Moon's Minute: Success Through Adversity

One of the NFL's all-time greats, Warren Moon will be contributing a weekly column to NFLHS.com this season. An outstanding quarterback at every level, Moon played 17 years in the NFL and six years before that in the CFL. He owns the NFL record for most passes completed in a season (404, 1991), is second in NFL history in passing yards-per-game (527, vs. Kansas City, Dec. 16, 1990), and stands third in the NFL record books in passing attempts and completions. The 1977 Pac 8 Player of the Year for the University of Washington and an All-American at Hamilton High School in Los Angeles, Moon is not only a leader on the field. He was named the NFL Man of the Year in 1989 for the tremendous work he does with numerous charitable organizations.

I went to Hamilton HS in Los Angeles. Hamilton wasn't in my district I lived in a tough neighborhood so I decided to go to Hamilton because they had a better overall academic program. It also had a better athletic program, and it was in a better part of the city. I started at Hamilton as a 10th grader, and when I went out for football, I joined what was called the "B" team. There was the "B" team, the JV, and then the Varsity.

My first year at Hamilton, the quarterback for the "B" team was a senior whose Dad was a big contributor to the athletic department. I don't think there was any question that I was the better quarterback, but I wasn't able to play as much because of his father's relationship with the school. Whenever I got a chance to play, we were usually behind, and we'd run a special formation called the "Moon Spread." We'd have five receivers, we'd spread the field and the coaches just let me throw. That was really the only time I got on the field that season, and it really discouraged me because I knew I was better than the guy playing ahead of me. It just wasn't fair.

But I kept chugging along. In the off-season I continued to work out, and one day after I got done, the Varsity coach, Jack Epstein, came up to me. He put his arm around me as we walked around the track and started asking me about my experience with the "B" team. Out of nowhere, he suddenly said, "You know what? You're going to be my starting varsity quarterback next year, so I want you to get yourself ready in every way possible for next season."

When he said those words, it was like I was reborn. I had new motivation and determination I went after my workouts like gangbusters. I did everything possible to get myself ready, and when my junior season started, I was the starting quarterback.

Coach Epstein is still coaching, I believe he's at Palisades High School now. Over the years I've stayed in touch with one another, though we haven't seen each other in a while. It's been more like passing greetings along through other people. But Coach Epstein was a really important person in my life and career he was almost like a Dad to me. He gave me a lot of advice, not only about football, but about school and life as well. He invited me to his house to have dinner a few times, and when I left high school to go to junior college, he came with me as the team's offensive coordinator. After I left JC, he went back to the high school ranks.

So even though things at Hamilton didn't start the way I wanted them to, because of the confidence Coach Epstein showed in me, it proved to me that if you work hard and play through adverse situations, you never know, good things can happen.

Moon's Tip: If you feel that you're in a situation where you should be playing more, don't fret. First of all, have confidence in your own ability. Make sure you're doing everything you possibly can to make yourself a better player, regardless of what the situation is around you. That's what I did at Hamilton I wanted to show the "B" coach at Hamilton that I was a better player. I wanted to prove to him that I was, but I was also making sure that if someone else was watching, they might say, "Hey, that's a hard-working kid, I'd like him to play for me."

Come back next week for more from Warren Moon!

Previous Articles:
Warren Moon: A Lot to Think About
Warren Moon: De La Salle - Poly Preview
Warren Moon: Improving Your Athleticism
Warren Moon: Fundamentals Are Key