SPORT PSYCHOLOGY 
Lisa Guzman PESP 168B
Robert Di Monda
March 4, 2014 Sports psychology deals with the mental and emotional aspects of physical performance. It involves describing, explaining and predicting attitudes, feelings and behaviors in an attempt to improve performance. In the film ‘Coach Carter,’ directed by Thomas Carter, sport psychology is used effectively to enhance the performance of a high school basketball team. However, this improved performance is not limited to the basketball court, it extends into the classroom where the students use goal setting, motivation, concentration and confidence control, ultimately to become accepted into college, avoiding a life of drugs, gangs and prison. There were a lot of people to choose from the movie but the one character that I thought went through the most changes throughout the movie was Timo Cruz. Cruz was one of the basketball players that had the most difficult becoming a good athlete and a good student. He was a very immature teenager of the Richmond oiler basketball team but then turned in to one of intelligent, successful young men of the team. During the movie Coach Carter implemented many different techniques to Timo Cruz so he can the man he is today. Some of the techniques that Cruz used were motivation, goal setting, leadership, and over coming stress.
In the movie, when Cruz came back to ask for a second chance, Carter told Cruz to just leave because he wouldn't be able to complete the requirements to get back on the team, but because Carter said that, Cruz worked harder than ever before to meet Carter's requirements to be on the team. The requirements were that Cruz do 2500 push-ups and 1000 suicides within a couple of days. The task was impossible and without a surprise, Cruz fell short of the requirements. He was motivated through Carter's offering of a second chance and discouragement but that wasn't enough to get back on to the team. Later, the team was motivated through teamwork and collaboration
Robert Di Monda
March 4, 2014 Sports psychology deals with the mental and emotional aspects of physical performance. It involves describing, explaining and predicting attitudes, feelings and behaviors in an attempt to improve performance. In the film ‘Coach Carter,’ directed by Thomas Carter, sport psychology is used effectively to enhance the performance of a high school basketball team. However, this improved performance is not limited to the basketball court, it extends into the classroom where the students use goal setting, motivation, concentration and confidence control, ultimately to become accepted into college, avoiding a life of drugs, gangs and prison. There were a lot of people to choose from the movie but the one character that I thought went through the most changes throughout the movie was Timo Cruz. Cruz was one of the basketball players that had the most difficult becoming a good athlete and a good student. He was a very immature teenager of the Richmond oiler basketball team but then turned in to one of intelligent, successful young men of the team. During the movie Coach Carter implemented many different techniques to Timo Cruz so he can the man he is today. Some of the techniques that Cruz used were motivation, goal setting, leadership, and over coming stress.
In the movie, when Cruz came back to ask for a second chance, Carter told Cruz to just leave because he wouldn't be able to complete the requirements to get back on the team, but because Carter said that, Cruz worked harder than ever before to meet Carter's requirements to be on the team. The requirements were that Cruz do 2500 push-ups and 1000 suicides within a couple of days. The task was impossible and without a surprise, Cruz fell short of the requirements. He was motivated through Carter's offering of a second chance and discouragement but that wasn't enough to get back on to the team. Later, the team was motivated through teamwork and collaboration