While interscholastic sports help young athletes enhance sport skills, physical fitness, self-discipline, sportsmanship, teamwork, time-management skills, self-confidence, and mental toughness, their benefits actually surpass even these. Interscholastic sports also promote life skills and lessons and enhance academic performance. The National Federation of State High School Associations ([NFHS] 2008) reported that the more than 7,000,000 interscholastic athletes in the United States overall have higher grade-point averages, lower dropout rates, better daily attendance, and fewer discipline problems than nonathletes. Based on the premise that interscholastic sports can positively impact the lives of young athletes, this article emphasizes the importance for coaches to model and teach character traits as they offer specific strategies. High school coaches should teach, model, and reinforce to their athletes that participation in interscholastic sports is a character-building privilege earned by showing respect, playing fair, and striving to win while keeping winning in perspective. (Contains 1 figure.)