Building Character and Competitiveness

Coach Jason Negro, MCAA ’21他是美国最成功的高中足球教练之一 Concordia’s Professional Achievement alumni award recipient for 2024.

“我很自豪能够完成这个项目，”内格罗教练谈到他在纽约的经历时说 康考迪亚大学的教练和体育管理硕士课程 and becoming a Golden Eagles alumnus.

Since 2010, Coach Negro has led St. 约翰博斯克天主教全男子学校橄榄球队两次获得全国冠军，并推出了多名球员进入国家橄榄球联盟和其他成功的职业生涯.

“我从来没有想过我们可以做我们目前正在做的事情,” he says, referring to the football team's meteoric rise. “But what I’m most proud of is that fourteen years later, 我们的项目还有发展的空间，我们最好的日子还在前面.”

内格罗教练在贝尔弗劳尔长大，他的母亲仍然住在他长大的房子里. He and his brothers enrolled at St. John Bosco in the 1980s, 他成为了一名四年的运动员——“作为一名棒球运动员”比作为一名足球运动员要好, he says. 但在大学毕业成为一名数学老师之后, coaching football emerged as his passion.

“It’s the way my brain works,” he says. “Math is a very problem-solving profession. 我喜欢足球的原理图和战术，喜欢快节奏的动作. 足球迫使你在25到40秒的时间内做出决定. Every 25 to 40 seconds you have to call a play. I liked that about the game, and the statistical analysis. It fit my style.”

更重要的是，他相信足球文化可以培养伟大的年轻人. 他执教特拉布科山高中足球队七年，同时在那里担任全职数学老师. In 2009, 他的母校连续第七年没能进入季后赛，于是他打电话给内格罗教练, 希望换个教练能给这个项目打一针强心剂.

他的任务很艰巨:三一联赛是全国竞争最激烈的联赛之一, home to five well-heeled Orange County schools, while Bosco is located in a comparatively disadvantaged area.

“We were an outlier,” Coach Negro says, “but what we lack economically, we make up for in our character and our culture.”

It didn’t take long to get back on a winning track. In Coach Negro’s third year as coach, the Braves went undefeated (16-0), won a Trinity League Championship, and made a Pac 5 division semi-final appearance. 他们以20比14的比分战胜了年度竞争者德拉萨高中，赢得了加州公开赛冠军, 并获得了Max Preps和USA Today的全国排名第一的头衔. 在这个具有历史意义的赛季结束时，内格罗教练担任了美国男篮的助理教练.S. Army All-American Bowl Game in San Antonio, Texas.

“Our quick turnaround surprised a lot of people,” he says.

Since then, Bosco has remained a perennial powerhouse, 但内格罗教练从来没有被大学甚至职业水平的教练所吸引，因为他在高中时有强烈的使命感.

“我没有上大学的最大原因之一是因为我在这里做的工作是传教工作,” he says. “I think I was placed here for a purpose. 我不认为我会对青少年在大学水平或专业水平的发展产生如此大的影响. I like working with 14-to-18-year-olds. 这是我的强项，我认为我的影响相当大，因为我可以看到我们的孩子能够发展成足球运动员和有个性的人, and succeeding in life beyond the game. That’s my primary purpose.”

His former players have done well in and out of sports. After the 2024 Super Bowl, 内格罗教练发短信祝贺堪萨斯城酋长队的角卫特伦特·麦克杜菲, 他毕业于博斯克大学，在国家橄榄球联盟的头两年就获得了两次超级碗冠军. Other Bosco alums who have gone pro are Wyatt Davis, who plays on the offensive line of the New York Giants, 四分卫乔什·罗森在前10名中被亚利桑那红雀队选中, and Terrel Bynum, who plays for the Los Angeles Chargers.

“I text them to say, ‘Good job,现在他们都是名人了，他们回复我的速度就慢了,” Coach Negro says. “我们和我们的球员非常亲密，因为他们知道我们关心他们作为男人.”

内格罗教练也很快赞扬了那些从事法律职业的前球员, medicine, and business.

“Our kids are thriving in all different areas,” he says. With all his coaching success, why did Coach Negro enroll in Concordia’s MCAA program in 2019?

He says he has always preached the value of lifelong learning, 所以当他听说他手下的一位教练启动了菲律宾十大网赌网站的MCAA项目时, Coach Negro made a snap decision, saying, “You know what? I’m going to do it, too.”

“我大胆尝试，申请了这份工作，一旦我被录取，就再也没有回头. I embraced the program,” he says.

在上课的同时，他还带领博斯克队获得了第二个全国冠军. 勇士队创造了他们连续第七次进入CIF-SS公开赛区决赛的纪录, 在一场反败为胜的比赛中击败对手Mater Dei赢得了CIF冠军. The team was named undisputed national champions, 内格罗教练被评为年度新闻电报梦之队教练和年度CIF-SS公开组教练.

“It was a risky mission to start the program when I did,” he says, “but I wanted to practice what I preach. 我经常告诉我们的孩子，他们需要上大学，或者读研究生，甚至更多. 我只有数学学士学位，怎么能这么说呢? 对我来说，还有什么更好的方式来鼓励我的学生运动员成为更好的自己呢?”

他发现自己选修了康考迪亚兼职教练里克·柯蒂斯的课程, 作为圣玛格丽塔的主教练，他曾与他和博斯克竞争过几年.

内格罗教练说:“现在，我从他那里学到了成为更好的领导者的战略方法。. “I could never replace that. There’s always room to grow and learn.内格罗教练相信“所有伟大的教练最终都是好老师。.” His primary focus, and that of St. 约翰·博斯科(John Bosco)仍然在训练青少年成为社会上成功的成年人.

“我的教练理念与学校的理念不谋而合:教授道德和正确的决策,” Coach Negro says. “我有一个平台，我可以做到这一点，上帝与我同在. Doing it from a Christian perspective only strengthens it.”

Ultimately, 内格罗教练说:“我们成功的基石是我身边的人力资本. I empower talented people to do the jobs they can do.”