There are 4.6 seconds left, and your team is down by two points. Your teammate passes you the basketball, you dribble past two defenders and break the press. 3.2 seconds left. You pass it off to another teammate, fake cutting left and break hard to the right off of a screen on your defender. 2.1 seconds. Behind the three-point line you’re passed the ball. This is your shot. 1.6 seconds. You release the shot. Swish. The crowd roars—you and your teammates are state champions.

These kinds of moments are the reason many people love sports. Yet, what many people may not realize is that there are many setbacks and disappointments that precede athletic success.

Athletes experience setbacks within their sport throughout their athletic career. Half of the battle of becoming a great athlete is learning how to deal with these setbacks.

Jason Kuffel, an assistant coach on the varsity boys’ basketball team, agrees that setbacks are an important aspect of any sport.

“I think it’s important for an athlete to experience setbacks in their athletic career because it teaches them both physical and moral lessons that really help drive them in a direction if things that they want and are important to them,” said Mr. Kuffel.

Disappointments in sports, such as not making a specific team or not getting much playing time, are tough for any athlete. There are different routes that an athlete can take when faced with a
setback.

“If an athlete is cut or not playing much on a specific team and chooses not to continue on or work hard to get to a spot that is successful for them, then I think that teaches them that maybe that’s not a specific opportunity for them,” said Mr. Kuffel. “But, if they do choose that they’re going to look at it as a challenge—because it is a challenge for an athlete to work hard and put in time to get better—then that’s teaching them exactly what they want, and then they strive for it.”

Richard Rinka, a sophomore at Saint Viator who is a three-sport athlete, explains that he was faced with a setback this year during basketball season. He responded to it in a way that was best for him as an athlete.

“I’ve been playing basketball my whole life,” said Rinka. “I tried out for the sophomore team and made it, but I had a really poor chance of playing. I plainly asked my coach if I would ever play, and he said no. So I decided to quit and join the swim team, which helps with my running.”

First, Rinka was challenged with a setback: not getting much playing time on the basketball team. He responded by reviewing his options: staying on the basketball team or trying something new. Then, he was able to make the best decision for himself as an athlete: joining the swim team, which has helped him with his running and gave him a fresh start in a new sport.

Rinka’s approach is one way to deal with a sport’s disappointments, but there are other ways to face an athletic setback.

Mr. Kuffel explained that another way to deal with a setback is to use it as motivation to work hard in that specific sport.

“There are three things you can do when you get the news,” said Mr. Kuffel. “You can give up and not get back up, and you blame it on someone else or say that it isn’t for you. You can fall down, give up, but then say that you’re not giving up, and that you’re going to find ways to make yourself better. Or, the third way is to take the challenge right away, saying that you’re going to prove everybody wrong and find how you’re going to do it.”

One important aspect of continuing a sport after an athlete has experienced a setback is finding out where they went wrong. One of the best ways to do this is talking directly to coaches.

“I think that’s one area for any high school student that’s difficult—to go and ask a coach or mentor where they went wrong, why they didn’t make the team, or why they aren’t starting and then to hear the honest truth,” said Mr. Kuffel. “You have to hope that you have a coach that will give you the honest truth and the honest feedback, and you’ll be able to receive it as a student athlete in order to help yourself progress to the goals that you want.”

Setting goals is another effective way for an athlete to achieve their athletic dreams.

“I think what allowed me to accomplish my goals is by setting smaller goals leading up to the big goal of being a varsity starter, such as playing more and more senior year and trying to get playing time my junior year,” said basketball alum Richard Muench. “And, finally, at the end of my senior year, I accomplished all my goals of being a captain, a starter and getting defensive player of the year again.”

Mr. Kuffel also stressed the importance of goals for an athlete.

“In the Joe Schmidt presentation, he talked about setting one big goal, then setting sub goals in order to reach that large one,” said Mr. Kuffel.

“It’s easy to say, ‘This is something that I want to do,’ or, ‘This is a goal of mine.’ But you also have to put together a game plan for it—setting goals. One large goal, for example, is to make a specific team, maybe to start on that team. Now, what are some sub-goals that I can set for myself? First, strength and conditioning. Second, skills. Third, learning the game. There’s some sub-categories before any large goal can be reached.”

An athlete can use setbacks in a multitude of ways. They can take the path that Rinka did: evaluating the options and deciding to start something new. They can also take the path the Muench did: working hard and never giving up on dreams. Whichever way an athlete uses their disappointments in sports, one conclusion can be reached: although setbacks can be hard to take, they can be used to an athlete’s advantage if utilized in the right way.