Honesty, Respect, & Protect
- searcylivingads
- 18 hours ago
- 3 min read
By Jennifer Webb
Cody Sparks had always wanted to be a head coach, and this year, that dream came true. He came to Beebe High School as an assistant coach out of Henderson State University in 2021 and discovered that the town was a great place to live and raise a family.
“I learned a lot of what I am now as a coach from Coach Maxfield at Henderson State. He was tough on the kids and looked tough on the outside, but what people didn’t see was how much he loved the kids and breathed life into them. That’s what I want to do with our players.”
- Cody Sparks, Beebe High School Football, Head Coach
He had grown up playing football but was not competitive enough to play on the college level, so he chose coaching instead. He learned a lot about life through playing football in junior high and high school. The game involves a lot of discipline and attention to detail. His coaches always encouraged him to be a good person, as well as a good player. He wanted to pass that on.
“The impact that coaches have on young people is second to none.”
- Cody Sparks, Beebe High School Football, Head Coach
To invest in the program and in the kids, he came up with three core values:
Honesty
Treat People with Respect
Protect the Team
He believes that these values, rooted in biblical principles, encompass nearly every situation.
Honesty - He wants his players always to tell the truth, even when it’s hard. He wants them to know the value of a good day’s work, and to grow into young men who take responsibility for their actions and follow through on their promises.
Treat people with respect - We all have people over us. We ultimately answer to God, but as citizens, we also have to respect our laws and law enforcement, as well as our superiors at work and school. But it’s not just those in authority that we have to have respect for. Treating people with respect goes for everyone. Even if you disagree with someone, mutual respect goes a long way in resolving difficulties.
Protect the team - This value encourages selflessness and thinking of others. It’s often been said that there’s no “I” in team. Protecting the team means the players realize that their actions affect not just themselves, but others. It also helps to build an atmosphere of “we’re all in this together” and of helping each other improve.
On Thursday nights, a local church feeds the team. They also share a meal sponsored by a local business on Fridays before the games. After the meal, they listen to a short uplifting message. Coach Sparks hopes that it gives them something positive to think about during the game. After a message on persevering, Coach Sparks found himself thinking about it as the team struggled to pull off a win during a tough game.
Success on the field is a measure of growth, and it’s a statistic that matters, but Coach Sparks also feels rewarded off the field when he sees his players growing physically, spiritually, academically, and socially. He admits that his current players have been through a lot with three head coaches in as many years, but he hopes that his efforts to impact them will continue to show.
Coach Sparks holds his players accountable for their actions not only on the field, but also for their conduct off the field. He is involved in the Beebe Football program not only at the high school level but also at the junior high level. He hopes that his efforts will continue to impact the players’ lives and encourage them to develop into good people. Those are lessons that will stay with them far beyond football.
Read the full issue below.
