After a couple years of a successful huddle, the student leaders wanted more – more athletes to attend the huddle and greater exposure around the school. They also wanted an event that the middle school huddle could attend that would help with continuity. Robran, head track coach, C-squad basketball coach, and one of the FCA huddles coaches at Rockford High School, reflected, “We were doing the huddles and started looking for ways to build energy, excitement, and awareness.” Several huddle members were on the basketball team and had the idea to hold a 3-on-3 tournament that mimics March Madness, the NCAA college championship tournament.
Basketball as a Draw to FCA
Shelley Pearson • April 13, 2022
Huddles around the state are constantly looking for new ways to draw students to The Fellowship of Christian Athletes. Since the beginning of FCA nearly seven decades ago, one of the biggest draws has simply been the snacks provided at a huddle meeting. And by snacks, that usually means doughnuts. Not necessarily a breakfast of champions, but many people have literally come for the doughnuts, stayed for the message, and experienced life change through FCA! The strategy still works today, but huddles are always looking for creative ways to draw more people to huddles beyond just an invitation to eat.
Some huddles hold various events to raise awareness that also build community among the huddle and in the school. This might be
packing meals together or
doing another service project, or it might be a sports-related activity (we are a ministry largely centered around sports after all). The FCA huddle at
Rockford High School in the northwest metro area of the Twin Cities started a 3-on-3 basketball event a few years ago. It’s a blast for student-athletes, gives the greater student body a glimpse of FCA’s heart for the school, AND for the last two years, it’s also bringing together other huddles from the area.
Win-win-win.
The FCA Huddle at Rockford High School
The Rockford huddle started about eight years ago when several seniors came to Chad Robran. He said, “I wasn’t familiar with FCA at the time, but they asked if I would be willing to look into it and be the huddle coach. It took me all of about four days, and it was a perfect opportunity. First and foremost, it’s about spreading God’s Word.” Since then, Coach Tauber, boys basketball head coach, has come alongside, and another teacher who was new to the district joined the team just last year.
The Tournament
Chad said, “The kids ran with it as any good huddle should do – they should be their own leaders.” They put the brackets together, invited people from all over the school to join them, and organized the day of the tournament. The first year they had 25-30 competitors. It had so much energy that they’ve now held it every year since with 60 competitors taking part last year and this year.
The tournament is free for participants, and as a local business owner, Robran supplies the t-shirts and snacks for the tournament (t-shirts are great for continuing that exposure throughout the school year). He knows the difference God can make in the lives of these athletes and wants as many students as possible to be part of the huddle. If the tournament can get them there, it’s worth it.
The students love the event. Hannah, an FCA student leader said, “I love the sense of community that our FCA 3-on-3 tournament gives us. The tournament has a huge impact on our huddle because people who typically don't go to FCA will go to the tournament and then they are exposed to who we are and what we stand for and will hopefully come to FCA on a regular basis! This tournament is an awesome way to have a good time and for people to know what FCA is all about: Jesus, sports, and fun.”
Building Greater Community
Last year the Rockford student leaders invited neighboring huddles, and it was a huge success. Chris Hunt, FCA Area Rep, said, “One thing we’ve really been striving to do in the Northwest Metro is to create a larger community connecting our area huddles. The 3-on-3 event is one of many events where the host huddle invites athletes from other huddles in the NW Metro to attend. Last year, we had athletes from Armstrong and Buffalo play in Rockford 3-on-3 event. It’s great to see athletes from multiple schools connecting in this way, modeling how we want to grow our community of Christ’s followers and disciples.” This year, they had participants from six schools!
Many FCA huddles are in a rebuilding phase today. Coach Tauber said, “Our FCA huddle really grew in the first four years, and there were many kids bringing friends and sharing their faith in the mornings twice a month. Once Covid hit, we lost some momentum as some of our really good leaders graduated and there were other challenges with social distancing and distance learning. We are back on the upswing and seeing more students getting involved again.” The 3-on-3 tournament is helping that as athletes are hungry for fun, “normal” events.
These students have a tremendous opportunity to reach their classmates with the Gospel of Christ. Of course, they love the fun of the competition, but the greater purpose is seeing more and more athletes entering a space where they will hear the truth about God’s love for them.
Win-win-win.
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