Brett Favre on Tough Love, Parenting, and Telling the Truth

On this episode of Our American Stories, Brett Favre, the legendary NFL quarterback, gets very personal about tough love, telling the truth, and having a parenting style that’s different than his fathers.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:12):
This is our American stories. Much of what's been known
about legendary NFL quarterback Brett Farve has been kept between
the goal posts. So Greg Hangler took the three and
a half hour long drive south from here in Oxford, Mississippi,
where we broadcast this show, and sat down with Brett
in his Hattiesburg, Mississippi home. Here's Brett on tough love,

(00:37):
telling the truth, and having a parenting style that's different
than his father's. And this is part two of our
five part series. I coached two years of high school football,
not because I wanted to. They head coach here at
the high school, who I knew really well, kind of
talked me into it. I don't know, I don't really want.

(01:00):
It was the first year out of retirement and I
ended up loving it, But I felt like I was
really tough on the kids. I didn't pick my dad,
and other coaches picked a lot, you big sissy, not
so much me. But and of course at that time

(01:22):
that's all I knew. Now and looking back, as a coach,
or as a person in that position doesn't have to
be a coach, could be a teacher. I think our
job is to mentor rather than pick. I mean, in
some respects it's like bullying to where some of those

(01:44):
kids didn't want to come around. And don't get me wrong,
I would joke around with these kids, but it would
always be in a playful manner, and I knew that
whoever it was that could handle it. In fact, it
may it may even help with team minding, but I
would be really demanding on what I knew they were

(02:08):
capable of. Only because I knew what they were capable of.
It was just like talking to your kids and you say,
and I'm bouncing all around. But like my twenty year
old daughter, and I use this example all the time,
like first or second year of American Idol. We're in
Green Bay and I'm studying, but we got American Idol

(02:31):
on and we love watching. And I don't know if
it was wutting. The show is over and she's probably eight.
She comes over and she said, Dad, I want to
try out for American Idol. What do you think? I
said no, She said why. I said, you can't sing,
so you're terrible. And I was just telling the truth.

(02:55):
I said, trust me, if I let you try out,
someday you're gonna say what were you thinking, and I
knew what she's capable of. And I mean, she's she's
a smart kid. If she wanted to be a doctor,
she could. She wants to be a lawyer, she could um,

(03:18):
but she's not going to be a rocket scientist. And
I think as a as a coach, I demanded what
I thought they were capable of achieving. And I felt
like if they were not, there's a reason for it,
not studying, not paying attention in practice. But when they

(03:39):
did well or did something that I'd been trying to
coach him to do, I would reward them. I'd hug him,
put my arm around him. Great job. And that's where
my dad lacked. When you did something right, you're supposed
to do it that way. No damn about damn you

(04:00):
know something like that. Yeah, And that's all I knew.
And I was determined that I didn't think i'd ever coach,
but if I did that, I would I would build
him up as well. I mean, it's sorry to get
on there, but they got to know that when they
do well, that you love them. The saying can be

(04:22):
said for for life. Like my dad, and I don't.
I don't say this with any regret because I don't.
But he never told us he loved this, but again
he was that was his You know, I don't think
any drill sergeant at the end of the day says
I really love you guys. He may say it in

(04:46):
our joking manner, like now get your ass out and
give me. So my mom, of course, was kind of
the caregiver. Told you she loved John, Oh, don't worry
about your dad. But then when he walked in the room,
you know, it was all it was tough, tough love,

(05:11):
and I didn't have. I was determined if I had boys,
I would tell him I loved them as much as possible.
Now I had two girls, and I told him I
loved them. And Dad, I know, I know, you don't
have to tell me, but did tell him over and
over again. Now am I perfect parent, Absolutely not, But

(05:36):
my dad was. I don't know if it was the
way they were raised. I'm sure a part of it was.
My grandfather was real mellow, but he was up in
people change, you know, and you know people, maybe your
family members, that it's like you're not just the tough

(05:57):
guy that you once were. You know, maybe with the grandkids,
like where was that when I was a kid. So
going back to my dad when I had Brittany and Balley,
he he didn't want to spend very much time with him.

(06:19):
He didn't have patience kids running around screaming. He'd start
yelling and then I'd have to yell at him, and
then it was just it was bad. But you know,
like I told people, I knew he loved me us.
He didn't have to say it. Now as I got older,

(06:41):
I understood it more and more, sometimes through his yelling
and screaming, and that was his way of It's kind
of like saying, well, you he's supposed to be able
to do that. You know good, you know, good job,
but hell, that's what I've been coaching you, dude. That
was his way of saying awesome. It was just the
way it was. And again, it drove me. And I

(07:06):
don't even know what I was being driven by. You know,
maybe I was. It was driving me, you know, like
I don't get him to say nice shot, I'm proud
of you without even knowing it. But it's funny when
he would come up to Green Bay, he'd retire and

(07:27):
this is just kind of a funny exchange between us,
but he would get it into truck after the game.
It would be a good game. Let me tell you
what he completed, thirty thirty if you had thrown thirty
more better passes. And I'm like, look for someone who

(07:49):
never threw the ball, don't tell me how to throw.
And he just shut up. Well there was nothing he
can say, you know, I mean, it was a truth.
Why did you miss that read? I'm like, I don't
want even want to hear it. You never coached me

(08:11):
one thing about reading. It was hitting the tackling dummy
and doing monkey rolls and you know which, I wouldn't
trade it. It worked out, But don't tell me how
I'll throw. But up until the end, I mean, he
was determined to coach me up. Now all of a sudden,

(08:35):
he's gonna coach me up on the ends and outs
of the passing game. And he didn't know from Shottonola
when it came in the passing game. And you're listening
to Brett Farve talking about his dad who was his
coach when he was in high school and they never
threw the ball. And we're going to continue if you'd
like to hear more on Brett Farve's life. This is

(08:58):
part two of a five part series Brett Farve's story,
this one about his father, about parenting, about love and discipline.
Here on our American Stories.