|
Post by hsrose on Feb 16, 2016 11:42:06 GMT -6
I'm a 2nd year HS head coach in a small community. There is a pretty decent youth program here, the association does football, basketball, swimming, track, and wrestling, so football (Pop Warner) is just one of the sports. Last year I was in survival mode and wasn't able to get with the youth guys to do anything. I have no direct authority/responsibility for the group, they are separate from the HS. This year they have 10-13 coaches for 3 levels already identified and/or selected, last year they were still placing coaches after practice got started. So things are better than they have been at both levels.
I got invited to their 1st football coaches meeting yesterday and it went well. We talked about clinics and such over the summer, something that my staff and I are ready and willing to do. Both for the coaches and for the players. The question I have is what would you want the HS to present, and how, to the coaches and players of your association? We can do anything - I have the coaches, some budget, and the time - I just don't know what to do. Their league rules allow for 1, 6-hr clinic, on 1 day, in July, with their coaches and players together prior to the start of the season. If their coaches are not involved then we HS coaches can do anything we want with them but it has to be in a formal arrangement, they can't just be part of our summer workouts.
I am also thinking of Saturday coaching clinics with the coaches to get them more aware of the offense/defense we run - they have no issues with running our stuff, in fact they want "The Bible", the playbooks on what we do.
So, what should I be thinking about doing this summer with the youth guys and players?
|
|
|
Post by coachdoug on Feb 16, 2016 13:04:46 GMT -6
Coach - it's great that you've reached out to your local youth org and offered your support.
Here are a few things I would suggest:
- Don't force your schemes on the youth coaches. Coaches should coach what they know and know how to fix. If they're asking for your stuff, great, but even then make sure you include the disclaimer that they should run whatever they know and all you care about is that they learn good fundamentals (blocking & tackling) and have enough fun to continue playing - if they have a crappy experience and quit, you will probably never get them back out for football again.
- I think a series of Saturday clinics is a great idea, but I'd check their commitment level before you spend a lot of time and energy setting it up. Most youth coaches are also involved in other sports and may have other commitments on Saturdays, so you may not get the attendance you're expecting. Find out what they can commit to, and what days/times work best for them and try to work around that. I would definitely have a least a couple sessions before your one six-hour clinic in July, just so all the youth coaches understand your terminology, know what to expect and can contribute.
- For the six-hour clinic, I would break it out as follows: > 30 Minutes - warm ups. I would never spend more than about 10 minutes on this during the season (and I would make sure the youth coaches understand that), but for an event like this, I would want to expose both the kids and the coaches to a plethora of exercises so they can pick and chose what they like best. Include general dynamic stretches, some simple plyometric movements, and a core circuit. > 5 Minutes - water. > 60 Minutes - 6 agility stations, 10 minutes each. Split kids into 6 groups - every kid goes through every station. The stations can be whatever you want, but some obvious choices would include agility ladders, agile bags, W-drill, 3-cone drill, 20-yard shuttle (5-10-5), jump rope, grass drills, etc. > 5 Minutes - water. > 130 Minutes - 6 skills stations, 20 minutes each (plus two 5-minute water breaks after the first two stations and again after four stations). Split kids into 6 groups - every kid goes through every station. Again these can be whatever you want, but some obvious choices would include blocking (fit and freeze on dummies/shields), tackling (fit & freeze and splatter with dummies - you can also teach Hawk tackling/wrap & roll on a pulled dummy), pass catching, DB technique (footwork, hands, jamming, breaking on the ball, run support, etc.), RB technique (taking handoffs, pitches, ball security, etc.), LB technique (footwork, reads, run fits, pass drops, etc.), etc. > 10 Minutes - water. > 60 Minutes - 3 Position Stations, 20 minutes each (kids can go to whatever stations they want to check out - you may want to have their coaches assign them to stations so everyone doesn't just go to the QB, RB and WR stations). Stations would most likely be QB, RB, WR, OL, DL, LBs, DBs, Specialties (Kicker, Punter, etc.). Just focus on the fundamentals and mechanics for each position. > 5 Minutes - water. > 30 Minutes - Competitive contests (speed tournament, pass catching, throwing accuracy, 3-cone, 20-yard shuttle, broad jump, vertical leap, etc.) > 5 Minutes - water. > 20 Minutes - Awards (for the contest winners - broken out by age group), final inspirational words & closing.
As far as clinics for the coaches go, other than preparing them for the clinic/camp described above, I would focus less on scheme and more on making sure they understand the fundamentals of how to teach blocking and tackling, throwing mechanics, catching, pursuit, and how to develop core strength (the single biggest physical deficiency for most youth players). I would also focus on practice planning and pace, how to structure an efficient practice, how to do installs, and what to spend time on and what to avoid wasting time on.
As far as working with the kids without the youth coaches, by all means, put together a camp, or a series of camps. I would structure the camp(s) similar to what I described above for the six-hour July event. How long the camp will be and how many sessions you will have will dictate how in-depth you go in each category or position group. Whatever you do, keep the emphasis on the kids having fun and learning/developing skills and make it competitive as much as possible.
Good luck.
|
|