Thursday, June 19, 2008

Stalk Block

The MAJOR point of emphasis for the WR's was Stalk Blocking, so here goes:
  1. After bursting off the L.O.S. the WR needs to breakdown about 4-yds. from the DB
  2. The WR must NEVER lose ground or he will get his knees rolled up by onrushing players and be gone for the season/career
  3. The WR keeps his shoulders square, do NOT turn sideways and "open the gate" for the DB to make the play easily on the ball carrier. The WR must be a wall
  4. Once the WR locks his hands onto the DB he must Drive the DB in/out or back, etc.
  5. Lastly, it is Good to reward players for solid stalk blocking and POINT it out on film study with group.

Sunday, June 15, 2008

Keys to running a summer football camp

The camp at Evangel is ran pretty much the same way as some have described. We get businesses to help sponsor the costs of the camp. To the coach having his first camp, these are some of the details that you will need to get done before even all the kids arrive.
  1. 1. Get camp insurance before all the kids arrive.
  2. 2. Paint your fields.
  3. 3. Make sure you have enough footballs that will fit younger hands and footballs that will fit middle school hands. Try to number your footballs and assign a coach of that position those footballs so you can get them back after camp to use the following year.
  4. 4. Make sure all of your lines are painted or if you are using your practice fields, do like we have done in the past, diesel the lines two or three days before.
  5. 5. Since our practice fields are away from our bathrooms we rent portable bathrooms that are close by.
  6. 6. We make sure we have a concession stand nearby for parents that are there to watch their kids learn.
  7. 7. Make sure you have enough water stations with the jugs filled so noone will dehydrate.
  8. 8. Have a fulltime person that does nothing but fill the water jugs up.
  9. 9. Get your high school players to help out so as you are teaching , they are your demonstators. Give those high school kids a camp t-shirt for helping.
  10. 10. Order t-shirts for the kids. Every kid gets a t-shirt that comes to our camp. Since we have businesses that help sponsor, those that give $500 or more, we give a t-shirt to that business. We also have plenty of advertising with our camp brochures and varsity programs for folks that help pay for the camp. Their name is also announced at all home games.
  11. 11. Have a precamp meeting a couple days before the camp to clear the air about assignments of each coach doing his postion.
  12. 12. Almost forgot this, order enough cups for the kids to drink out of, we had a local fast food chain buy enough cups in exchange for the advertising that they get on friday nights during the season.
  13. 13. Have a backup plan in case of nasty weather. Are you going to have a makeup day or do you let it be known that you will take them to the gym or let it be known that day is lost because of the weather.
  14. 14. At the beginning, have everyone sit togther and introduce your staff that will be dong the coaching for the camp.
  15. 15. Have your coaches meet after each day to make sure that there were no problems during the camp, if their was a problem, find a way to fix it if possible that day so you can be prepared the next day.
  16. 16. Sometimes during the camp we have parents that drop their kids off while they go do whatever they have planned while their child is at camp, MAKE SURE YOU HAVE A CELL PHONE NUMBER in case of emergency. You never want a injury but sometimes things happen.
  17. 17. Personally this is my feeling on a camp for K-5 even though our camp is K-8. Young kids have trouble with their attention span for long periods of time, they get hot and thiristy so you have to keep it fun for them. We never go over 2 hours with them as we hold our camp from 5:30 til 8. The first day it starts at 5 for preregistration. Make sure you are equipped in case you have a lot of walkups which we did last year which was nearly a 100 kids. Be prepared to order extra t-shirts and more concession items.

Wednesday, June 11, 2008

WARP SPEED LIGHTNING FAST FOOTBALL

Set up teams with 5-8 kids per team. Set up as many 25x75 yard fields as you need to have each team involved in a game.

The equipment needs are cones for each corner of the field and a football for each game, wrist bands, pinnies or skull caps to identify teams.

The game is played with one team starting with the football at its own goal line. The ball must be passed or pitched to start the "play"- any player who catches the ball MAY RUN UNTIL TAGGED.

When a player is tagged he is "frozen" and cannot run, he must get rid of the ball in 5 seconds or less. Failure to pass or pitch the ball in that time results in a turnover at that spot.

The player passes or pitches to a teammate, if the ball is caught then the new carrier can run until tagged.

If the ball is intercepted the defender may run toward the endzone until tagged. If the pass were dropped or poorly thrown for an incompletion, it is a TURNOVER and the other team starts with a pass or pitch from the new spot.

A PLAYER MAY NEVER PICK THE BALL UP OFF OF THE GROUND AND RUN WITH IT.

YOU CAN ONLY RUN AFTER A CATCH!

Tagging rather than shoving is a key part to the game to prevent injuries, players are coached to be HONEST and respect the "I got you" call from the tagger.

When playing the game with both boys and girls mixed we give the girls two points for a score while the boys earn just one, this prevents "ball hogging" by the boys.

AFTER A SCORE THE SCORING PLAYER PLACES THE BALL DOWN ON THE GOAL LINE AND THE OTHER TEAM STARTS THEIR POSESSION FROM THAT SPOT WITH A PITCH OR PASS.

THERE ARE NO KICKOFFS.

Trust me when I tell you that this game is lightning fast and involves throwing, catching, covering, running in the open field as well as in traffic.

Team work and effort/hustle is the key because the transition from offense to defense is lightning fast.

People I Hate! by Jim Wendler

You know who I hate? People that say things like "I would have played football but my coach hated me", or "I would have been great but my coach sucked."

Let me give you some insight into coaching. I have been around a million coaches in my lifetime - some were better than others, but if I didn't play it was my fault. It was because I simply wasn't good enough, end of story.

Now let me respond to what many of these idiots often say to others when they just aren't good enough.

"The coaches' son was the quarterback, so they never gave me a shot."

Response: You sucked.

"My coach hated me so I quit."

Response: You really sucked. You sucked so bad that you quit and didn't bother to go to another school to play. Holy crap, did you suck.

"Coach wanted me to play defensive end, but I am a middle linebacker."

Response: Oh, no…I'm vomiting due to your suckiness. Please help me! You sucked so bad that you couldn't play either position. End the misery and start eating salmonella.

"I'm a running quarterback and they wanted me to throw the ball."

Response: You suck at everything you do. You play QB and you can't throw the ball? And you are so bad at running ball that they weren't even going to attempt to change the offense. You suck twice.

"I'm a defensive player, you know…REAL AGGRESSIVE, but they wanted me to play offense, so I quit."

Response: Kick me in the crouch and give me a sand enema! Only then will the pain of those words stop hurting me! You are the dumbest person alive and we can only hope that you never reproduce.

"My son was an awesome football player. His coaches screwed him up."

Response: Not only do you suck as a parent, but your kid sucks too! This is not that surprising though. The best part is that you are making excuses for your poor excuse of an athlete. Please end the circle of stupidity!

Let me let all of you in on a little secret: IF YOU DON'T PLAY IT'S YOUR FAULT! And also, you suck.

Wednesday, June 4, 2008

What I know about Life

  • I know I'm a work in progress and there will always be a gap between who I am and who I want to be.
  • I know I don't have to be sick to get better, and every day brings opportunities to improve my life and my character.
  • I know it's easier to talk about integrity than to live it, and the true test is my willingness to do the right thing even when it costs more than I want to pay.
  • I know character is more important than competence.
  • I know it takes years to build up trust and only seconds to destroy it.
  • I know I often judge myself by my best intentions and most noble acts, but I'll be judged by my last worst act.
  • I know I can't control what will happen to me, but I have a lot to say about what happens in me.
  • I know pain is inevitable, but suffering is optional.
  • I know attitudes, both good and bad, are contagious.
  • I know winning is more than coming in first, and there's no real victory without honor.
  • I know it takes a conscientious effort to be kind, but kindness changes lives.
  • I know neither gratitude nor forgiveness comes naturally; both often require acts of will.
  • I know real success is being significant.
  • I know happiness is deeper and more enduring than either pleasure or fun, and I'm generally as happy as I'm willing to be.
  • I know the surest road to happiness is good relationships, and the best way to have good relationships is to be a good person.

EDDs for O Line

  1. Stance and start - working on stance, shifting weight, not false stepping ect.
  2. Angle boards - working on base of OL waddling down angle boards
  3. zig zag pass pro - series of 6 cones working on redirecting from power and angle kicks (OL must also keep their shoulders square while doing this progression while moving @ proper angles)
  4. Use pipes (foam skinny pads or a stick) to work on 1 st step 2nd step in run and pass (give them steps to work on each day) - want to work on width w/ all steps in the run and pass game
  5. Drill the first part of pass protection w/ OL by having them stop at the punch (working on keep the relationship w/ DL by not overkicking)

Tuesday, June 3, 2008

Books for you and your athlete's summer reading

7 Sensational Summer Reads

Looking for some great reads this summer that will help you and your team go to the next level?

Sure there are some coaches books out there including recent ones by Avery Johnson, Terry Francona, and one about Bo Schembechler. You can certainly learn a lot from successful coaches at the elite levels of the game.

However, as you compile your summer reading list, I wanted to share some particularly interesting and mind-stretching books that are a bit off the well-worn path of coaches books. These books are sure to help you tackle some of the challenges you have as a coach/leader - but do so in an non-traditional way that takes advantage of some different, yet related fields of psychology, philosophy, human resources, management, and history.




1. A NATION OF WIMPS by Hara Marano

Trying to figure out how to effectively coach your batch of fragile, coddled, and "over-parented" student-athletes?

In book with a title that any coach can't help but love - A Nation of Wimps - Psychology Today editor-in-chief Hara Marano offers some great insights on why today's teenagers and young adults are struggling to adapt to the normal bumps of sports, school, and society in general.

She attributes the problem to the rise of harmful parenting styles including the helicopter parent and snowplow parent - that in actuality make it tougher on today's kids to overcome adversity.

In essence, today's hyper-involved, overprotective parents are doing so much for their children that they are unwittingly depriving them of developing the critical skills of mental toughness, overcoming adversity, problem-solving, conflict management, and leadership - the very skills that we as coaches, teachers, administrators, and parents know are so critical to success in athletics, and more importantly, life in general. If you too are concerned about where this is all going, sprint to get a copy of this book!




2. TOPGRADING by Bradford Smart

Looking to take your recruiting to a whole new level?

If so then Topgrading is definitely worth your investment in terms of time and money. The book takes an in depth look at the process of how to attract, recruit, screen, sign, and retain the absolute best talent for your team.

The book is based on the Topgrading system that General Electric and other top companies use to hire A players, develop B players, and eliminate C players.

College coaches especially will find some highly practical and effective suggestions that can easily be applied to getting the right talent and people in the recruiting process. This is definitely one that you better hope your competition doesn't read before you do.

For more info on Topgrading in recuiting, see our previous article called 7 Steps to Avoid the Selection/Recruiting Mistakes that Drive You Crazy and Devastate Your Program at:

http://www.championshipcoachesnetwork.com/public/359.cfm




3. LEADERSHIP GOLD by John C. Maxwell

Prolific leadership author John Maxwell has churned out yet another great book in Leadership Gold. Maxwell inventories and expounds on the critical leadership lessons he has learned over the past 60 years of his life as a pastor and leadership guru.

His 26 chapters include; Defining Moments Define Your Leadership, Don't Send Your Ducks to Eagle School, and Few Leaders are Successful Unless a Lot of People Want Them to Be. As usual, the principles he shares are highly applicable to the sports world and life in general.

If you enjoyed Maxwell's previous works, you'll love this one too!


4. MAKE THE IMPOSSIBLE POSSIBLE by Bill Strickland

The title alone captures what many coaches try to do with their teams. Recommended and given to me by the great people at Pitt Athletics, this book traces the inspiring story of one man's vision to make a huge difference despite growing up in poverty in inner-city Pittsburgh.

Author Bill Strickland has defied the odds and shares his amazing story of how he developed one of the most impressive high schools and job training centers in the world. Strickland's mission has contributed to uplifting the lives of many -- and his programs are used as models for developing similar educational programs around the world. If you are looking for some great inspiration on how to make a difference against all odds, this is the book for you.


5. THE 8th HABIT by Stephen Covey

In the 8th Habit, author Stephen Covey writes, "Deep within each one of us there is an inner longing to live a life of greatness and contribution - to really matter, to really make a difference... All of us can consciously decide to leave behind a life of mediocrity and to live a life of greatness - at home, at work and in the community."

This book encourages us to find, connect with, and pursue our passion and purpose in life -- whether we are a recent college graduate or an adult taking inventory of our life at middle age. The book is a fabulous teacher and reminder of the skills, tools, and insights we need to develop ourselves personally and professionally.





6. THE FOUNDING FATHERS ON LEADERSHIP by Donald T. Philips

In honor of our history buffs and the upcoming 4th of July holiday, another book I recommend is the Founding Fathers on Leadership. Not only will the book give you a great in-depth look at the against all odds, improbable birth of the United States. It examines the critical leadership skills of George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, Ben Franklin, Paul Revere, and others that were imperative to pull the whole thing off.

Through historical, engaging, real-life stories, the author brings these leadership lessons to life so that we can see how important they were to the success of the nation. He also does a great job of summarizing the leadership principles as bullet points at the end of each chapter so that people centuries later can still apply their lessons.


7. THE LAST LECTURE by Randy Pausch

If you haven't already seen it online, this book captures the last lecture given by Carnegie Mellon professor Randy Pausch. It is really Pausch's final lecture because he has pancreatic cancer and has been given less than a year to live.

One of the many lessons he touches on was what he learned from his football coach. Your coaches are the people who care about you enough to provide you with feedback when you are not doing well -- because they have confidence that you can do it right. Even though he didn't make the NFL, he says he got many things from playing sports that are much more valuable.

Carve out an hour and 16 minutes of your time this summer and watch the lecture online if you haven't already seen it. You can find it at:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ji5_MqicxSo


As John F. Kennedy once said, "Leadership and learning are indispensable to each other." Like you emphasize with your athletes, take advantage of your summer and invest the time to get better by reading. Talk with the fellow coaches at your school and select one of the seven books to discuss as an informal Book Club. Set a date in mid-August before school starts and get together to share your insights and lessons. You are not only investing in yourself, but more importantly, you are investing in your team.



8 Great Books to Share and Discuss with Your Athletes

Here are 8 great books to use with your team:


1. MIND GYM by Gary Mack

Mind Gym offers a lot of great peak performance wisdom in a short and highly manageable format. It includes several stories of professional athletes that players of all ages can relate to. It is a great resource to read as a team and the one I recommend most often when you are looking to help your athletes master the mental game.


2. IN PURSUIT OF EXCELLENCE by Terry Orlick

If you are looking for excellence from your athletes, Canadian mental training consultant Terry Orlick's book will show your athletes how to achieve it. The book provides a very practical plan for developing areas like mental toughness, controlling distractions, and developing consistency through pre-performance routines.


3. THE SUCCESS PRINCIPLES by Jack Canfield

Chicken Soup for the Soul author Jack Canfield provides a comprehensive view of a variety of success principles that are sure to impact athletics and life. While significantly thicker than most of the other recommended books, the book is broken into numerous short chapters that you could assign specific ones to your players to read.


4. MASTERY by George Leonard

Have an athlete who is struggling with a performance plateau? Leonard provides a great resource that helps athletes and coaches understand that plateaus are a natural part of the whole process of mastering any kind of performance. It provides a great and much-needed perspective for today's instant gratification society. And it is especially good for those of you who do one on one coaching.


5. THE LEADERSHIP MOMENT by Michael Useem

Carolina women's soccer coach Anson Dorrance uses this book with his team leaders. The book includes several historical events (pivotal battle at Gettysburg, Merck deciding to provide a highly discounted drug to help cure river blindness) that the author looks at from a leadership standpoint. Dorrance assigns various chapters and discusses them with his core leaders.


6. SUCCESS IS A CHOICE by Rick Pitino

Louisville men's basketball coach Rick Pitino says that people must deserve to be successful by making the choice to be on a daily basis. Pitino reminds athletes that indeed success must be earned. Alabama softball coach Pat Murphy has used this with his program.


7. TALENT IS NEVER ENOUGH by John Maxwell

John Maxwell expands on a philosophy that he got from Ohio State football coach Jim Tressel that having talent is simply not enough to be successful. The book stresses that the intangible factors in life like attitude, commitment, work ethic, determination and others are the key to achieving and sometimes transcending one's talent level.


8. THE TEAM CAPTAIN'S LEADERSHIP MANUAL by Jeff Janssen

Sprint out passing game

Concept 1:
Out of a trips look...
Vert by #1 to clear the corner
12 yard out by #2 (or when the corner turns and runs with the vert)
Flat/arrow by #3 (this would be the FB in a pro formation)
Backside reciever runs a post
*If flat defender gets enough depth to defend the out, take your flat
Concept 2:
12-14 yard curl by #1
corner by #2
Flat/arrow by #3
Post by backside receiver

Monday, June 2, 2008

Link to some Run and Shoot Playbooks

http://www.savefile.com/projects/163268