Love stories, life’s lessons and faith elements of coach’s book

By John Shaughnessy

In a few minutes, Bruce Scifres will talk about how Indianapolis Colts’ head coach Tony Dungy helped him decide to become a Catholic.

Yet, right now, the man who has led Roncalli High School in Indianapolis to six state championships is sharing two stories that many people wouldn’t expect from a football coach—love stories.

The first story involves a ritual that Scifres follows on Valentine’s Day. Every Feb. 14, he approaches the front door or the mailbox of a woman he has loved for decades and secretly leaves a homemade card asking the woman to be his Valentine again.

The woman is his 83-year-old mother, Mary.

The second story concerns the point he once made to his four children about priorities.

After the Roncalli Rebels won the 2004 state championship at the 4A level, the team received their state championship rings. While Scifres’ son, Luke, admired the ring, he asked his father, “Dad, which of the rings you’ve won means the most to you?”

To make his point, Scifres put on his fingers the nine rings he has won in state championship competition: six for each of the state football championships, two for being repeat champions and another ring—for coaching a state runner-up team in track from his days at Lawrence Central High School in Indianapolis.

“Then I told them, ‘Now, I’m going to take these off—one by one—until I get to the one that means the most to me. The one that most represents hard work, loyalty, sacrifice and accomplishment,’ ” Scifres recalls. “After that, I began to take each of them off and put them back in their boxes—pausing long enough so they could see some of the years and to pique their curiosity.”

When only one state championship ring remained, Scifres quickly removed it before his children could see which year it represented. Luke balked, telling his father he didn’t get to see which ring mattered most to him.

“I replied, ‘Yes you did because I still have it on,’ ” Scifres notes. “At this point, I raised my left hand, where my wedding band was on my ring finger. ‘This is the ring that matters most to me. It is, by far, the ring I am most proud of and the one I never take off.’ I wanted them to know that there is nothing in my life that I am prouder of than the fact that I am married to their mother. I believe there is no better way for me to show my love for them.”

Both stories are included in Scifres’ book, Beyond the Goal Line: The Quest for Victory in the Game of Life. Scifres will discuss the book during a luncheon at Our Lady of Fatima Retreat House in Indianapolis on Feb. 3, starting at noon. His talk will focus on the merits of keeping success in perspective and having a Christ-centered approach to life—similar to the approach that Dungy has used.

Dungy played an unknowing but crucial role in Scifres’ decision to finally become a Catholic.

Reared as a Protestant, Scifres met his wife, Jackie, a Catholic, while teaching at Roncalli. He attended Mass with her on Sundays and agreed to have their children learn the Catholic faith and attend Catholic schools. Yet he hadn’t made the commitment to joining the faith until he heard a radio interview with Dungy, a Christian, who was then the head coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

“Something he said has stayed with me, ‘Commit everything you do in life to the Lord and you will be successful,’ ” recalls Scifres, a member of Nativity of Our Lord Jesus Christ Parish in Indianapolis. “He went on to say that this holds true in all aspects of our life.”

Scifres committed to the Catholic faith. He has also made that commitment of faith to the students he coaches.

“I have made the commitment that I want to make it to heaven and that, ultimately, I want to take as many people with me as I can,” he writes. “Other than my own children, I think the group I have the most positive influence over are the young people I coach on a daily basis.”

That approach has led to four priorities he has set for his players, including wanting them to be good people, expecting them to make the most of their education and wanting them to be good football players. But the priority at the top of the list is this: “We want our players’ involvement in football to strengthen their faith relationship with God.”

That faith has been tested for players and coaches through the years when one Roncalli player died, another had a stroke and players’ parents have died unexpectedly.

Scifres shares the story of being in the hospital room when Roncalli player Jonathan Page was in a coma in 2002 from injuries sustained in a car accident. With Page’s parents, Scifres, a priest and several football players held hands, formed a circle around Jonathan’s bed and prayed.

Several days later, Scifres gave his part of the funeral eulogy for Jonathan before a jam-packed church that also included players and coaches from Bishop Chatard, Cardinal Ritter, Cathedral and Father Thomas Scecina Memorial high schools in Indianapolis.

“Our faith is what gives us strength when we’re faced with adversity or heartbreak,” he said. “It’s that same faith that helps us rejoice in the good times. Life is full of both.”

The seasons and the years pass, always bringing more triumphs to celebrate and more hardships to overcome. Still, there are constants in life, like Scifres reminding his players before every game, “Take God with you on every play.”

“I have a better understanding of what my purpose in life is now,” he said. “I’ve made more of a commitment to do God’s work. It’s made my life more fulfilling. It helps keep my life in perspective.”

(For more information about Scifres’ book, visit the Web site www.inspireposters.com. To register or to learn more about the Feb 3 luncheon at Fatima, phone 317-545-7681. The cost is $20 per person.) †