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Post by 19delta on Dec 31, 2009 10:45:57 GMT -6
Let me start by saying that I don't think that what Mike Leach did was appropriate. But, with that being said, I can fully understand his frustration and anger with a kid who seems to be milking an injury.
Hell, I got into a little hot water about 10 years ago. First year as a coach, and we had our typical "campfire crew"...group of kids who were "injured" were laughing, screwing around, making noise...etc, etc. Well, we had some walnut trees that grew along the side of the practice field. From time to time, we would have to go and pick the walnuts up because they posed a hazard if kids fell on them. So I yelled over to the group of injured players, "Hey you brokedicks, go pick up some walnuts". Got a couple of phone calls from parents after that one. Poor decision on my part
All of us have probably been in that situation at some point in our careers...we are trying to run practice but you have a group of 5-6 kids who are injured that are screwing around, making noise, and generally disrupting practice. And you know that your healthy kids are {censored} off because they are working and these malingerers are not. Now, I'm not talking about kids with legitimate injuries...just talking about those kids who seem to be constantly missing practice time because of some phantom injury.
How do you guys deal with those kids? Especially in high school programs were you don't have a lot of support staff like trainers, managers, or GAs to supervise those kids.
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Post by coachdennis on Dec 31, 2009 11:05:48 GMT -6
I don't think you have any choice but to tell them to stay at home. Traditionally, I know that coaches like to insist that injured kids attend practice to watch and learn but let's be honest - how much are they really learning? Not a lot, and they are just serving as a distraction. Simply tell the parents that you don't have the resources to look after the kids while they are on the sidelines, and therefore Johnny will need to stay home until his bruised arm has healed.
I think you would also find that once a kid is told to stay home, his injuries would tend to heal a lot faster. The kinds of kids you are talking about love the social aspect of being part of the team, and when you deny that to them they will be highly motivated to get that interaction back again.
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Post by superpower on Dec 31, 2009 12:01:51 GMT -6
I have always required that injured players attend practice, but I am beginning to think that coachdennis has it right. However, I can see some overprotective parents claiming that making the injured player stay home is an attempt to embarrass him.
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Post by mariner42 on Dec 31, 2009 12:10:28 GMT -6
I'd rather require them to be in a study hall or some such endeavor, but I think coachdennis really does have a much more realistic view of the whole 'injured at practice' issue. I can't stand the injured kids who are having a grand time not playing football, because WTF are you doing on the team if you're enjoying not playing more than playing?
I also think that you need to establish and enforce a culture of how things are done around the program, injuries included. You'll turn into a bit of a task master at first, but I think it's worth it. The injured slaps on our JV squad really needed this and they didn't get it, which was one of many, many problems for that group.
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Post by coachguy83 on Dec 31, 2009 13:11:20 GMT -6
I make the injured kids help me out at practice. If I need something out of the shed they get to go get it. If we are running out of water they get to go fill the coolers. I did have a really cool thing happen last year and the kids did it on their own, well ok acually the parents got it started. I had a whole flock of kids that broke their fingers playing baseball (Ah the joy of Middle School baseball in the fall) and couldn't hit. So a couple of the parents told them that they could still run. So everyday while we were practicing I had a handfull of kids running laps around the field.
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Post by champ93 on Dec 31, 2009 16:36:00 GMT -6
We put ours to work, typically filling and delivering water bottles to various areas of the field where drills are occurring. Our trainer works them out it very hard during that time too to better assess their injury. Practice is much more enjoyable for those kids than his workouts or water duty.
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Post by fbdoc on Dec 31, 2009 18:54:55 GMT -6
We do the same thing - our trainer has any injured player "rehab" on the sideline or serve as a water-boy or ball-boy. The ones who are injured and take it seriously get back in action. The malingerers end up deciding practice is better than being under the trainers supervision. We also have a great trainer that deals with any play/not play questions so I don't have to!
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Post by touchdownmaker on Jan 1, 2010 7:31:27 GMT -6
I hate having injured kids hanging around the field. One more kid whos going to be tempted to screw around with water bottles or play catch etc. I expect them to be with their position coach and pay attention and learn stuff. If they cant meet that expectation, they are sent home and Ill call home and explain to the parents that they need to work on school work since otherwise they are wasting their time.
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Post by indian1 on Jan 1, 2010 8:22:42 GMT -6
Our injured players still dress (to some degree depending on the injury ex. maybe just helmets or just uppers) and go through everything that they ARE cleared to do and help out with the parts of practice that they CAN'T do. So Jim-Bob with a bruise on his arm who can't hit can still warm up, do agilities, catch balls, be in pursuit drills, and run run run. Our kids are good about helping out with things. When I get an injury report from a kid I try to be as specific as possible. I want to know exactly what he CAN do and make sure he does those things.
Another part of this equation is if you don't practice you don't play. You never practice? Fine be a manager. Those kids eventually weed themselves out. As for the screwing around just make sure when you punish them for screwing around make sure they (and the parents) know that it was for screwing around and not because they were injured.
I can just about picture the Leach situation. Here's this kid who has a reputation for missing workouts with suspect injuries. He has a concussion so he can't practice. Maybe he's jacking around on the sideline during practice (which this guy also seems to have a reputation for). Leach gets pissed and sends him to the shed. Not the right move but I can see how a scenario like that could unfold.
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Post by superpower on Jan 1, 2010 22:18:45 GMT -6
Anyone else looking into constructing a lockable electrical shed for the injured guys? ;D
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Post by superpower on Jan 3, 2010 8:27:40 GMT -6
We have a semi-trailer. It is very dark and we can lock it...
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Post by coachcb on Jan 3, 2010 13:45:15 GMT -6
The biggest thing; no matter what the injury is, you'd better be at practice and at all meetings. Unless you happen to have a medical appointment during that time. And, let the medical professionals handle the injury side of things; if they say a kid can't practice, then he can't practice. Don't involve yourself with the injury; just deal with the absence side of the situation.
1. If you're to hurt to practice, then you're to hurt to play and by hurt I mean that either the trainer or a doctor states that you can't practice. Set up some sort of guidelines regarding this, i.e, you miss one practice, you miss a quarter, you miss two practices, you miss a game. This, in and of itself will limit the b.s. injuries. Stick to your guns on this one, even at the varsity level; because it's not just about attendance, it's about the players' safety. I had a kid last year with a concussion who missed two practices because he was still having symptoms; he missed the next game. He was upset about it, but I couldn't, in good conscience, put him out on the field when he was having headaches less than two days prior to the game.
2. I agree with fbdoc; keep them busy, however you can. If they truly are injured, then they need to be doing some kind of rehab.
3. At the end of practice, make them do some light conditioning; there's always some kind of exercise they can be doing and most trainers will agree with you on that. Make it clear to them that you will still get something out of them at practice. It may just be 15 minutes of core work, but it's still practice.
4. I don't put up with the 'sniffles' crap; if a doc or trainer says you're hurt, that's one thing. But, if they've just got a cold, I tell them that they'd better come back to me with a doctor's note stating that they can't practice. If they don't, then I'd consider it an unexcused practice and those are the absences that may result in removal from the program. This is the best way to kick them off of the team, if it comes to that. You've had three unexcused absences because you've got a cold, you don't have a doctor's note; you're gone.
I've had a lot of kids/parents p-ssed at me over this one, especially when they come back with a note from mom or dad. "Coach, Johnny is too sick to practice, please allow him to sit on his a$$ for the week."
It's the only way to be fair; not only to the players that are practicing, but to those that are legitimately injured and trying to get back on the field.
6. One year, I dealt with a group of freshman players that were 'sick' all of the time. It was always something; the flu, bronchitis, asthma, etc..etc.. they always had a doctor's note. They were screwing at practice all of the time; no matter how busy we tried to keep them, they always found a way to be disruptive. So, I warned them once; if you keep screwing off, then you're going to be sent home and being shipped home is considered an unexcused absence. Some of them listened, several didn't, so I told them to get off of the field and come back when they were ready to be a part of the team. They didn't come back. I took some crap for it; but it had an effect, suddenly, the rest of the screw-offs were cured.
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Post by blb on Jan 3, 2010 13:54:35 GMT -6
I don't buy the "too sick to practice" excuse.
If they're well enough to be in school, they're well enough to practice. If they're too sick to practice they should've been at home recovering and not infecting others.
If they mysteriously become ill at end of school day and have to miss practice to go home because of it, they lose playing time-drop on the depth chart.
Need to nip that stuff in the bud at freshman level, as cb stated.
Injured players MUST be at practice with helmet on - "If you can't be a football player, at least look like one."
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