I will never forget watching Reggie Miller score eight points in the last thirty-two seconds of a 1995 Eastern Conference NBA playoff game in Madison Square Garden. Miller’s “never say die” heroics in the closing seconds gave the Indiana Pacers a thrilling two-point victory over the New York Knicks. Throughout his eighteen-year career with the Pacers, Miller was the picture of persistence. He didn’t make every clutch shot he took, but he never stopped shooting them. In an interview following his final NBA game, he summed up his career by saying, “I tried. I showed up for every game and I tried.”

I had to make a tough decision in my senior year of high school. Coming out of basketball season, I had to decide between playing baseball or running track. My junior year, I had played baseball because we didn't have enough boys to fill a track team. My senior year, however, presented a dilemma. If I ran track, there would be just enough to have team. If I didn't, there wouldn't be a track team that year. When I approached my baseball coach about it, he told me that I would never do anything in track and that his baseball team would probably be going to the state finals. My decision was simple after that. I chose track.

I love watching football. I love watching those 300-pound linemen push their opponents down the field. The discipline they have to hold their block for 10, 15 or more yards is always very impressive. The power they show and keep throughout a play separates the good from the great.

I have known many players just like this over the years who have had the power to drive their opponents into the ground, but when it comes to other areas of their life they do not have discipline or power. They can’t help but click a mouse and go to Internet sites they don’t need to go to. They have no power to say no to others who want them to drink, do drugs or engage in sexual activities. The discipline on the field is where it stops.

Most students often have to answer questions about their future plans. Whether we are asked about our plans for school, the weekend, or even just the afternoon, it generally isn't that hard to answer. "Oh, I'm going to [this university] and participating in [this sport]." Or, "I'm going to chill with some friends." Etc. One day though, I found myself answering a question that was a little more serious: “What are your plans for your life?”