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Post by brophy on Mar 1, 2008 9:34:15 GMT -6
This may get out-of-hand quickly, but I was curious how we all sell competition in regards to teaching our sport.
 Did you ever beat
more than one kid at a time?
Well, I’m going to beat
five kids at a time.
And then I’m going to beat
their fathers, too.
There may be some gray areas here, so I'll attempt to define the differences we're talking about;
Us vs "them" - the perspective of assuming we are the better team and we have to go out there and mop the floor with our opponent. They are not in our league, they are subhuman, and inferior in every way (even if we aren't physically superior). 'Demonize' the competition, because they are losers in every area, you don't want to associate with these vermin. If we lose, it is because they cheated.
Rivalry - the perspective of playing to be the survivor. Only one team wins and we have to not only ensure that we don't lose, but we have to ensure that the other team doesn't win. Make them hurt and demoralize them so they quit and not even think about competiting with us again. We can talk with our opponents, but when its all said and done, we will have the bragging rights in the district (the trump in smack talking), and we want to make sure they suck. If we lose, it is because our opponent dominated us and we aren't worthy of being champions.
Be the Best - the perspective of welcoming all challengers irregardless of talent, classification, or significance. We just want to play.....and we'll worry about how we go about winning once we play. You'd better be ready to go the full length of the game, because we won't be stopping until the game clock ends (no matter what the score is). If we lose, it is because we just weren't up to the challenge of the day.
Personal Performance - who lines up across from us really doesn't matter. We just have to go out there and play the best on each play....if we add it up, we should win the game and go hang out with our opponent after the game. If we lose, it is may be that our competition was too much for us or we didn't execute well enough.
NO 'right' or 'wrong' answers, just trying to see how we teach this dynamic to our players.
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Post by dubber on Mar 1, 2008 11:17:36 GMT -6
I've been reading Bill Walsh's book "Finding the Winning Edge", and the time it normally takes me to finish a book has been overlaspsed because of the extensive notes I am taking (not a true transcribing, but close  Anyway, he sums up my thoughts on this, in kind of a Eastern philosophy train of thought: Sometimes, you have to take your focus off the goal in order to attain it. Sometimes, you just have to worry about doing the little things right. Worry about you and you alone. The goal is to win, but the AIM should be to get better at what you do everyday. By aiming at getting better, doing the right thing, all the time, the first time, every time, you will be where you want to be. THAT, is true competition. I voted be the best. I also throw in a little "us vs. them" attitude, but it is more like "us vs. the world that doesn't respect us so we gotta take that respect" mentality. And that's a big ole "J.M.O." |
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Post by brophy on Mar 1, 2008 11:24:01 GMT -6
thanks, dubber.
Which attitude do we project to the kids? How WE internalize it as coaches (our personal competitive style) is one thing, but how do we "sell" competiting and preparing for contests.
NOW, especially (the off-season) moreso than at game time.
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Post by coachbdud on Mar 1, 2008 12:48:12 GMT -6
irregardless isnt a word  |
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Post by hustleandheart on Mar 2, 2008 5:05:34 GMT -6
I voted "us vs them" only because I didn't read the definition of each term first, I wasn't aware there was one. I'm not a coach, but I want to be, so I assume I'd have to know my team and see what motivates them, but hopefully it would be a mix of "be the best" and "personal performance"
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smd
Sophomore Member
Posts: 211 
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Post by smd on Mar 2, 2008 7:39:58 GMT -6
i prefer to use...personal performance
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Post by rideanddecide on Mar 2, 2008 8:19:02 GMT -6
We've used them all within the last year. Here is why/when we used them:
Us vs "them" - We knew it was going to be a highly highly emotional game. We had to demonize the other team because we knew they were doing the same to us. If we didn't we would have been slapped upside the head and a little shell shocked to start the game. Instead our kids were just as pissed off as the other guys and it sent the message to our rivals that we would NOT back down from them and let them pull off all the BS they do on our home field.
Rivalry -Historical rivalry between our schools but we respect each other and the coaches respect each other. No bad blood, but a big win for our programs each year.
Be the Best - Against the worst team on our schedule. Wanted to make sure we didn't lower our level of play.
Personal Performance - We didn't really stand a chance against this team. They were bigger, stronger, and faster at each position and probably better coached too. Urged our kids to focus on what they could control and that was their technique and winning the one on one battles.
So I believe there is a place for all of these.
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Post by dubber on Mar 2, 2008 19:35:39 GMT -6
thanks, dubber.
Which attitude do we project to the kids? How WE internalize it as coaches (our personal competitive style) is one thing, but how do we "sell" competiting and preparing for contests.
NOW, especially (the off-season) moreso than at game time. Perhaps the biggest thing is to be demanding. Usually your leaders will pick up on that and then it's a self-propelled puppy. |
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Post by fbdoc on Mar 2, 2008 19:48:47 GMT -6
Very good poll question. I think we preach Do your Best (which also incorporates the Personal Performance component) but we've also used the others at times, especially during Rivalry Week!
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ramsoc
Junior Member
Posts: 431
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Post by ramsoc on Mar 2, 2008 20:30:59 GMT -6
I got to go with the reverse Us vs Them. We're the ones no one respects and looks past and we got to show them what up.
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Post by gpoulin76 on Mar 3, 2008 7:45:40 GMT -6
Personal performance...you have to compete against yourself first before you can 'be the best' or compete against anyone else. You need to be a winner before you can win.
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Post by morris on Mar 3, 2008 9:09:21 GMT -6
We use them all and it is a little differen teach year. It depends on talent level we have and who we are playing.
Now in practice we take a personal performance POV more than anything. We stress "Do your job" over and over. We want the players to feel if they just do their job we will be fine. So throughout the week we worry more about our kids just doing things the right way (technique and assignment) more than anything. If they feel good about what they are suppose to do and how they are suppose to do it then good things happen.
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Post by lochness on Mar 3, 2008 11:04:45 GMT -6
We've used them all within the last year. Here is why/when we used them: Us vs "them" - We knew it was going to be a highly highly emotional game. We had to demonize the other team because we knew they were doing the same to us. If we didn't we would have been slapped upside the head and a little shell shocked to start the game. Instead our kids were just as {censored} off as the other guys and it sent the message to our rivals that we would NOT back down from them and let them pull off all the BS they do on our home field. Rivalry -Historical rivalry between our schools but we respect each other and the coaches respect each other. No bad blood, but a big win for our programs each year. Be the Best - Against the worst team on our schedule. Wanted to make sure we didn't lower our level of play. Personal Performance - We didn't really stand a chance against this team. They were bigger, stronger, and faster at each position and probably better coached too. Urged our kids to focus on what they could control and that was their technique and winning the one on one battles. So I believe there is a place for all of these. I'd have to agree that we "keep it fresh" and use different examples depending upon the opponent and situation. The "Us vs. Them" is probably the rarest, reserved for only one hated rival. Our most common is probably a melding of "Rivalry" and "Be the Best." |
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