Earned Not Given: Picking jersey number

When rising seniors parents storm your office wearing all the custom apparel with the number 3 on it you better have some good reasons why you gave their kids number away. That's a chit storm waiting to happen if you ask me.

Starters retain their previous year's number.

I let the players select their own, seniors on down. Never been an issue.

I am all for rewarding kids for wt room attendance, and have been part of a lot successful type of offseason reward programs like you have designed (kudos). I think I see two possible issues though:

1) Football workouts during other sport seasons. I too am a proponent of kids playing other sports, and I do not know your relationship with other coaches (so maybe this won't be an issue); but I can see a clash of having your kids workout during other sport seasons. First off, it surprises me that other sports arent lifting in season and that you have to have football lifts for athletes in other sports; but I would be shocked if you didnt get flak for this from other sport coaches. I imagine you would have some issues if your baseball coach had your QB come in mornings during the football season to throw pitches, or your track coach was having your dbs run 400s the day before the game. I believe that when they are in another sport they get 100% attendance for days they are in that sport (assuming the finish the season) and not to allow double dipping. It can lead to issues with other coaches and I wouldnt want them to do it to us.

2) Keeping a uniform helps with getting recruited. I don't know how much stock I put into this, but I used to coach for a HC who spent a lot of time as a D1 coach and did a lot of recruiting; he did not allow athletes to change numbers between seasons (particularly upperclassmen). He felt it hurt them in the recruiting process. I don't know why (continuity?), but I do know he did an amazing job at getting kids recruited, and even if this were a small thing it could be something to take into account. 

One way I did it last year was I had all kids who were eligible for varsity fill out a card with top 4 jersey # choices and all kids for JV do the same. Kids put their name on the back, and we organized the names by Pride Points and constructed the roster, so if you came up and your first and second pick were gone you got your third pick....why do it on cards? Well, it kept the seniors or younger guys from getting mad at the individual or taunting or intimidating a younger kid fro taking their number.

I had kids earn everything from locker, number, equipment. It was a giant chit storm and I got fired at the end of the year. (not the only reason I got fired) People with a losing mentality don't like accountability I discovered. (#1 reason I got fired)

The problem I see is with the kids who are in other sports. In my opinion, you're asking for trouble if you take away their number. I have no issue with not giving a number to a kid who doesn't do any or little off season work, but you need to make allowances for those in other sports. As for your example of a soph with 0 misses taking the jersey of a senior with 1 miss--well, if you do those sort of things, you better win a lot of games because you're going to make a lot of enemies and you may just get to try your ideas out in a new place.

I've seen systems like that, but every school I've been at, the basketball coach and baseball coach NEVER have them lift during season... Those kids are competing, which is good, but I need them in the weightroom... That's why I used the 75% number. Gives kids in other sports a lot of wiggle-room so they can compete, but they still get enough lifting in that they are gonna be bigger and stronger the next football season.

If you are a 3 sport guy the missed weight room time or reduced weight room time never appears. If you are a football only or football and spring or winter sport only, the missed/reduced weight room time typically isnt an issue

We pick jersey numbers by off season attendance. But once you have a number it's yours as long as you are on the team. Our picking order is returning players that want to change numbers, then new players that need a number, sorted by off season attendance within each group.

I think that as long as the parents and the kids know in advance that they could lose a number if they don't meet a minimum number of weight room sessions, there is nothing wrong with what you are doing here. The tough thing for a lot of coaches would be sticking to their guns. For example, you have a senior who is a good kid and a player you are counting on to contribute but kind of slacked off in the weight room. A lot of coaches would find an excuse to give a kid like that a mulligan and let him keep his jersey number.

Just curious, but what was this player's excuse for not getting in the weight room? When you explained to his parents why he had lost his number, what did they say?

In the past, I have had "responsibility sheets" where if you knew you were going to be gone, you had to fill out a sheet with the dates, the reason why, have them signed and supply a parent phone number so we can confirm.  If a student  was able to provide that, we gave them credit as if they were there.

Well, here is my 2 cents

#1 I think it is divisive.  I think a team needs to work together for a goal not against one another for a game shirt.  If your top kids don't lift there is something wrong in your program.  rewarding some soph that comes to everything, raises $$$ ,but is never going to see the field with a "good" shirt I don't think is going to help your team.  We all have "that kid" don't we.

#2 so your best kid misses a few lifts and this "super soph" wants that #..are you really going to give it to him...I think we have all made accommodations for that special kid

#3 our basketball teams play 2-3 nights a week..Is a kid going to be penalized for not lifting after an away game when he gets home at 10pm and still has to do homework  

Jimmy Johnson said that if Troy Aikman fell asleep during film he'd wake him up but if a rookie special teams guy fell asleep he'd cut him on the spot.  Life isn't always fair, learning that is a life skill.  If my stud senior middle linebacker missed a few workouts for family vacation and does a lousy job of fundraising I'm not giving his jersey to a slappy sophomore that is at all the lifts and sells a lot of tickets to the pancake breakfast.

I'd go back and try to communicate it differently and change less in year 1. Evolve into it.