This is something I will definitely be working on going forward.
One thing I think will get a good reaction with Gen Z is creating a competitive atmosphere as apposed to mind numbing drill work.
Back in my day (which wasn't that long ago) we were a two platoon varsity team and the offense and defense would have all out WARS at camp.
The rivalry was so bad during camp, atleast one giant
good ole fashion bench clearing brawl field fight
that was most likely egged on by the coaches. By the end of camp we all shook hands and became a tight knit team but man was that feeling in practice intense.
Some of this would spill over during the season in which we would start padded practice with a "set the tone period" in which we would spot the ball at like the 10 and the offense would have 4 downs to score. It was best 2/3 and the DC would literally punish the defense with sprints/bear crawls/ etc. for losing... oh and we ran the DTDW and would not throw the ball throughout this period, so it was a total blood bath.
As for carrying this over to modern day/the necessary mind numbing drill work...
I'm thinking of creating a system of punishment/reward within the practice itself
i.e.: drop ball= extra sprint/conditioning
O-line doesn't give up a sack= cut down conditioning
Position group does drills "perfectly"= give a rewarding drill the players enjoy doing like one on one
Have the winner of a drill get recognized instantly/publicly
Another HUGE issue I see in general with Gen Z players is they definitely shut out long winded coach speak (as most of us did anyways back in the day).
These kids are mostly visual learners and struggle envisioning things verbally or through literature.
I see alot of coaches taking too long to get to the point/talking over the kids heads in general.
My HC tells us to teach things as if you are speaking to foreigner who has never watched football.
Make sure the kids understand each "football word" you use i.e.: 9tech, overhang, deep 3rd, SCF, Wing, etc.
We also try to do corrections in 5 words or less/emphasize buzzwords to avoid the long windedness problem
obviously adjust to your player's football iq but imo unless you have a direct feeder program you will never have a player walk through your door knowing your exact terminoligy, or even the level of terminology we expect "everyone to know".
We start every JV season by teaching them the basics of what a first down is, why the hashes are there, etc. because where we are even "seasoned" youth football "stars" can't describe the basics in detail because imo they were never taught.