SALADO, Texas — Each year, Saldao football players have a specific date marked on their practice calendars well in advance. They know it has nothing to do with the sport itself, but attendance is mandatory.
For Alan Haire's entire 17-year career as a head coach, he's held an event that teaches his players one of the sport's most powerful lessons: They're each part of a family.
The players gather on a Friday night during the season with barbecue instead of pads, and tell their moms just how much they mean to them.
It's a chance for these kids to make their mothers' day," Haire said. "It starts as, 'Oh, this is just some silly thing coach Haire wants us to do,' and then in the spring, I'll hear, 'Coach, I'm going to be better this fall. There's more that I'm going to say.'"
Haire said he picked up the idea for Mothers' Dinner from a coach he crossed paths with when he was still an assistant coach.
Even Haire's mother came to the first dinner he held when he returned to Salado to lead his Alma Mater four years ago, and every one while Haire was coaching at Lago Vista from 2002-15.
"I was pretty proud that I got to speak in front of players now that are playing for the Salado Eagles, and the show the young kids and the youth of today that here's what's important... Here's where it starts," Haire said.
During his last Mothers' Dinner, senior cornerback Ethan Scott said he was grateful for Haire's lesson, and it was a wake up call he needed.
"I was at home, and I was thinking about what I was going to say when I started realizing how much I take her for granted," Ethan said. "I was glad to be able to get a platform like this to say that to her but also in front of everyone else. It really makes her feel important, and she knows I mean it."
Ethan's mother, Jennifer Scott, said the event shows how much the Salado football staff cares about the players.
"To know that our coaches weren't just here to coach football... that they wanted to create a family experience. They wanted the boys to feel like they were part of a family, a part of something else," Jennifer said.
If a player's mother isn't able to make the dinner for any reason, they're asked to bring someone like an aunt, sister or grandmother to show their appreciation for the women close to them.
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