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Post by td4tc on Nov 1, 2013 7:35:00 GMT -6
Got lucky with another fine group of kids this year and have a very good team again heading deep into playoffs undefeated.
Really struggling with playing a full game of football though. They seem to be reading the press and think they are entitled somehow and that they can turn it on and turn it off whenever they want. Not really cocky (great group of kids) , more complacent is the word to describe it. I think there was a quote from Pat Riley somewhere about this . Getting a bad feeling that we are going to get caught with some untimely turnovers and not be able to recover. And then we are going to say "what just happened". They say if you see it on film you are either coaching it or letting it happen but we haven't been able to coach this out of them.
As a staff we have said all the right things about "one play at a time" and play "sixty minutes" till we are blue in the face. We have tried to keep practices aggressive and competitive. It's almost tougher to coach this team than a team with lesser skill and talent as crazy as that sounds. Any other tricks you have with a team like this to keep them focused ??
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Post by coachwoodall on Nov 1, 2013 8:46:33 GMT -6
Often with talented teams, the talent ends where the bench begins. Do you have competitive practices between the starters and the scouts? If you're like most, then you need to create a sense of 'competing against yourself'
Figure out a way to 'grade' each drill, and it can be BS grades. If a kid is doing less than he did yesterday, then consequence his arse.
IE:
We do a speed and agility circuit to start each practice. Each group has about 10-12 kids in it, and the groups stay the same. I do the 20 yard shuttle. I stand on the start finish line and I call out the winner each time, and I usually have a comment to correspond with that outcome positive or negative. If the group loafs, then we do it again. We don't rotate until I am satisfied. If it gets to dead horse stage, that whole group has ED.
or
I do the angle tackle with my tackle station. If I see a kid take a bad angle, or miss that type of tackle, I'm yelling, "Francis, that is my tackle station!!" and the next time he comes through, I make sure he gets it right.
It really is just the little things. We're battling the same issue here. Great athletes, they just don't realize that. We just happy the scout team center gets the snap off, but that is not a reflection of how good the NG really is when he sacks the QB trying to hand off the iso.
I try real hard to get the kids to actually not think about the competitive nature of the game when we are doing fundamental work. It is that athlete vs. his technique, not a scout teamer, dummey, etc...
We do 1-1 drills every week vs the WRs, but I constantly tell my Ss, focus on the belly button and nothing else, stay balanced, don't take the first move, etc....
Marcus Allen used to talk about his days at USC running the old 'student body right', even when they were working vs on air the RBs were expected to sprint the 40 yards to the end zone or they risked losing playing time.
Decide what you want to be a richard about during the week.
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Post by dubber on Nov 1, 2013 9:17:35 GMT -6
We have a sticker goal of winning every quarter.
Kids do that, they get a helmet sticker.
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Post by gibbs72 on Nov 9, 2013 21:00:34 GMT -6
I agree with the idea of increasing competition. We try to follow the SPARQ model: if you can measure it, you can improve it. Find a grade or some numerical value and coach for improvement.
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Post by gamedaymusings on Dec 2, 2013 1:06:35 GMT -6
Change their routine. Throw in a drill that's fresh, fun, and challenging during one of your practices. One of my favorites is "Return King".
Pick one return player from each position group and have them lineup in the endzone.
Remaining players make 3 lines at the 50 yd line. (if you have enough players, run this on both sides of the field.
Make sure the return man goes against 3 cover guys from a corresponding position. i.e. OL vs DL, LB vs RB/QB, DB vs WR
On the whistle, return man throws ball up into the air simulating a kickoff. Cover men go.
If two cover men two-hand touch the returner before 50 yd line, cover team wins. If not, return team wins.
Starting formation would look something like this:
DL__________DL__________DL
LB__________LB__________LB
DB_________DB__________DB
OL__________OL__________OL
RB__________QB__________RB
WR_________WR__________WR------------>50yd line
__________DB---------------------->Goal line
__________LB
__________DL
__________WR
__________RB
__________OL
Cover relationship, contain, pursuit for the cover team.
Jukes, acceleration, quickness for the return team.
And conditioning for all.
WIN WIN WIN!
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Post by s73 on Dec 2, 2013 6:57:15 GMT -6
I think complacency is dangerous & often times the staff is as guilty as the kids. This was true for me this season. On the outside I think few people could tell a difference between last season (very successful) and this season in terms of my coaching. But the fact of the matter was I did a poor job of correcting the little things. As a result, we had a very poor season and lost 3 games by a total of 11 points.
I would just check to see if you are holding the kids accountable on the "little things". Are jumping jacks loud, is the huddle tight and orderly, when you ask a kid to do something is he doing 100% the way you want it or 90%? That's what killed us this year was I did not correct the little things. Have already been in the works of correcting this myself.
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Post by gdn56 on Dec 2, 2013 11:09:00 GMT -6
I think complacency is dangerous & often times the staff is as guilty as the kids. This was true for me this season. On the outside I think few people could tell a difference between last season (very successful) and this season in terms of my coaching. But the fact of the matter was I did a poor job of correcting the little things. As a result, we had a very poor season and lost 3 games by a total of 11 points. I would just check to see if you are holding the kids accountable on the "little things". Are jumping jacks loud, is the huddle tight and orderly, when you ask a kid to do something is he doing 100% the way you want it or 90%? That's what killed us this year was I did not correct the little things. Have already been in the works of correcting this myself. There should be an amen button here. If kids are turning it off and on during the games, they are doing the same at other points, and coaches have faded in their dedication to the little things it takes to be successful. Pay attention to what your guys are coaching day in day out, rep to rep. Commit to day one technique. When you are tired, not feeling it, not emotionally into it, your technique is what carries you. |
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