Tennessee’s season ended Sunday with a 95-62 loss to Michigan in the Elite Eight, closing another deep March run for Rick Barnes and the Vols. But as Barnes reflected in a pre-game interview on the culture inside the program, he made clear what matters most to him: his faith.
“It is the most important thing in my life,” Barnes said. “I’m at a stage in my life where, you know, that’s really the most important thing in my life. And I do want our players to understand it because if I could go back, I’ve learned a lot more through the rearview mirror than I have looking forward. I wish at their age I would have gone deep and much, much deeper into a relationship with Jesus Christ.”
Barnes said that perspective has shaped Tennessee’s program since he arrived in Knoxville more than a decade ago.
“And that’s one reason when I came to Tennessee 11 years ago, we started what we call Power Talk, and we have a wonderful person in, Chris Walker, who is part of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes,” Barnes said. “And they mentioned the fact that we do a Power Talk, we have for 11 years right before we have our pregame meal. And it’s a gospel message, and related to what we do, where we might be at that time, and Chris and Scott Jackson, those two guys do that.”
For Tennessee players, that openness hasn’t gone unnoticed. Several have said Barnes’ belief has encouraged them to live out their own faith more publicly, from praying together before games to digging deeper into their personal relationship with God.
“I know specifically that one of the reasons I came to Tennessee was because of Rick Barnes and his faith,” said forward Nate Ament.
Barnes put it even more simply later in the conversation.
“Our governor had a great quote a couple weeks ago,” he said. “He said, ‘There’s very few things in life that matter, we should be about them.’ And I really took that to heart because, and to me the most important thing is to love God with all my heart, and mind. And that’s where I am right now in my life. And it’s the most important thing.”
He then turned the focus back to his team.
“I’m proud of these guys because as they get older, they’re gonna find out that it’s really the main thing,” Barnes said. “And I think that we all need to learn how to keep our thoughts on the main thing.”
