How do you prepare your Teams for the Championship Game

We do nothing any differently than we would do for a regular season game. We employ the same preparation and the same practice routine. We take the attitude that it is simply the next game on the schedule. We always talk to our kids about playing a faceless opponent; that we have control over our preparation, effort and attitude.

A few years ago when Alabama was getting ready for a championship game someone asked Nick Saban during an interview if the team was doing anything special at practice during week to prepare for the big game. Saban said something like, "If we knew a better way to practice, we would have been doing it all year."

I have coached in four championship games and we won three of them. We play our championship games in a college stadium that is a way different environment than what we're used to playing in. My advice is (as others have said) to keep everything as routine as possible. In a situation where nerves may be a factor, kids need to have assignments they can execute in their sleep.

I'm always a "Today's a Monday, so we going to do Monday work...." kind of guy, and that is pretty much our approach to big games. If you tackle full speed, go goal line, do 1 on 1s, play bull in the ring, whatever.... on a Monday practice then that should be your Monday routine. The schedule should be the same, the weight lifting, everything.

However, if you don't address the fact that this is a big game then you're fooling yourself. You need to be up front about it with the kids. You don't need to make a huge deal out of it, but be honest; if it is the first time then celebrate it, admit it, and go with it. To try and avoid the fact that this is a big game will only increase the amount of nervousness/jitters/etc....

The biggest thing you'll need to prep your players is all the distractions. Everybody and their brother-in-law will be hanging around wanting some love. The boosters will want to do fifty-eleven special events this week for the kids. The school/admin will be wanting to have the biggest/fanciest/most over the top/swankiest/mind numbingly long pep rally in the history of well, your whole championship history. The local media will be coming around wanting to do interviews, film practice, get some quotes, etc... every stinking day. If you've got a particular player(s) that has been instrumental in your playoff run, or if you got a kid who is hot on the recruiting trail, then you'll be covered up with recruiters since their season is slowing down and the open period is coming to a close. You better get ready to grease up the tickets requests.....

Make a plan for how you're going to handle all these distractions, because they may seem like small, pleasant annoyances, but with the stress that you're already feeling will lead to somebody going postal that you would never figure. If you have a non-football coach AD, go over all the off field things that will come up and outline how you expect him to handle this. Let the AD be your filter and let him handle all these requests that you lay out ahead of time and don't need to handle personally. Talk to your principal and make sure you both are on the same page as well. If you have a football booster club, talk to the president and make sure they know right now what you want/expect.

AND BY GAWD, MAKE SURE YOU ENJOY THE WHOLE DAME EXPERIENCE!!! YOU'LL TURN AROUND AND THE WHOLE THING WILL BE LIKE A FART IN THE WIND - GONE!!. MAKE SURE YOU TELL YOUR COACHES THIS TOO, AND THE PLAYERS. Don't you dare come back on here this time next week and say, "Dang it all just flew by....."

No matter what the outcome, you've proven yourself, so allow yourself and your players and your staff the chance to enjoy it.

I'd wish you good luck, but the hades with that, GO WIN THE DAME THING!