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Post by CoachMikeJudy on May 15, 2023 12:51:25 GMT -6
I've worked for about five different head coaches and everyone has been different. I worked on a 3 man staff that didn't meet at all on the weekends, just communicated through text. I've worked on a 10 man staff that worked saturday and sunday. Most have been in between and worked Sunday afternoon. Just wondering how everyone breaks theirs down and what is your preferred method. I saw a quote this morning that said "the only people who are going to remember that you worked overtime is your kids"... That's kind of why I brought this up. What do yall say? 80-21 over 9 years. Friday Night: I (HC) upload film and do minimal hudl fields...just enough to get stats done. Saturday: Youth sports- my kid or our coaches' kids...we are tight and go to everything. Once the exchange comes through I start data breakdown while watching college football at home. NOBODY MEETS on Saturday- that's for the families. Sunday: 8am-1ish? Gameplan is 80% done Monday: No practice- film and install meetings only.
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Post by CoachMikeJudy on Apr 5, 2023 13:05:05 GMT -6
Hello everybody! I'm new to coaching. Played in high school and decided I'd start back in the system. I was wondering, what are the biggest struggles that you face as a coach? Is there a part of coaching that is "the most annoying" or most frustrating? I'm just interested to see the path I have ahead of me, so I can prepare a bit better. I'm in the dark right now. I can't think of any struggles worth speaking about, but I'll give some advice that has worked for me and my experience: 1) Don't assume they remember anything from the previous year. Start the teaching as if they know nothing. This process has led (IMO and experience) to the kids having a deeper connection and understanding of what we do. 2) Focus on fundamentals and details. Allow your players to become technicians and demand they attend to the details. THIS is the gamechanger many coaches fail to emphasize in their hierarchy IMO. 3) More is not better. Longer practices will not help. Get efficient. I've fallen in this trap before. Fight like hell to avoid this. 4) Film practice and watch it. Teach the kids to watch film. Keep it short and crisp. 5) Make it fun- you won't win them all. Make sure your decisions are guiding kids in the right direction. 6) Take time for yourself and your significant other/family. Don't get caught up with poor prioritization. Good luck!
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Post by CoachMikeJudy on Jan 17, 2023 16:14:16 GMT -6
We give the seniors:
A huge senior poster A chrome dog tag necklace with their name, position, and team logo/motto
Every senior that has finished during my tenure has the same exact necklace. It's like their secret handshake.
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Post by CoachMikeJudy on Dec 1, 2022 10:32:54 GMT -6
Our priorities for our MS team is as follow:
1. Give them a great positive experience. 2. Nurture the love for football. 3. Encourage them to fly around and love to hit! 4. Structure practice as we do (Spt/Indy/Group work/Inside run/Skelly/Team) 5. Run the offense/defense as you see fit- our guys are former coaches from our HS staff so they run our stuff but still use us as resources. 6. Try to use as much terminology and concepts to mimic us (not a deal breaker)
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Post by CoachMikeJudy on Nov 18, 2022 10:27:07 GMT -6
Find a local auctioneer and get with the local fire department. have a football and firefighter auction and dinner where the public donates estate items to be auctioned off and money split between the fire department and football program Yes. Or even a fire-hall or VFW hosted "beef & beer", bull roast, crab feast etc.
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Post by CoachMikeJudy on Nov 13, 2022 12:54:31 GMT -6
but the starting center violated his parole and never made it back to the school. Line of the century. LOL- exactly! Classic D3 football! Wouldn't change a thing
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Post by CoachMikeJudy on Nov 12, 2022 20:17:05 GMT -6
2 yr starter in HS (OL + LB). All Conference/All-State OL, captain as senior
4yr starter at D3 school OL, 2yr captain. I had no business starting my freshman year (was just hoping to make the team), but the starting center violated his parole and never made it back to the school. Slid to center from guard. Started and never looked back.
3x All Conference, All Region, Pre-season AA. Was blessed to be inducted into my college HOF.
I was smarter & tougher than I was talented for sure.
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Post by CoachMikeJudy on Nov 9, 2022 10:33:17 GMT -6
Yes. Delegate stuff out. Celebrate your seniors and the team. It is important whether you enjoy it or not.
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Post by CoachMikeJudy on Nov 7, 2022 11:18:54 GMT -6
We have dealt with this several times. Admin handles parent separate from the student. We have had parents banned from games for a season, a year, or permanently. Kid only get disciplined for things THEY do.
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Post by CoachMikeJudy on Oct 19, 2022 9:50:44 GMT -6
My biggest pet peeve is when kids leave their helmet unattended on the sideline... for some reason it drives me crazy We refer to them as "Anklebreakers" for a reason!
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Post by CoachMikeJudy on Sept 20, 2022 6:17:41 GMT -6
I have used it before, but I never berate a kid. Usually it's a "f-me" in disbelief or disgust. I do think no matter how hard you try people mess up- IMO just own it and apologize.
Side note- our DL coach is a huge soft-spoken teddy bear. In 7 years I have never heard him curse on or off the field. Friday night, end of the game a kid from the other team stood on our numbers and taunted the sideline and the crowd for a good 10secs. Refs standing there...didn't say a thing. The DL coach said something about it and the ref flagged coach. He unleashed about 30 "F you"s...everyone was speechless. Needless to say the bear got poked and will be serving a suspension this week. I still can't believe it!
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Post by CoachMikeJudy on Jun 13, 2022 8:08:21 GMT -6
"PLAYER LEAD TEAMS..."
IN THE ABSENCE OF LEADERSHIP LOOK NO FURTHER THAN YOURSELF. They are not fit to lead/make this decision...so you must.
One cannot expect that children can make good decisions at this age when it comes to emotionally-charged team issues. Someone stated above essentially "the standard is the standard" and I couldn't agree more. I wouldn't let my son have a say in all family issues just because they may affect him.
There are things that are in the kids' wheelhouse, and there are things that are not. They can pick the game MVP, color of socks, "Dude of the Week" award etc. They do not get a say in discipline matters. The standard is the standard.
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Post by CoachMikeJudy on Mar 24, 2022 12:00:19 GMT -6
First year coaching after college (GA position). I felt connected in a much different way than I had ever felt. The challenge of not physically being able to affect the game anymore, the planning and scheming, the behind-the-scenes work...loved it. That was 22 years ago.
Have I questioned myself at times since then? Absolutely. There have been great times and bad times. All of it has been one HUGE lesson about life for me, and new problems/challenges pop up all the time. In the end it has shaped me to be a better husband, father, and person. It serves as a tough means of therapy at times as well. I am also proud that my wife and son have been along for the ride, and they are 100% supportive of what I do.
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Post by CoachMikeJudy on Feb 11, 2022 6:39:41 GMT -6
at my 1st AC gig in 1993, as an adjunct AC, I was paid $1800 I got $5K this year to coach a 9 week MS season. 1 week of tryouts, 2 weeks of 'camp,' and 6 games. Started the week before Labor Day and done by Halloween. You make close to what I do as a HS HC. Thank goodness most of us don't do it for the paycheck.
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Post by CoachMikeJudy on Feb 10, 2022 9:21:03 GMT -6
I’m kind of curious how other football programs delegate coaching staff involvement during summer workouts. I’ve coached at a few different programs. While some had a minimum amount of activities a coach was expected to be at, others had a sign up system for coaches on the summer calendar, and another just rolled with whoever showed up. Based on your experiences, what are realistic staff expectations for the summer? As a S&C guy and HC I may differ in opinion from some others but I'll give it a whirl: We have coaches who are "All-In" with the program but know/add very little to a weight room setting. They may know the importance but have never themselves experienced it or it's just not something they're comfortable with. In my opinion I hired them to coach football not train kids in a weight room. My stance is just let them be great at the things they're good at. We use a calendar and utilize guys for coverage. If I am on vacation then someone signs up to help cover for that week. I try to keep people in their lanes. Here's what we do based on the coaches' strengths: HC (me) & OL: Winter/Spring/Summer Wt room and SAQ. ONE of us is ALWAYS there and in charge. Rare occasions that we both are unavailable. DC & OC: in charge of all 7v7 and football-specific work in the offseason- scheduling, contacting kids, organizing it etc. Both are HC-caliber guys and do a fantastic job...they basically tell me what's going on with this stuff. AsstDL coach and 9th grade HC: Support staff w/summer Wts/SAQ RB coach: Is knowledgeable and savvy with training, however he owns his own training business. So, he does some "extra work" sessions for our kids on his time. DL coach: Is knowledgeable and savvy as well. And he owns his own training facility (typically works with healthy lifestyle/non-athletes). I have zero expectation for him to be in attendance in the offseason as he sacrifices time and money to be available during our season. Volunteer coaches (non-paid positions) are welcome to attend anything but we are not counting on them being there. Many show up, but I never force them to. I'd never force a grown man to do something with compensation.
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Post by CoachMikeJudy on Jan 28, 2022 9:28:54 GMT -6
My son was one of the three ball boys on our team this past season. He's pretty quiet and reserved, but he also is a defender of all his buddies. Really just a quiet kid so I was kind of surprised by the following story but it definitely made me laugh. I am in the pressbox so I have no clue how everything actually went down. We are playing our rivals. They are state ranked and a very good football team. We aren't. We are at their place. My son son and two other coach's kids are the other two ball boys. My son has always been around a lockerroom or around a group of coaches or around a card game so I have always tried to talk to him about language and how words mean different things and have different impacts in different settings. I would tell him like when it's just the "dudes" you can say about anything but when it's not the guys, you need to be very respectful and use language appropriate to the setting. Even with all of this I have only heard him cuss once or twice and never directly to anyone. At half time he comes up to me frantically and says "Dad can I please tell the guy on the chain gang to go fuckk himself?" I was like "No...of course not!!! What the heck are you talking about? He told me that the guy just kept yelling at the kids on the sideline and then on a long first down the chain gang guy ran into to one of his buddies. I asked one of our guys on the field and he said that the guy kept yelling at the ball boys and some of our players for being in the way, but he hadn't seen him make physical contact with anyone. I still got a pretty good laugh out of my son politely asking that questions. haha. Sounds like your son goes to the same school of manners as mine lol. Had my kid on the sideline this year as a ball boy. Playing a rival whose fans are...well, a "tough crowd" to say the least. We are about to go into halftime and they heave it up, ball gets tipped in the air and a WR from the other hash catches the tipped ball and goes 60 for a TD. Mind you they are still losing by 14...As we're jogging off the field to the locker room one of their fans yells "how'd you like that, coach?" and before I could even blink my 12yr old screams "Eat $hit you old fart" COMPLETLEY SILENCED THE PEANUT GALLERY. I had to tell him to calm down and not to talk to these idiots. He said "I was going to tell him to go f*** himself but Nana (his grandmother) might hear me..." Sure was glad he didn't say what was really on his mind lol.
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Post by CoachMikeJudy on Jan 25, 2022 8:51:14 GMT -6
Curious for those who are still involved or might follow recruiting: has the transfer portal had any impact directly on one of your current HS kids/ kids you know about? I am not fully up to date, BUT I would think all of the movement has to impact the number of schollies available to give each year. Yes. '21 kid lost a FCS scholarship- they claimed it was a COVID extra-year issue and that they wouldn't have an opening but then turned around and got a transfer at my kid's position. I don't want to be dramatic but it has darn near killed recruiting for kids in our fringe state. We are not a hotbed, and the only kids it hasn't affected is the no-brainer power 5 kids here. Many of the G5 kids from our state are ending up PWO FCS or D2.
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Post by CoachMikeJudy on Dec 15, 2021 11:14:06 GMT -6
Hey coaches, with the world slowly coming back to normal I am looking forward to clinic season and looking to be a speaker this year: any advice on preparing the presentation? Things to expect? Good one liners for hecklers? I don't want to jinx you or worry you more... But I gotta tell you- I was speaking at a USA FB Clinic and about 10mins in the power went out on the right side of the room...where my mic/computer/projector was plugged in. So I did about 20-25mins of the clinic with no technology. Luckily, my computer was running on battery so I had the cliff-notes version to refer to. As soon as the power came on I started ripping through the most important things on the slides/videos I could muster...crisis SEMI-averted. I got more compliments on that presentation than any one I had given before. The room stayed full and I met with whomever wanted to meet over the weekend to go over the videos etc...in person as they wanted. I think the most important thing is to remember that you are serving your fellow coaches- nothing stands in the way of that. And do the best you can...and be you! Nothing to be nervous about lol
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Post by CoachMikeJudy on Dec 15, 2021 7:04:21 GMT -6
About the OP:
I don't like it. I've been down a similar road before as a young HC and it didn't read well to my intentions (I posted a "point system" in the offseason based on grades, attendance to events, playing other sports etc) and got raked over the coals because a particular kid was not pulling his weight and it was posted. I learned that if my priority was to get the kids moving in the right direction then calling them out only pushed the fringe players farther away. And we weren't good enough to be without the fringe players.
To the recruiting aspect: Yes, I am seeing an increase in recruiting happening between kid and coach without the "middle man" aka ME. I don't know what to make of it- I have a kid signing today and the coaches never directly contacted me. After following up, it's 100% real and commitible, and the program and the kid are both reputable and trusted. I'm not an ego guy nor a control-freak, but I worry that this trend could lead to some major miscommunications in the future.
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Post by CoachMikeJudy on Dec 2, 2021 8:36:05 GMT -6
After a slow start to the season in the non conference slate (mostly due to injuries and difficult schedule), we turned our season around and went undefeated in conference. We got a first round bye and mercy ruled our opponent in the 2nd round. In the quarterfinals we host the 2 time defending state champions. We dominated them the first two and a half quarters, up 29-7 with about 5 to go in the 3rd quarter. Then here they came. Bomb for a TD on 4th and 15 Pass Interference on 4th and 10 to extend drive, leads to TD Onside kick recovered. Opponents take lead with 27 seconds to go and beat us 30 to 29. Toughest game I have been apart of! Find the blessing within the curse! Underneath the rough exterior shell of this loss are lessons for you and your players. The only "real" loss would be not allowing this to actually make us better. And that battle will be fought in the future. Sounds like you just got ALL the motivation you'll need to power your offseason. HEAL UP AND START SHARPENING YOUR SWORDS. Good luck
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Post by CoachMikeJudy on Nov 3, 2021 11:25:32 GMT -6
My 12yr old son is very interested in "Daddy's Stuff." The other night he found my old Single Wing Book and wanted to see it in action. Good ol' youtube! First thing he said was "I'm running this when I coach. Can you run this out of a spread?"
TEAR. IN. EYE. lol
Hopefully I live to see him do it!
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Post by CoachMikeJudy on Nov 3, 2021 7:53:23 GMT -6
32-0 8mins left in the 2Q. The opposing coach (college teammate of mine) bangs a timeout and waives me to the middle of the field. We made a gentlemen's agreement to run the clock despite the 35pt lead in 2nd half rule. It was hotter than h@ll so I wasn't mad. That was the quickest game we ever played- won 56-0. Legitimately had JV in the entire 2nd half on both O and D...and defense scored 2x during the running clock. We ran 28 offensive plays in the game.
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Post by CoachMikeJudy on Oct 13, 2021 12:22:48 GMT -6
Regardless of one's personal opinion on "why" the young man is quitting we should handle it with grace. If a kid comes to me thinking about quitting I always give them a chance to change their mind- maybe end of the day or weekend etc. 9/10 times that kid quits anyway. But I think the least you can do is offer them the chance to really think about it before they commit (or decommit if you will).
My 2 cents is:
1. Deny him talking to the team- he can do that individually on his own time. 2. Contact all parties as you legally must when dealing with a child- parents, admin, counseling office etc. 3. Have an outgoing conversation wishing him the best and collect all equipment. 4. Remove him from all messaging apps/hudl. 5. Do not speak openly regarding the status of the now former player to anyone but those you contacted- his business stays his business. 6. Follow-up with those other parties.
I know not 100% of the members here work in education, but I would say this adheres pretty closely to what is standard practice in an educational setting. Whether we agree or not, scholastic sports are mostly considered "enrichment" activities that fall under the same umbrella as classroom education.
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Post by CoachMikeJudy on Oct 11, 2021 15:50:26 GMT -6
I'm a HC and DB coach. I have logged in (according to Hudl) 4h24m in the the last 7days. Here is the rest of my staff:
OC: 7h27m (Film Junkie) DC: 2h17m OL: 3h04m DL: 1h28m
This was:
-breaking down 4 opponent films -watching some of our own film from last 2 games -Quick meetings before/after practice watching practice clips -Our last game data entry
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Post by CoachMikeJudy on Oct 7, 2021 7:44:09 GMT -6
As a follow-up, I don't think there is a right or wrong answer here. Whatever is chosen IMO must match your philosophy, intent, and game conditions.
Side note- I don't think game (weather) conditions has affected our coin toss philosophy is my 8yrs as HC.
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Post by CoachMikeJudy on Oct 6, 2021 8:14:28 GMT -6
We always take the ball. If they win the toss we are probably 50/50 to onside it (depends on how good their offense is). We want the ball
Played a wing-t team last Friday who, when given the chance, will bleed the clock when tied or ahead. Line up, watch the back judge until his hand is up, and run the play.
We typically get 8-10 possessions offensively against normal team, but against them we get 6 with 2-3 possessions in the first half. Against a team like that a lot comes down to who scores first...when we do we are 5-0 historically against them. When scoring first these games aren't close and Friday wasn't any different (42-0). When we don't score first we are 3-2, and the games are super close.
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Post by CoachMikeJudy on Sept 30, 2021 12:15:48 GMT -6
A couple of ideas our staff uses:
1) Watch film - our DC does a fantastic job of taking the scout offense and watching opponent game film during the week so they know what all the lines mean on the scout card.
2) JV starters are the scout team - it is an expectation. If a kid can't start JV then he shouldn't be placed in front of a varsity kid in a team setting
3) Praise/Pride- love them up. Shout them out. If we get a shutout then the defense AND scout O get donuts the following week. We also have a scout team player award at our banquet.
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Post by CoachMikeJudy on Jun 15, 2021 10:55:23 GMT -6
For me: Fair doesn't mean Equal. Both in coaching and teaching. A human life is WAY too complex to categorize as such IMO. Hell, there are real-life examples...just look at our tax laws lol. I'd say the biggest factor of how long the leash is would be TRUST; plain and simple- has the kid EARNED the trust of the team to excuse them from this slip-up or not? ABILITY has nothing to do with it. We front-load the excuses like everyone else...i.e. 3 unexcused lates = suspension to give them opportunity to mess-up and learn from it. Some wise coach must have passed that on to many of us as I see that is pretty common. It works well for us- some things are out of their control and having those "freebies" help keep a kid from facing punishment. Having these built in REALLY helps IMO with feeling solid in your decision-making when dealing with habitual issues. Kinda hard for most situations for a kid to justify this being the 4th time he's been late without communicating with a coach. I am not fearful of being fired for not winning games- I have and will again likely bench/suspend a stud because he forced my hand. It's part of the accountability and growth process. Hell, I myself have been suspended from coaching a game for some (in my eyes) dumb reasons but it helps you grow. Egregious calls and my parental nature to defend my kids got the best of me that night My job as an educator is to work with the student to help them learn, whether it means giving extra time, a do-over on a quiz, excusing missed assignments OR evaluating each and every situation that arises to try to make a fair judgement and help the kid reach/surpass the bar. There are "deal-breakers" for me: constant or consistent disruption of the learning environment is the main one...we can't have that. But I will address it and work with the student as needed to help correct that and avoid those situations. Coaching is the same. My job as a coach is to create an equal-opportunity environment where a kid can benefit from being part of a team, evaluate their skill sets, make personnel decisions, hold kids accountable to our core values, and obviously teach them the what/why/how of playing the game. There are "deal-breakers" here as well: the main one being a lack of communication. It is SO important that we stress this almost ABOVE ALL ELSE! If a kid is going to be late, and they send a message to us prior to being late, then we deal with it. NO COMMUNICATION tells me that the team is not one of your priorities and is plainly disrespectful to your teammates. Both of these scenarios would be treated differently. So each situation that arises needs to be examined quickly to determine how we can keep this from happening again. RESTORATIVE process vs PUNITIVE process. It can get pretty complex really, but a person with a good moral compass and someone rooted in a realistic view of the world (i.e. they don't think that every kid has the same thoughts/beliefs/values as themselves) can thrive in this sort of decision making.
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Post by CoachMikeJudy on Apr 27, 2021 12:13:20 GMT -6
Our Riddell rep is pushing the belt length uniforms with elastic waist. I know a lot of the colleges are using this style. Anyone have them and they or the kids prefer them over the full length? thanks in advance Addidas jerseys, as described with the elastic waist. They're nice- don't ride up the belly too often either which suyrprised me. Keeps the kids from having to tuck in their undershirt and jersey, and they claim it's more comfortable. Now...the real dealbreakers for me are the beltless pants! Those are amazing- there is an inner drawstring. No more belts!
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Post by CoachMikeJudy on Apr 20, 2021 9:51:13 GMT -6
1. One who understands and cares about the best interests of our community 2. One that can set aside personal beliefs and use logic when decision making 3. One that understands the potential of a district to impact the overall well-being of the students
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