Maya Diaz is an ASU Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication student assigned to cover Desert Vista High School for AZPreps365.com.

PHOENIX — Winning games isn’t the only thing head coach Jake McSpadden prioritizes in his program. Each week of his last two seasons, McSpadden and his team of coaches award players not for touchdowns or yards, but character.

Following the lesson plans of an Arizona-based program called “Character Matters Academy,” the program equips coaches with tools to recognize and reward character of an athlete and relates them to on-field experiences to help student athletes succeed off the field.

“It's just something that's good for them to learn how to get through things whenever things get tough or things that adhere to throughout the week. It's awesome,” McSpadden said.

Founded in Arizona, Character Matters Academy has grown nationally, emphasizing how the development of character through coaches has a ripple effect from athletes to entire communities.

And that is exactly what Manager of Operations Jordan Salem had in mind when collaborating with his father, Wade, to create this program.

“Our core belief at Character Matters is that the coach is the most important voice in the program and that if any lives are going to be impacted through athletics, it's going to be the coach that does it,” Salem said.

Salem described positive results from coaches who used the program throughout the Valley, like former Chandler High School football coach and current ASU running back coach Shaun Aguano, who won four state titles during his time; Dana Zupke at Pinnacle High School and Eddy Zubey at Higley.

“I never find it any coincidence that the type of programs that are being ran are also the type of coaches who put an emphasis on character development,” Salem said.

Chandler, Pinnacle and Higley have been top 15 Arizona programs in the 6A Conference over the last couple of years, proving that a program that prioritizes character as much as athleticism can help grow a program's success. 

Despite McSpadden’s two years as head coach, he marks the longest-serving head coach the program has had in the past five years. However, this has helped emphasize the importance of character development and build a winning team from this new culture.

“Consistency goes a long way, with me being the head coach for the second year in a row, they know that we're gonna do this,” McSpadden said, “they understand, ‘Hey, if he's not going anywhere, he's gonna present this stuff to us. We might as well pay attention and listen to the coaches and what the message is going to be.’”

McSpadden said he hopes the lessons he teaches to his players will extend beyond their time as high schoolers and habits and values they develop through this program last long after graduation.

“They can get through hard things,” McSpadden said, “life is never going to be easy for them after this. This is one of the most easy times they have.”