25 Herb Brooks Quotes From the Legendary Hockey Coach

By Stephanie Kirby | Published July 19, 2023

Check out these Herb Brooks quotes from the man best known as the head coach of the gold medal-winning team called the “Miracle on Ice.”

Herb Brooks was born in Saint Paul, Minnesota, in 1937 and died in Forest Lake, Minnesota, in 2003 at the age of 66.

He was a hockey player who won a state ice hockey championship in high school in 1955.

He then continued his career at the University of Minnesota and later for the U.S. Olympic teams in 1964 and 1968.

He played on the national team an additional six times, setting a record.

Although he was a great hockey player, he is best known for being the head coach of the U.S. Olympic hockey team in 1980.

The team was not expected to be able to compete with the Soviet powerhouse hockey team.

But Herb created a plan, and his players executed it, and the team won the gold medal.

Take a look at these Herb Brooks quotes to learn more about this legendary coach.

Top Herb Brooks Quotes

Here are short and inspirational quotes from the legendary coach.

1. “I’m a dreamer.” — Herb Brooks

2. “You win with people, not with talent.” — Herb Brooks

3. “Everything goes in cycles, to a degree.” — Herb Brooks

4. “This is your moment. You’re meant to be here.” — Herb Brooks

5. “Great moments are born from great opportunities.” — Herb Brooks

6. “Risk something or forever sit with your dreams.” — Herb Brooks

7. “Win, lose, or tie, you’re gonna play like champions.” — Herb Brooks

8. “Let me start with issuing you a challenge: Be better than you are.” — Herb Brooks

9. “Maybe I’m sort of like the players—there’s still a lot of little boy in me.” — Herb Brooks

10. “I dare you to be better than you are. I dare you to be a thoroughbred.” — Herb Brooks

Words of Wisdom from Herb Brooks Quotes

If you need a little inspiration, you can find it in the following quotes and words of wisdom below.

11. “Write your own book instead of reading someone else’s book about success.” — Herb Brooks

12. “You were born to be a player. You were meant to be here. This moment is yours.” — Herb Brooks

13. “You can’t be common; the common man goes nowhere; you have to be uncommon.” — Herb Brooks

14. “Success is won by those who believe in winning and then prepare for that moment.” — Herb Brooks

15. “And maybe I’m a little smarter now than I was before for all the stupid things I’ve done.” — Herb Brooks

16. “You’re playing worse and worse every day, and right now, you’re playing like it’s next month.” — Herb Brooks

17. “You know, Willie Wonka said it best: we are the makers of dreams, the dreamers of dreams.” — Herb Brooks

18. “Set a goal that seems unattainable, and when you reach that goal, set another one even higher.” — Herb Brooks

19. “You must have goals in life, or otherwise be prepared to be used by those who do have them.” — Herb Brooks

Herb Brooks Quotes About Hockey and Coaching

Learn more about the coaching and role of Herb Brooks in the following quotes.

20. “I always looked for people with a solid value system. Then I recruited kids from a cross-section of different personalities, talents, and styles of play.” — Herb Brooks

21. “What is courage? Let me tell you what I think it is. An indefinable quality that makes a man put out that extra something when it seems there is nothing else to give.” — Herb Brooks

22. “We should be dreaming; we grew up as kids having dreams, but now we’re too sophisticated as adults, as a nation. We stopped dreaming. We should always have dreams.” — Herb Brooks

23. “When you pull on that jersey, you represent yourself and your teammates, and the name on the front is a hell of a lot more important than the one on the back. Get that through your head!” — Herb Brooks

24. “If I’d have went on the ice when this thing happened, someone would have speared me or something. It’s a great feeling of accomplishment and pride. They had to do it; it was their moment.” — Herb Brooks

25. “You’re looking for players whose name on the front of the sweater is more important than the one on the back. I look for these players to play hard, to play smart, and to represent their country.” — Herb Brooks