Chris Beard was appointed as the Head Men’s Basketball coach at Texas Tech in 2016 and didn’t waste any time in establishing a new culture in Lubbock. He and his staff revamped everything the players did – from weight lifting, to nutrition. But, one of the strongest aspects of the Texas Tech Culture was something called the “300 Club”, where players get in the gym daily outside of practice and make 300 shots.
When asked about The 300 Club, Texas Tech guard Keenan Evans said "We expect people to be able to make certain shots when they get in a game. If you're going to take that shot, you're going to have to be shooting that in the gym, after hours or before hours. You better be able to make it or at least say you put up shots to be able to take that shot."
The 300 club was more than just getting shots up. It was every player. It was every day. What does it say about a program's culture when the extra work is the expectation and not the exception? What does it say about that culture when it's expected by peers instead of mandated by coaches?
Player led programs are consistently the most successful ones. Players who take ownership and serve their program will ultimately see success. It's no coincidence Texas Tech won a school record 31 games in 2019 on their way to the NCAA National Championship game. These cultural changes led the Red Raiders program to uncharted territory.
The consistency of getting in the gym and making your 300 is one thing. But, making a behavior like this your responsibility is how you build culture. Making it part of your identity is how you maintain said culture. It's just another example of how little behaviors create big culture and winning habits win games.
