Here’s Vernon Davis with a smooth move to avoid a Baltimore Ravens’ tackler in Super Bowl 47. Davis’ average yards per catch in that game was almost double (17.3 vs. 9.4) that of the previous record holder for most total yards by a tight end in a Super Bowl.
He delivered on his promise to Ray Lewis in making sure that Ray and his teammates did indeed “have a long day”.
To access any or all of the five interconnected 3V videos
Working with some of the best storytellers, athletes, and teams in the world, we stretch the viewer’s imagination with almost unbelievable stories of peak performance in the biggest of games. Such is the case with Vernon Davis’ most unusual and gut-wrenching story. His 49ers team lost in NFC Title Game or Super Bowl for three consecutive years…and by less than a touchdown in each of those games.
Two years later, his fondest wish became reality: He won the Super Bowl with the Denver Broncos after being traded to the team at mid-season.
The Beyond Intensity viewer will witness firsthand how this magical occurrence came about in a special video series entitled “Vernon’s Visualizations For Victory”…also known as the “3V System.” This is the same video series referenced in the introduction to the Visual Kinesthetic Recall section.
Our audience is part of the process…there on the court, smelling the grass on the field, or sharing in the exuberance of an athlete on his journey to winning a title.
Feel the jubilation of Vernon Davis, a veteran football player (10 seasons in the NFL) on his way to winning his long sought-after championship.
On Camera:
Anthony Hirschman in discussion with Vernon Davis, reviewing the star football player’s many “In The Zone” successes (see “True Stories” section, below)
We take our audience inside the minds of the greatest athletes as they seek to find sports’ most elusive and important mental state: The Zone.
THAT is the mental state that exists BEYOND INTENSITY. Once experienced, the audience will walk out feeling inspired to achieve greatness in their own lives.
Joe Montana made his mark by coming through under pressure, to the point where his nickname was "Joe Cool". Here he is performing at peak while in the figurative Center of the Cyclone, sometimes known as the Eye of the Hurricane. Welcome to The Zone!
Stephon Marbury, one of the most honored foreign athletes in Chinese sports history, has this to say about the Zone:
“The Zone?
We LIVE In It!”
Whether it be as an individual or as an entire team, come join us in that supernatural and rarefied state of mind…and lifestyle.
THE ZONE DEFINED
(As found in the Urban Dictionary)
“The Zone is an ethereal (uplifted, almost heavenly) state of mind that propels you from mortal man to super human to godlike status. Performance, whether physical or technically challenging, is elevated effortlessly beyond your normal level. You feel no pain within your body and your reactions and balance become unhumanly fast.
Things that were difficult previously become effortlessly easy. Failure does not enter your mind and does not even seem possible.
Unfortunately, the Zone is an ephemeral (fleeting or short-lived) place and in the way that you unknowingly entered the Zone…you just arrive, you don’t know quite how…you are unceremoniously booted out of it.
This usually involves collecting all the pain that you missed out on when in the Zone and dishing it out in one big serving. Once you have left the Zone, it is commonplace to try and fight your way back into it, but this never works out. In fact, generally speaking, the Zone gets further away the harder you try to get into it.”
There's Joe Montana in the upper left-hand corner of Sports Illustrated's authoritative book, written in 1999, entitled "Greatest Athletes of the 20th Century"...of which Montana was one. No other NFL quarterback was included on this most exclusive list of 25 sports legends. Surrounding Montana are Mickey Mantle (above him), with Jim Brown and Muhammad Ali across from him. Way to go, Joe!
Three True Stories From
INSIDE THE ZONE:
Vernon Davis’ standout playoff performances catalyzed the San Francisco 49ers’ return to relevancy (starting in 2011), after almost a decade of not even a single playoff appearance. That impact is apparent in this picture. He is standing in front of the 49ers’ Wall of Fame. Vernon’s action photo over his right shoulder has been strategically placed on the wall directly next to the Greatest Quarterback of the 20th Century, Joe Montana himself. No other 49ers player, past or present, was given that honor. Montana was voted by both the Associated Press and Sports Illustrated in 1999 to be the “Greatest Quarterback of the 20th Century.”
A Sports Illustrated cover story from December 30, 2013 again paired Vernon with Montana, alongside of Willie Mays, Dwight Clark’s “The Catch,” and the Beatles final tour appearance as contributing to the greatest moments in Candlestick Park history. That’s a highly illustrious group for Davis to be associated with, well-earned through his outstanding play on the field. Anthony Hirschman and Richard Wickline learned a tremendous amount from Vernon during the time period (2012-19) in which they worked with the great tight end…most importantly, how Vernon sees the result he seeks to create ahead of time. This is a key to almost all champion athletes’ success.
Vernon Davis finished his career with the Washington Redskins (2016-19), now known as the Commanders. On Thanksgiving Day in 2018, Vernon scored on a 53-yard catch-and-run. The NFL timed Davis’ top speed on the touchdown at 21.44 mph, which was the fastest time for any tight end on any reception over a three-year period (2016-18). Vernon was 34-years-old at the time…and he still was faster than any other tight end in the league, even those in their early-20’s. It wasn’t just his athletic ability that made him so fast. Davis’ BELIEVED what television broadcasters were calling him…”The Ageless Wonder.” As a result, he performed that way. This is the Power of Mind Over Matter…one of the many benefits of BEING IN THE ZONE. Vernon Davis lives in it!
For athletes like Joe Montana, Vernon Davis, and Stephon Marbury, being in the Zone is as natural as breathing air…because they have mastered the principles of getting there.
Are YOU ready to do the same?
Viewing the BEYOND INTENSITY 3V video series will show you that it is indeed possible.
For a seven-minute video in which Stephon Marbury discusses with Anthony Hirschman how OPT Research Systems helped him to
FLY HIGH IN CHINA
Richard Wickline (L), Stephon Marbury, and Anthony Hirschman (R) enjoy a moment together during their filming session. During the video shoot, Marbury discusses how using OPT's mental training system enabled his Beijing Ducks Chinese pro basketball team to win their second championship in three seasons. His Ducks won their third title the following year, with Marbury being voted Playoff MVP.
The following section is a detailed historical exploration of OPT's new key associate, Steve Fraser.
Please read this section as an OPTION, not as primary information about Optimal Performance Technology.
Coach Fraser:
The Champion who creates champions
Steve Fraser
Fraser is a master of understanding and utilizing the Zone.
He has researched that mental state as much or more than anyone Hirschman and Wickline have come into contact with. This is because of his personal success as an athlete and as one of the most accomplished coaches in American Olympic history.
Fraser has written extensively about his own experience getting to the top of his sport (wrestling) and helping others to do the same.
Hirschman and Wickline learned a great deal from their trips to the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs before the 2012 London Olympic Games. Steve Fraser, Head Coach of the U.S. National Greco-Roman Wrestling Team (which competes in the Olympics and in the World Championships), made available his vast experience and insights to the two researchers. He also provided access to 19-year-old Helen Maroulis through one of the wrestlers on his National Team. Working with Hirschman and Wickline turned out to be instrumental in Maroulis' eventual development into the second most successful American wrestler (male or female) ever in Olympic history, based on her three medals won.
After Fraser won the Olympics in 1984 as an athlete, he became the United States Head Coach in 1995. Over the next four Olympic Games (through 2008), no country except Russia won more medals in World and Olympic competition than Fraser's U.S. team. To put the Americans' success into perspective, Russia uses military money to fund their wrestling and other Olympic programs. The U.S. Olympic teams rely solely on private donations. Thus, the Russians have vastly more resources available than do our teams, yet Coach Fraser's Greco-Roman team actually beat the Russians head-to-head at the 2007 World Championships, en route to winning the World Title.
Even more significant is what Steve Fraser did for his protege, Rulon Gardner. Gardner entered the 2000 Sydney Olympics as a complete unknown, and left as the biggest story (in any sport) of that Olympic Games. In the heavyweight division finals, Gardner went up against the most successful male Olympic athlete ever in any sport, Russia's Alexander Karelin. Karelin had won 9 consecutive World Championships and 3 straight Olympic Titles. He had won every international competition he was in for 13 years in a row, dating back to 1987. The word "Invincible" accurately described the Russian Superhero.
Gardner and Karelin prepare to wrestle their Olympic Finals match
Somehow, in their gold medal match, Gardner prevailed...winning the most improbable Olympic wrestling championship ever. Sports Illustrated voted Karelin's 13-year win streak as one of the Ten Greatest Sports Streaks of the 20th Century...yet an athlete who had never even won a medal in World or Olympic competition (Gardner) beat him when it counted the most. The adjoining picture shows Gardner at the precise moment he had his hand raised in victory, with the gladiator he just defeated looking on in disbelief.
Rulon Gardner VICTORIOUS!
The next photo of Gardner and Karelin is from a newspaper headline immediately following their epic bout. The "Man Beats Superman" theme describes the “impossible” nature of Rulon's feat, as well as the subheading "Farm boy stuns world for gold on mat".
In the small print directly underneath the photo of the two athletes on the victory stand is the caption: "Fighting Urge To Cry...U.S. wrestler Rulon Gardner wipes tear after stopping 'unbeatable' Alexander Karelin for gold." Sports Illustrated reported that no one had even scored a point on Karelin in ten full years until Gardner did in their Olympic finals match.
How could such a stunning upset have occurred? Coach Fraser "programmed" Rulon Gardner that he would beat Karelin in the 2000 Sydney Olympics. His constant encouragement of Rulon stoked Gardner's self-belief. The Dynamic Duo in the photo is the teacher (Fraser) and student (Gardner). It's a real-life "Rocky" story that will live on as long as there are Olympic Games.
Fraser and Rulon
Fraser triumphs over Anderson at the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles
Steve Fraser's accomplishments did not stop with Gardner's 2000 Olympic Title or his U.S. team's World Championship in 2007. He's had three different individual World Champions in-between Gardner's gold and the U.S. winning the Worlds.
Ultimately, one must factor in Fraser's own Olympic gold medal in 1984…where he beat Frank Anderson, a three-time World Champion, along the way.
Very few coaches in the history of American sports have the pedigree Fraser has as both an athlete and coach. He has the skills and knowledge to generate similar stellar results for whatever athlete or team he consults with.
OPT is privileged to have him on-board as a leader and pioneer in how to accomplish the seemingly impossible.