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Post by touchdownmaker on Feb 17, 2009 13:25:14 GMT -6
How do you personally handle it when you have a player or a couple of players who repeatedly brain fart their assignments. Suppose your guys are expected to cut on the backside of zone but the do it playside? Suppose they are expected to down block but they turn a man outside? Suppose a tightend or split end runs a post when hes got a corner. Kids just doing silly brain fart mistakes repeatedly.
Benching them might be an option but what else???
Can you just assume the playbook is too heavy??
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Tampa
Sophomore Member
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Post by Tampa on Feb 17, 2009 13:33:17 GMT -6
Do you use word-association calls for the lineman? Like "Denver" for a down-block, or "Texas" for Trap, "Seattle" for scoop. I'm just thinking of something that they can use to associate with the assignment. Maybe give them a mental picture, kind of like the old put the hole # on the lineman's butt type of thing.
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Post by jgordon1 on Feb 17, 2009 13:38:02 GMT -6
how many kids are making the mistake,. Is the same mistake? when is the mistake happening. I think only you can decide if it is a system thing. If everyone is doing okay try teaching it a different way as Tampa alludes too. If he still can't get it... i think you need to bench him with an expalnation. look, we can't rely on you to do what we need, although XX is not as good as you physically.. we can not have mental breakdowns
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moose18
Junior Member
"If it didn't matter who won or lost, they wouldn't keep score"
Posts: 286
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Post by moose18 on Feb 17, 2009 13:51:26 GMT -6
They may not understand why each particular assignment is crucial to the success of the play. They might think "I have to block this guy, who cares if I cut him or scoop him, I still blocked my guy." I dealt with that situation once. Explain the whole scheme to them and why each technique is used in different scenarios. They might not get the big picture.
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Post by touchdownmaker on Feb 17, 2009 14:45:52 GMT -6
Well, truthfully I had one player, a senior who made 6 mental errors in our final game. I was ready to sit the kid down but knowing that it was his final game I let him have it pretty good for lack of concentration because these are plays we run day in and day out all year. we very seriously hadnt added or changed anything since the second week. we were mostly well oiled until that youngster made those silly ones. We scored a bunch of points but it seemed like he was helping the other guys in too many ways.
just curious if anyone else had ever been through something like that and how you might have handled it. I never had middle school or freshmen kids make that many errors in a game. One or two I can see...but six? The kid did make a play later in the game with a big interception so I am glad we stuck with him and I talked to him after the game about reaming him out pretty good, loud enough for the whole stadium to hear. Just felt like he wasnt with us that night. If we would have lost there is no doubt everyone would have scapegoated the kid.
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Post by jpdaley25 on Feb 17, 2009 15:10:23 GMT -6
Put it on a wrist band and then they don't have any excuse. If they screw it up then, use the "run to learn" technique.
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Post by Coach Huey on Feb 17, 2009 16:00:23 GMT -6
we've had players that 'knew' their assignments as well as any ... on the board, in a classroom setting, in a walk-through, etc. but, they would often bust when it was a game. why? who knows, really. we often refer to it as a player doesn't "think fast" ... meaning, he has problem processing what is needed vs the situation at quick enough speed and ends up doing the first thing that comes to mind, or simply freezing up and doing nothing.
how do you really get them past this? reps, i guess ... but practice reps aren't fast enough.
maybe it's a matter of they have too many outside things creeping into their minds during the game action and can't sort through it all so even though they 'know' what to do, the time frame doesn't allow their brain to 'get to it' in time to execute.
one of our 'smartest' players (on the board, in meetings, etc.) has the most busts during a game. it's frustrating because he appears to get it but the results don't show it. somewhat like a student in class that does well on daily assignments, class discussions, etc. then bombs the test.
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Post by bleefb on Feb 17, 2009 16:05:19 GMT -6
(one of our 'smartest' players (on the board, in meetings, etc.) has the most busts during a game. it's frustrating because he appears to get it but the results don't show it. somewhat like a student in class that does well on daily assignments, class discussions, etc. then bombs the test.)
We call this "analysis/paralysis" and have dealt with it many times. The super smart kid often can't just react and play the game.
Give me a team full of "B" students!!
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Deleted
Deleted Member
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Post by Deleted on Feb 17, 2009 16:26:48 GMT -6
Sometimes reps are the answers.
Sometimes the bench is the answer.
I'd say frequency of the error is the answer. If the guy screws up 1/4 of the time, then you are getting 75% out of the guy IF he physically does what he should. In that regard, if the guy is messing up too much, find another guy.
Yeah, I can say that because we have a lot of kids in our program, but if the scheme, the reps, and the coaching are all in place, then you have to put him somewhere else.
For us, we subtract points and stickers if a guy blows assignments. You lose 1 sticker for every mental error. So if a guy earned 3 stickers one week and had 3 mental errors, then congratulations, you broke even! But we're not into breaking even.
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Post by touchdownmaker on Feb 17, 2009 16:37:46 GMT -6
I like that with the stickers. I have one or two mavericks who I thought were "messing up" because they really wanted to do their own thing.
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Post by coachcb on Feb 17, 2009 18:07:11 GMT -6
If they understand their assignments during film, chalk, and practice, but are blowing them in games, then I would venture to say the athlete is "gun-shy" when it comes to games. The kid might be amped up a little too high and nervous, causing him to focus on what NOT TO DO, versus WHAT TO DO. I used to be a little "louder" coach than I am now; I never berated players or treated them poorly, but if was having to repeat myself often with them, they knew I wasn't happy with them. I had an OT one year who was an outstanding athlete (D1AA caliber); he was 6'5'' 250lbs and had outstanding speed. But, he really struggles with game time anxiety; he knew his assignments during practice, blew them during games. I realized at one point that I was contributing to it in a lot of ways; I'd get on him during film sessions and in games. I was frustrated that he was the "smartest kid" on the practice field and the "dumbest kid" on the game field. I finally sat him down 3 games in and calmly asked him what was going on- "I'm nervous during the games, and when I screw up, I know I'm going to get it and that makes me more nervous." From that point on, I never raised my voice with him once, unless he was showing me a lack of effort, which happened rarely. He got a lot better during games, had about half as many blown assignments and that could've been caused by my own sh-tty coaching too.  |
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Post by coachcathey on Feb 17, 2009 22:29:23 GMT -6
There always seem to be a few that are scared of the "lights". Usually it was the young kids having the most trouble then if it was the older kids, they were just usually playing selfish ball.
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Post by coachweav88 on Feb 17, 2009 22:53:52 GMT -6
We had kids like that this year. One player in particular I don't think that football is that important to him. I think if he really "wants" to do his assigment correctly, he could. He just doesn't feel like doing it. Also with him, i noticed that the better team we played, the more assignments were missed. When he did his assignments the way he was coached, he usually had great games. I don't see why he never put 2 and 2 together
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Post by tiger46 on Feb 18, 2009 1:51:18 GMT -6
Coach, I know there are a lot of variables that are unmentioned such as how plays are called, number of pass plays your team runs, etc... So, I'm not sure if this will help you. Also, take into account that I coach youth (9-10) football. My players usually come to me not knowing a thing about football. I literally have to start them from a walk. I accompany them along the position assignment and, at the same time, explain the finer points of the assignment.
For pass routes, I have to walk with them while repeating the name of the route.
Basically, your player(s) can verbally repeat what corner and post routes are if you've already taught those routes to them. They probably can draw it up on a chalk board, also. But, during games, they may be too excited or distracted to execute- sort of a case of analysis/paralysis. With my bobbleheads, I sometimes take a military training approach to burning their assignments into their heads. I try to match muscle memory to verbal and cognitive memory.
Example:
I line the player up exactly where he should be. I don't need the entire offense. I just use a tackle dummy, a cone, a rock(we ain't got a lot of money in our youth program) or, whatever, as a frame of reference.
Me: What's the name of this play?
Player: 18 Sweep Pass!
Me: What do you do on 18 Sweep Pass?
Player: I run an angle route!
Me: Demonstrate an angle route.
Player runs route at speed. Player trots back.
(I correct anything that is wrong. Start over from the top. Once all is correct, we go to the next step.)
Me: Good. On the snap, execute 18 Sweep Pass.
Me: Set! Hit!
Run the play. Player trots back.
Me: What was the name of the play we just ran?
Player: 18 Sweep Pass!
Me: What do you do on 18 Sweep Pass?
Player: I run an angle route!
Me: Demonstrate an angle route.
Player executes route at speed. Player trots back.
Me: Good. Let's run 18 Sweep Pass. What do you do on 18 Sweep Pass?
Player: I run an angle route!
Me: Good. On the snap, execute 18 Sweep Pass.
Run play at speed.
I start speeding up the process. I repeat it as many times as I think it's needed. After awhile, I remove the route questioning phase. I just say, "What play are we running?
Player: '18 Sweep Pass!'
Me: Good. On the snap, execute 18 Sweep Pass.
Again, I start speeding up the process. I then remove all questioning until I have this:
Me: '18 Sweep Pass! Set! Hit!
Player executes corner route.
I do make sure the routes are ran to perfection. An angle route for us is when our WB runs a 45 degree angle pass route. He can't go vertical and he can't fire too flat to the line. I've sometimes put tackle dummies, asst. coaches or, other players in the WB's way. If a WB messes up a route, I don't count it. I don't throw the ball. I explain what was incorrect and we start at the top. There is no punishment.
I know it seems time-consuming. But, it actually has saved us a lot of time with teaching routes and other position assignments. Also, they tend to execute those assignments well because they associate the words with actions.
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Post by touchdownmaker on Feb 18, 2009 7:14:55 GMT -6
I think a kid who knows assignments and who did it all year and did it all year in games and practices had it down.-----but then in the last game just isnt with us--- must have had something else going on. not sure. In any case----Just wanted to hear what you all have done in a similar situation. I probably should have sat the kid - was a hard call as our backup is pretty unskilled.
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