Tom Brady has never been described as the fastest, the strongest, or the loudest presence on a football field. With his 5.28-second 40-yard dash, he was far from being the best athlete at the combine. Even beyond his physical limitations, there have been few instances when Brady’s opponents were intimidated by his trash talk.
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But if there is one trait that defined Brady’s greatness, it was his resilience. Time and again, the GOAT of football has shown that his ability to endure setbacks and rise through adversity is the cornerstone of his seven Super Bowl rings and unrivalled career.
And according to Tom Brady himself, the roots of his resilience trace back to one simple mantra he picked up from legendary Michigan coach Bo Schembechler.
At Michigan, this mantra by Schembechler was plastered across the Wolverines’ facilities: “Those who stay will be champions.” For Brady, who entered Ann Arbor buried on the depth chart, these words became a lifeline.
In his weekly newsletter, 199, Brady recalled that humble beginning, arriving as a redshirt freshman seventh on the quarterback list with little chance of seeing the field. “I had nobody on the staff or the team who knew me and would stand on the table to rally my cause,” he wrote, as he thought he was in the worst possible position.
But… that mantra on the wall pushed him to embrace adversity rather than shy away from it.
Brady first sought out help, particularly from Greg Harden, a sports psychologist in Michigan’s athletic department, who challenged him to change his perspective.
Harden told the future NFL star to stop worrying about the reps he didn’t get and instead make the most of the few he did. “Greg basically challenged me to compete. Which I did. Every day. When I got my three reps, I turned them into the three most important downs in the history of Michigan football,” Brady recalled.
It was this shift, competing with full energy even in limited opportunities, that began to shape Brady’s career.
Once he started working on focusing on himself and inculcating a never give up attitude, results also started coming gradually.
In his second year, Brady earned more reps and game appearances. By his third year, he won the backup job. Despite Michigan recruiting Drew Henson, the nation’s No. 1 quarterback, Brady fought his way to eventually secure the starting role, which didn’t start well.
Brady was booed off the field after a loss to Syracuse. But he stayed … and stayed true to that mantra, and leaned into adversity, eventually leading Michigan to a comeback win against Alabama in the Orange Bowl.
Now, when Brady looks back, he sees those years as the foundation of everything that followed.
“I am the grateful beneficiary of every single twist and turn my five years at Michigan took,” he continued. “It taught me how to work and how to compete for real, not just for wins, but for reps, for playing time, for the respect of my teammates and the trust of my coaches.”
Perhaps this is why Schembechler’s words never left him. Because for the GOAT, “Those who stay will be champions” wasn’t just about staying at Michigan. It became a philosophy for life, that by enduring hardship, refusing shortcuts, and meeting struggle head-on, one discovers the strength to succeed at the highest level.
For Tom Brady, it was more than a slogan on the wall. It was a promise fulfilled.
