Am I being sensitive?

My college coach had a great saying:

Freshmen are expected to cause some problems.

Sophomores are expected to cause fewer problems.

Juniors are expected to cause no problems.

Seniors are expected to SOLVE problems.

Nuff said. Kid is acting like a hired gun. A mercenary. He's certainly not going to lead your team.

I can remember when I was that kid, the gifted player that just played off talent, I can recall my 5th grade season, coming off two beast 3rd and 4th grades season racking up close to 30 TD's in two season. In the 5th grade I as getting ready to get a real taste of football. I was with the same coaching staff from my previous two seasons so I felt very comfortable that I was the man.

Well first two week into the season we are not doing so well and a asst. coach pulls me aside in practice to talk about my production, To make a long story short I took his critisim the wrong way. Man I was hot, felt like he blamed me for all the wrongs on the team, how dare he blame his best player! I felt like he should had told the other players to improve their game not mine. I went home that night and told my parents i wanted to quit, They just looked at me as a parent do when they know your doing something wrong. But they let me make the decsion. We'll next season was so so, and then 7th grade, finally playing with the big boys, My draft status went from being a 1st rd pick to 3rd or 4th, My old Coach had told all the other coaches my attitude was bad etc, coaches didn't want me except one. So the first day of practice I was told of my draft issue by my new coach and he had faith in me that what was said about me wasn't true but I needed to get off my high horse. I had something to prove.

I quess some kids have to learn the hard way, This story does have a happy ending. Come playoff time we get my old coach first rd (team I quit) So you know I was ready, We spanked them 14-0 as I ran for one TD and passed for another TD. This help me get my attitude right for 8th grade, lead my team to ship with 22 TD on the season and caught the eyes of the High School coaches and they welcomed me into the program where I made Varsity my 9th grade year as a back up QB. Starter next 3 years.

So sometime you can't keep kids from making bad judgements they have to go down their own path, just be there to help them get back the right path.

An old saying I use often and reinforce often is "We would rather lose with winners than win with losers." Most of the kids get it and the others fade away.

How many of you have an athletic period during school? We have one here and there is no question that our kids are going to lift with us. We have a few go to a local gym after our workout, but that is something we can't control. I am just wondering how off season is in other parts of the country.

At our school we have "Advanced PE" which is really lifting class. 80% of our guys take the class and most of the rest lift in the after school program. We do not have an "athletic period" where we can just watch film and talk football (anyone can sign up for the Advanced PE class, even if it is mainly football guys)

BY FAR THE BIGGEST MISTAKE I MADE AS A NEW HEAD COACH - worrying too much about who was NOT there.

I know this and am working on it. I am being much more blunt (thanks DCOhio) "someone will rush for 1500 yards, it doesnt have to be you"

This doesn't solve any problems.


It only makes the coach feel better later on......it ain't about that.

Cut Nuts here. Head football coach for past 5 years, great kids, few problems, BUT, I Coach hoop too- coming into this year, lost all-time leading scorer (real divisive kid, pompus idiot), second leading scorer (thrown off due to attitude, so he transfers, and 6'6 kid who could play- no grades, not a bad kid, lots of baggae) Last year, we were 13-9 and lost in the second round of tournment with a lot of talent, little continunity or heart- I hated the season, major headackes and took it out on everyone around me. This season little talent; 5'9 linebacker with no hoop skill was a starting power forward, no bigs and only two returning starters. We go 15-9, make it to the state quarter finals, while going 5-1 in games decided by 3 points or less. Great kids with big heart, who listen and play their tails off. In my seven years as a varsity hoop coach (six tournment apperances), I have never been prouder or had more of a good time. Nearly never raised my vioce had a great time with the kids and always looked forward to coming to practice and teaching and being aroung great human beings. Leading scorer (17 ppg, all league/area) sat behind our all time leading scorer, Mr. Attitude, and blossemed when he left.
Morale of story- great kids and great attitude = great team, less problems and more gratification. Attitude, selfishness, and big talent is always a mirage, you nevre want to {censored} yourself out to a kid with talent that will not work- they kill you, the rest of your kids, and your program in the end.

dc -

You are on record in many posts as saying that you won't play kids "unless they come to weights". This, at least, on the surface, seems to be a softening of your stance. Just wondering, but what is your standard? At what point do you make the decision that a kid won't start for you? How many days in the weightroom does he have to miss?

And, if you made a deal with this kid (assuming the deal was made because the kid was a top player), would you make the deal with lesser players?

Tell him who is the boss. If he still skips another day for any reason then cut him. You will be there everyday unless you're dead or quit. If they can't make that commitment then they are done. If my view comes off as too hard then I guess that's how it is. I played for three state championships with average talent using this policy so I am a huge believer in grueling offseasons.

Our offseason and weightlifting programs have done a complete 180 in the time I've been at the school I'm at. When I first got here, there were 2 weight periods, but they were a complete joke! The football program went out and raised enough money to create one of the best weight rooms in the area. It's something our kids take an awful lot of pride in.

What we did that first year was create a zero hour program. There were 60 kids in that class. 6 AM. They earned no credit. But...those daily 6 AM workouts helped to create camaraderie, pride, responsibility, and competition. We also got to see who was committed to the program. In the weight room every morning was the HC, OL coach, and myself (now the DC)

We've made huge strides since then. Now, weightlifting and sports development are offered every period of the day. The weightroom is also open before school and after on Monday, Wednesday, Friday. Our strongest kids were 800 pound lifters (squat, clean, bench), and there were only three of them. Last season, every starter on defense except maybe 2, were 800 pound lifters. We've also got 4 or 5 kids who will break a thousand by the start of next season.

What we've done is created an expectation. A culture of hard work. If you're going to be a part of our program, you need to be an active member of the weight program. There are more options now than the one 6 AM weight class that got you no credits towards graduation.

There are no excuses for not being in the weight room during the day, and what's great is the kids have done a phenomenal job of policing themselves about this. The kids put competitive pressure on each other, and if there isn't any, it makes your job that much more difficult. As a coach, you can only do so much. All the kids have to buy-in, and by doing so, they will put that competitive pressure on each other.

All good suggestions so far. I am fortunate to be part of a program where off-season participation is simply the expectation, and players will be there. Attendance is posted for all to see, and players will essentially keep each other in line for absences, excused or otherwise.