| During the 25 years that Tom Osborne was the head football coach at the University of Nebraska, he showed his players that being disciplined was the first step toward being a winner—in life and on the football field. Osborne uses the same formula for himself so he will experience the fullness of God in his life.
"The only thing that's been effective for me is continual discipline," said Osborne, who retired as the Cornhuskers coach in 1998 and is currently in his first term as a Congressman from Nebraska. "I have to spend 45 minutes or so every morning, prayer, mediation, scripture."
In terms of winning games, Osborne was hugely successful at Nebraska. His teams went to a bowl game every year and he notched three national championships. When those rare losses did occur, Osborne was better equipped to handle them.
"It would be a falsehood for me to say if we lost a big game it didn't hurt. It certainly hurt. As a coach, losing is a little like dying," said Osborne, who was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1988.
"On the other hand, if your commitment is to Christ you realize your worth is not tied up in winning and losing. A lot of people's self worth is tied up in what other people think of them, their bank account, the kind of job they have, the type of house they live in, the number of games they win. We all know you can never have enough. The only thing I've found that ultimately has any meaning or purpose is my faith and the fact that I try to honor God as I serve and follow Christ."
Raised in a Christian home, Osborne says he experienced only "hand me down" faith from his parents until he attended a youth camp at age 19. There, he asked Jesus Christ to be Lord and Savior of his life. While he has made mistakes along the way, Osborne says he has never turned away from that commitment.
While coaching at Nebraska, Osborne daily led his coaches in prayer and approached each season thankful for the opportunity to share God's goodness with his players. "Once a year I would tell them what was important to me and I would say, 'this is something you need to know about me, my faith is really important and you need to know where I'm coming from,'" said Osborne.
Osborne is also aware of being the best witness possible for Christ. "You can say all you want, but on the sideline in the middle of a ball game or in the locker room after a tough loss is when they're really looking at you," said Osborne. "And that's when you could've said thousands and thousands of words to them but just a few actions speak very loudly."
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