Lee Owens book "The Spirit of a Team" quotes:
1. Owens was in his ninth season at Akron when the Zips beat Ohio U to complete a 7-5 season. After the game, Owens drove from the Rubber Bowl to his campus office, where he found a letter telling him he was fired.
3. Owens invited team chaplain Knute Larson to his farewell speech to the Zips players the next day. The talk became full of anger and lament.
4. Book quote: “Pastor Larson asked to visit with me after the meeting. He was quick to point out how poorly I handed myself to the team. ‘Football isn’t fair. Life isn’t fair. Stop feeling sorry for yourself. There are players and staff hurting just as much as you … bitterness is never the answer. Ultimately, you will be judged in life on how well you handle the adversities of life.’”
5. Owens and his Akron staff recruited quarterback Charlie Frye out of Willard and worked with him through his junior season, at which point Owens was fired. Frye became a fourth-year starter under Owens’ replacement, J.D. Brookhart. The Browns picked Frye in Round 3 of the 2005 draft.
6. Book quote: “Charlie landed with one of the worst-run, if not the worst, franchises in the NFL, and I say that as a lifelong Browns fan. He was rushed into a starting quarterback job as a rookie behind a makeshift line with few proven weapons. The Browns had no vision and no real plan going forward.”
Firing through a letter isn't as bad as firing on the way to your mother's funeral.