Being a parent and a role model for your kids is one of the most difficult and important challenges anyone can tackle. And the challenge is four times as great if you happen to be raising quadruplets, as former NFL player Mike Morton and his wife Alana are finding out, with their oldest son Trey, and their four-year-old quadruplets – Jesse, Katie, Laney and Molley.
Morton knows a few things about taking on challenges – he played for seven years as a linebacker in the NFL, four with the Oakland Raiders, and when he left football he went to dental school. On the eve of his graduation from dental school, his wife gave birth to their quads.
Ironically, given Morton’s NFL pedigree, none of his kids seem to be following in his footsteps. “None of them looks like they’re going to be athletes,” Morton said. “They are all very intelligent, but I guess they got their good qualities from their mom.”
He has had to make an adjustment in his expectations. As he transitioned from a player to his current role as father, and occasionally coach, he has found a new respect for how hard the other side of the equation is. “I had to learn to back off a lot,” he said. “I just have a whole lot more respect for coaches now.”
“Great coaches can get more out of players than the players actually have. I got to play for a couple of those, but seeing now and trying to coach kids and work with kids, especially my own, it’s hard.”
But whether it’s coaching his kids or just being a dad, having that responsibility within the family is important, and it is a role that Morton takes very seriously.
“There’s no manual for how to be a great dad or a great husband,” he said. “You’re going to try and you’re going to fail. You just can’t quit. I think football is a great example of that. You’ve got to keep playing and keep trying.”
Fortunately for Morton, he had a great role model when he was growing up in his own dad. He talks about how his dad was committed to helping him with his athletic career, and his dad actually turned down promotions at work in order to keep Mike in a school with a good football program. He provided a model of the sacrifices that are necessary to be a responsible parent.
“My dad gave me some great advice,” Morton said. “If you have to work to put food on the table, and you’re gone because of work, your kids will understand that. When they grow up, they’ll respect you.”
“But if you are gone on fishing trips, they will see that, too.”
You have to put time in at work to put food on the table, but putting time in with your children has to be a priority in your life. As Morton says, “In most things, they have to come first.”
He has boiled his philosophy down to a pretty simple formula, but like most things, the best ideas are the simplest ones.
“You’re going to be successful if you just commit to spending the time,” Morton says. Whether it’s playing video games, watching John Wayne movies and popping popcorn… just that you’re there when you can be there. That’s really what it boils down to.”
“That’s what I try to practice.”
