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Post by option1 on Feb 9, 2020 7:10:51 GMT -6
It is my understanding that the past few years player and coaches parents have been serving the pregame meal. I'm not sure how I feel about this... Thoughts, experiences?
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Post by wingtol on Feb 9, 2020 7:25:09 GMT -6
We get granola bars and fruit if it's a road game. If it's a home game, hope they have something at home to eat before they report.
Just roll with it if you have a pregame meal, who cares who serves it...
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Post by silkyice on Feb 9, 2020 8:50:27 GMT -6
We get granola bars and fruit if it's a road game. If it's a home game, hope they have something at home to eat before they report. Just roll with it if you have a pregame meal, who cares who serves it... Y’all only eat granola bars and fruit for a pregame meal? Let’s back up and define pregame meal. For us, it is a real meal at around 3 pm. We play at 7 pm. Surely y’all don’t eat lunch and then only granola bars and play 7-10 pm. |
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Post by wolverine55 on Feb 9, 2020 9:15:55 GMT -6
I would welcome it as it takes one more thing off your plate, horrible pun intended. None of our games are too long in terms of travel, but just far enough to where we don't really have time for a sit-down meal before road games. So, if it's a home game, local churches take turns hosting our pregame meal in which we eat at about 3:30 for a 7:30 home game. For road games, parents bring in sack lunches for the players to eat during the bus ride.
For home games, parents will also set-up a post-game meal in our school cafeteria. I'll admit that at times it seems like a lot--pregame and postgame meals--but in our district/community, we have a very high poverty rate so some of our players literally may not eat much after for the rest of the weekend after that post-meal. For road games, we have pizza delivered that we eat before boarding the bus to go home.
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Post by larrymoe on Feb 9, 2020 9:38:12 GMT -6
Just make sure they're not serving garbage. My first year as HC at the 7 year stop parents asked if they could get food for the kids for the pregame meal. We were on the road for a 2 hour trip and the parents seemed to have a brain about them so I agreed. Like wolverine said, one last thing for me to worry about.
They bought a crap ton of Casey's pizzas. Like, the greasiest, slowest digesting, crap (imo) pizza on earth. It was 95 degrees and humid. We had about 10 kids puke through the course of the game. From then on I had them check the meal choices before they bought them.
We eventually settled on deli sandwiches or PB&J. No more pizza or pasta.
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war79
Freshmen Member
Posts: 27
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Post by war79 on Feb 9, 2020 9:49:44 GMT -6
That is how we do it. Never even thought how it would be an issue. Our pre-game meal is pretty quick and painless.
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Post by bigmoot2 on Feb 9, 2020 10:16:07 GMT -6
i try to get local churches or groups to do it. I do let them know that the kids dont need a big heavy meal. If i have to take care of it...it's a 6inch sub from subway, bag of chips and a powerade
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Post by funkfriss on Feb 9, 2020 12:23:08 GMT -6
It is my understanding that the past few years player and coaches parents have been serving the pregame meal. I'm not sure how I feel about this... Thoughts, experiences? You’ll be surprised how supportive parents will be and they actually WANT your input on what to make. For us we keep it simple (Alfredo, small chicken breast and mashed potatoes, chicken noodle casserole, etc.). Stay away from large amounts of meats and fatty foods. We eat pre-game meals every Friday, home or away |
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Post by option1 on Feb 9, 2020 13:13:06 GMT -6
Last season there was an issue with a pushy parent. The stories are pretty bad. It got me thinking about distractions and having to step in at some point and that convo only making things worse. I've been at one place where the parents served. It was good. They served, sat at their own table to eat, cleaned up and left. Never a problem.
I haven't been in a program where the coach didn't either organize the food or serve whatever/whoever donated the meal. It's not hard to find local businesses to do ziti or chicken and yellow rice bread,salad and cookies. We provide the gatorade.
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Post by blb on Feb 9, 2020 13:40:12 GMT -6
You have an ATC?
Have him-her instruct parents on what to serve for Pre-Game meal.
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Post by bluboy on Feb 9, 2020 14:05:41 GMT -6
Parents serve our pre-game meal in school cafeteria. The senior parents do the work, but all parents are welcome to come and help. Kids get a small chicken breast, pasta or rice, salad, rolls, fruit and Gatorade. Parents do all the set up and clean up. We have not had any parent "overstep" boundaries while doing this.
Immediately following the meal, we have pre-game meeting for 1st and 2nd-teamers.
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Post by wingtol on Feb 9, 2020 18:05:13 GMT -6
We get granola bars and fruit if it's a road game. If it's a home game, hope they have something at home to eat before they report. Just roll with it if you have a pregame meal, who cares who serves it... Y’all only eat granola bars and fruit for a pregame meal? Let’s back up and define pregame meal. For us, it is a real meal at around 3 pm. We play at 7 pm. Surely y’all don’t eat lunch and then only granola bars and play 7-10 pm. Not everyone has the same resources to work with. Our boosters do feed them after the game but there is nothing pre game wise for us. None of the coaches are on campus and are coming right after work for practices and games. |
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Post by silkyice on Feb 9, 2020 18:45:47 GMT -6
Y’all only eat granola bars and fruit for a pregame meal? Let’s back up and define pregame meal. For us, it is a real meal at around 3 pm. We play at 7 pm. Surely y’all don’t eat lunch and then only granola bars and play 7-10 pm. Not everyone has the same resources to work with. Our boosters do feed them after the game but there is nothing pre game wise for us. None of the coaches are on campus and are coming right after work for practices and games. I understand lack of resources. But do the kids (or are the kids allowed to) get something to eat for a pre-game meal or is granola and fruit it? |
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Post by center on Feb 9, 2020 19:04:09 GMT -6
We just get a meal deal from Subway if possible for pregame. We usually only do this for road games when we leave shortly after school.
We assume kids will get something to eat on their own for home games. I know not every program can assume that will happen.
6 inch club, chip, cookie. We mix up own Gatorade. If you buy in bulk and on a regular basis they can give you a discount.
We sometimes order Subway for lower level home games that start early and don’t allow kids to get food before game. They usually go to concession stand after game if it is a double header.
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Post by KYCoach2331 on Feb 9, 2020 21:49:49 GMT -6
I’d love it if we could feed our kids before games. Most of our kids go and eat after school. The kids who don’t drive we provide sandwich stuff for- just wish we could afford an actual pregame meal for the entire team that way they wouldn’t leave the campus. Churches and parents help out with our Thursday meals. Maybe it helps maybe it doesn’t, but I’d like to keep them from accidents or whatever. If we had to show a movie before our meetings that would be fine.
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Post by fantom on Feb 10, 2020 9:59:34 GMT -6
It is my understanding that the past few years player and coaches parents have been serving the pregame meal. I'm not sure how I feel about this... Thoughts, experiences? At my last stop the parents did this and it was great. For Friday games, they provided a full meal Thursday night, then subs after school on Friday. The best were breakfast casseroles in the morning for Saturday games. They checked in ahead of time to make sure we knew what was coming. No chili on game day. |
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Post by coachcb on Feb 10, 2020 10:55:38 GMT -6
We just get a meal deal from Subway if possible for pregame. We usually only do this for road games when we leave shortly after school. We assume kids will get something to eat on their own for home games. I know not every program can assume that will happen. 6 inch club, chip, cookie. We mix up own Gatorade. If you buy in bulk and on a regular basis they can give you a discount. We sometimes order Subway for lower level home games that start early and don’t allow kids to get food before game. They usually go to concession stand after game if it is a double header.
Although we've never had an issue with parents providing a pre-game meal, this is what I personally prefer. It's quick, it's easy and we know the kids are getting quality pregame food.
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Post by stone65 on Feb 10, 2020 11:02:42 GMT -6
We have used this at most places I have been at. Has never been an issue.
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Post by newhope on Feb 10, 2020 11:04:12 GMT -6
It is my understanding that the past few years player and coaches parents have been serving the pregame meal. I'm not sure how I feel about this... Thoughts, experiences? Been doing it for years now. We give them guidelines on what it can be and they take care of all of it. Not something I have to deal with. No issues whatsoever---been doing it that way since 2005. |
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Post by wingtol on Feb 10, 2020 16:17:36 GMT -6
Not everyone has the same resources to work with. Our boosters do feed them after the game but there is nothing pre game wise for us. None of the coaches are on campus and are coming right after work for practices and games. I understand lack of resources. But do the kids (or are the kids allowed to) get something to eat for a pre-game meal or is granola and fruit it? For away games yeah that's all we provide pre-game. They get subs etc after away games. Most kids bring extra any ways. Home games we don't provide anything till after, boosters cook a variety of stuff or get pizza etc. |
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Post by Down 'n Out on Feb 11, 2020 10:29:48 GMT -6
I understand lack of resources. But do the kids (or are the kids allowed to) get something to eat for a pre-game meal or is granola and fruit it? For away games yeah that's all we provide pre-game. They get subs etc after away games. Most kids bring extra any ways. Home games we don't provide anything till after, boosters cook a variety of stuff or get pizza etc. Just curious, why dont the boosters cook before the game? It just seems backwards to me to have a snack before and a meal after. We have a group of parents(theyre truly blessings) that raise money(not exactly a booster club), they cook full meals before games and provide very nice snack bags for the players and coaches for away games(gatorade, a candy bar, fruit, beef jerkey, etc). |
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Post by fballcoachg on Feb 11, 2020 12:45:32 GMT -6
We have our team meal on Thursday, parents set it up and serve it. Despite some gems, we have not had issues at team meals.
We do not do team meals on Friday before the game. It was a change I brought in when we came here. There were issues in the past with heavy meals etc. plus the school I came from previously did meals Thursday nothing Friday so I stuck with it. We just give the kids a time to report before the game and roll. We do provide after game food at away games.
For transparency, I am in an affluent area, our kids go home and eat or get something brought to them. I prefer the Thursday meal bc it’s more relaxed without the game coming up. Allows a lighter mood and maybe some more diverse meal options.
When I was at a lower income school we had a local church that donated and served meals on Fridays. I stayed back and slept in the office while the HC and a few others took the kids, I can’t eat before games.
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jaydub66
Sophomore Member
Varsity D-Line Coach
Posts: 223 
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Post by jaydub66 on Feb 12, 2020 9:29:56 GMT -6
It is my understanding that the past few years player and coaches parents have been serving the pregame meal. I'm not sure how I feel about this... Thoughts, experiences? When I played in high school we did this. My mom ran it my senior year and it was probably the best year for team meals because we had suggestions for what food we wanted that week. One week would be tacos, the next week be burgers, etc. So we avoid the boring pasta every thursday, we mixed it up. It's a good way to keep the parents involved and have something the kids look forward to |
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Post by veerwego on Feb 14, 2020 9:28:40 GMT -6
When we got here and I was an asst, our pregame meals were like a 6 year-old's birthday party at McDonalds. One week, there were literally balloons and cake. Kids being silly and such. Different restaurants donated or we bought it sometimes. Moms handled the pickup, setup, serving, etc. The moms were completely in charge and didn't mean any harm, but treated like they were having the kids at their house and it was supposed to be fun for all.
When I got the job in year one, we would leave on a bus during football class/7th pd and go to a local steakhouse and have pre-game meal. That fell through for year two and it was taking up too much time, fighting traffic to get back to school.
This past year we had a local restaurant sign on as a home game sponsor. That is worth $2500. So they feed us for free 5 times a $400/meal. And they feed all of our golfers at our golf tournament dinner. We buy the other 5 meals from them. They deliver and I have 2 moms that set up and clean up. Kids sit in their small groups (tribes that we assign/year round accountability teams) and talk a little, but it is much better than before.
We are eating at about 3:15 for 7:30 kickoffs. We have grilled chicken sandwiches or turkey wraps with rice and salad.
We also have a grocery store right beside the school that gives us bananas for Thur after practice, pre-game meal, and halftime (plus some nutri-grain and granola bars). We hang their banner up in the stadium with the others.
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CoachC
Freshmen Member
Posts: 56
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Post by CoachC on Feb 14, 2020 12:13:50 GMT -6
Parents prepare our meals or get food donated. Usually a light pasta dish or deli sandwiches. I have the seniors actually serve the food to the team as we talk a lot about servant leadership.
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ssm
Freshmen Member
Posts: 72
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Post by ssm on Feb 14, 2020 19:37:45 GMT -6
We had local churches do ours this past season. At another school, the parents provided it. Just depends on what resources you have at your disposal.
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Post by option1st on Feb 14, 2020 21:07:52 GMT -6
I feel fortunate now. Even for 7:30 home games our kids never leave the school. I’m in a rural/small town area but our community and parents support our sports programs.
At home, either a church, a local business or a group of parents provide an after school meal for the kids.
On the road, our parent booster club makes sure the kids eat on the way and usually have a good snack for them for the ride home.
Secondly and probably the second issue wrapped up in this, if you can keep your kids from ever leaving campus at 3pm until kickoff, that is a major win. A lot of issues are avoided in that
Insert story of: kids showing up to pregame stoned / stud RB late cause he’s taking advantage of GF parents not getting home from work til 5:30 / LB kicks two soccer kids ass at local strip mall / Billy Bob and step dad’s fire ball / TE and Safety come in sweaty after 2 hours of street ball at the park.
Lord god, find a way to keep your kids in the building if in anyway possible.
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Post by 606hoss on Feb 17, 2020 9:35:48 GMT -6
Parents and local churches handle ours. On the rare occasion we have to leave school early we ask a local business to sponsor the meal on the road.
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Post by bulldogsdc on Feb 18, 2020 10:12:05 GMT -6
I don't know who pays for it but our cafeteria ladies make choice of Hamburger Steak or Baked BBQ Chicken breast, Green Beans, Baked Potato with Butter and Sour Cream, Texas Toast, Ice Cream Cup (Choc., Van or Straw) and Lemonade or Water.
Rice Crispy treats, Fruit Gummy snacks and Gatorades at half time.
After the game a booster organization will get us dinner (Chic Fil a, Burgers, BoJangles etc.) from a local restaurant when we are home or close by or Pizza for far away road games.
Coaches throw in $ for Pizza to work into the night.
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Post by paydirt18 on Feb 18, 2020 11:51:37 GMT -6
Our team meal is the night before the game. Usually my wife and the player parents all work it out and get it organized. For that meal it usually is a pasta, bread, water, and bananas. No dessert unless they won the previous week - but then I have to know what it is prior to serving - I am funny like that.
Anyway - it is at that time that we talk to our kids. We give individual and team awards out from previous week, give opportunity for seniors to speak (if they want to) and then get them on their way.
On Fridays we will have a "snack table" set up in the locker room that the moms prepare - as most kids will go home after school before being required to be back at a certain time.
For this school, this was my first year here. The kids reacted well to it and the parents loved it.
It is just another way to promote team unity, etc.
If you are not doing something like this now, I would strongly encourage you to think about how you can - put your own spin on it - I think over the years it has created some great moments.
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