By Claudia Loucks
Geneseo Current

Geneseo High School former varsity boys basketball coach Brad Storm shared some news regarding one of the athletes he has coached in basketball – GHS graduating senior Mason Lovig.

Storm said, “I was extremely excited to hear that one of our athletes was chosen by Lead ‘Em Up as one of their national selections for their “Green Team.”

Storm said he submitted a nomination for Lovig based on what he had done the past two seasons as a Maple Leaf basketball player, “not really expecting to hear back,” he said. ‘I just felt I needed to let them know that their Lead ‘Em Up program helped us grow as leaders and teammates within our basketball program and that one player really took hold of it and exemplified what being ‘green’ was.”

Lead ‘Em Up is an organization that researched leadership in athletics and created a program designed to help guide players and teams to become better leaders and teammates. They have now expanded beyond athletic teams to programs for entire schools. They created fun activities and sessions that can be done with teams to help develop more meaningful relationships which in turn then allows for better leadership and fellowship.

Storm explained why he nominated Lovig and why the athlete was chosen by Lead ‘Em Up for the honor.

“Mason was a senior who had a season ending injuring during his junior year, but who worked really hard in the off-season and who really tried to encourage a bunch of younger guys,” Storm said. “Most of his senior class teammates over the past two years gave up basketball or left the team, leaving us in a bind of not as much talent and, outside of Mason, no varsity experience. We just finished our season going 0-27. It was definitely not what anyone expected for his senior season just a couple of years ago, or even just last year. Through it all, Mason not only was positive, but had the approach of being a guy to help build success for when he comes back to watch in a couple years. HE had to grow and mature to get that perspective. He hated losing – as all competitors do. So, for him to realize that success isn’t always measured on the final scoreboard was considerable growth on his part.”

In his nomination of Lovig, Storm said, “His long-term vision and service to our program was very mature and was a true gift in this troubled year. It wasn’t easy; he is very competitive and really wanted to win games. And, he struggled some with our inability to even have many close games. We have a really tough schedule, so this year we were on the side of many, many lopsided losses. For him to not only be GREEN and to stay GREEN with his teammates and the situation, but furthermore to encourage others and bring them along was amazing”

“He was a model of servitude, a voice in our ‘leadership group’ (optional opportunity for players to go through the Captains Course), he totally bought into all of our leadership activities, and was the player who both challenged and lifted up teammates of all ages. He could challenge guys because he invested in getting to know them and by helping them, so they knew he really cared about them both now, but also as players a couple years from now. He gave rides to younger guys, ate with them at school, included them in things we did as a group, and really took them under his wing as he welcomed al our young guys being forced to play varsity ball ahead of them being ready for it. He built positive, strong relationships. His attitude was contagious and players began doing what he was doing. “We definitely grew in our ‘greenness’ despite our future success on the scoreboard. Because of that, we continued to improve in skills and team play, continued to build relationships, continued to grow as leaders, and were able to handle any adversity that came along – to the point that this was an enjoyable year to coach and I think an enjoyable year for the players despite the 0-for record. He has helped set us up for further growth in all those areas even though he will no longer be with us. His leadership has left a legacy that will carry on.”

BACKGROUND ABOUT LEAD ‘EM UP

“I have been studying leadership and relationship-building for a few years, Storm said. “Reading books, watching videos, listening to podcasts and whatever else I could on how businesses, teams or any other organizations are successfully run in terms of leadership and relationships. Along the way I came across the Lead ‘Em Up program and purchased a team subscription for the 2021-20222 season. We did a few things from it, and the players and I all seemed to like it. I realized it really tried to do the same things I had been learning about regarding how to create a better culture in any organization when it came to relationships and leadership. So, for the 2022-2023 season we really leaned into it.”

Storm developed a leadership curriculum that incorporated the Lead “Em Up program as part of it. Instead of catchy or clever sayings and slogans for signs and T-shirts, it became an intentional effort to carry out the concepts in actions, he said.

“We started a “Leadership Group” of players who were freshmen-seniors who wanted to be part of it. We met in the off-season and then season as we went through the curriculum. And, we set aside time for all players in the program to take part in some of the activities as the season got underway and then continued all through the season. The results were great. We saw players develop strong relationships and we saw a shift in mindsets to an even stronger team-first, serving others attitude. The culture became really strong and enjoyable.”

“Mason really took off and excelled in his ability to create relationships and to lead others in a positive way,” Storm said. “One thing Lead ‘Em Up does is explain how to create a ‘Green Team.’ For us, at Geneseo, the color was perfect! Mason was the first player voted by teammates to our Green Team. They recognized how it looked and began to follow and try to emulate that. Lead ‘Em Up also has a National Green Team where they collect nominations from schools around the country from all the different sports and they select a national team. Mason was selected as Honorable Mention, which is the top 50 nominations. Some of the others chosen have been part of teams who have been part of Lead ‘Em Up for many years, making Mason’s selection even more incredible.”