall him using analogies from ancient/classical history. However, since you opened the gate, I will take the bait. Yes, I believe that we have found our own "Desert Fox" in terms of his grasp of tactical, motivational and leadership strategies.
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Relax you old dinosaur. I was joking and happen to agree with you. :hi:
 
#50
#50
Sudden Impact said:
I don't think so. Not to be harsh but somewhere I feel that you miss the point. Never was about the food.

Leadership. A lot of what he is doing is out of the leadership handbook. No doubt about it he is building a team. Look at the earlier BBQ for the defense. This is the way to build leadership within the ranks, as team and as a family.

Why give it lip service. CBJ is not and he is following through on this brick by brick. Several coaches in the past have done just that Lip Service or just going through the motions and calling it Tm Building.

Great story Rex and yes it does apply here.
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Absolutely correct. Virtually everything that Butch does is geared toward building esprit de corps and support for the program, both on and off the field. That includes the Volympics, the personalized invitations for UT faculty to attend the Orange & White game, and the immediate establishment of fence-mending procedures with respect to our former players, which will culminate tomorrow with more than 200 of them participating in the "Vol Walk" and "Run through the T." That should provide a little additional fuel for our team and fans in attendance.
 
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