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Post by coachphillip on Jul 30, 2014 9:13:53 GMT -6
JV: 1) Every halfway decent looking kid gets to be on the varsity. It doesn't even make sense anymore. 2) No QB. 3) We've hit August and 2 Read still hasn't clicked for them. I'm starting to wonder if it ever will. Var: 1) Lack of camaraderie. 2) Lack of leadership. 3) Kids think punking someone into something is the same as leading. Bullying. But, I discovered today that one of my good friends might have cancer. He's the strongest guy I know and he's scared. Needless to say, I am too. As worked up as I get over 14 year olds not running 2 Read properly, there are always bigger things in need of attention. Could you expand on what you mean by "every halfway decent kid gets to be on varsity?" Halfway decent looking kid, coach. We're at a point in our program where we're on the cusp of becoming a three level program (Frosh, JV, Var). We've been two levels for half a decade now. We have about 40 kids on the Frosh/Soph and 35 on Var. The problem is that our Var coaches like to pull up younger players with any bit of talent because they like to have talent on reserve. A lot of the kids they pull up aren't mature enough to handle varsity ball and they don't start or even get many reps. This leads to two scenarios: 1) they get "relegated" to the JV and have terrible attitudes. 2) they stay on varsity and ride the pine for an entire season as a sophomore. I've always believed that sophomores should only be pulled up if they're going to start or play considerable time. It's to the point where we pulled up an incoming freshman the first week of summer practice to "teach a lesson" to the older guys. That kid got zero reps after the first week and then decided he just wasn't gonna come anymore. He would've been the best receiver on our JV team and a program boon by his sophomore/junior year. Oh well.
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Post by coach2013 on Jul 30, 2014 10:06:34 GMT -6
New worry. Freshmen numbers are down. I suspect its a trend as other teams went through it last year.
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Post by msirishman on Jul 30, 2014 20:44:27 GMT -6
1. Injuries: We've got a good team coming back but not a lot of depth. 2. Mental & physical toughness of a few of our key players. 3. Quality olinemen. 4. Quality DTs. 5. Selflessness. Have 3 quality backs that will need to put egos aside for us to be successful.
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Post by adawg2302 on Jul 30, 2014 22:20:52 GMT -6
Could you expand on what you mean by "every halfway decent kid gets to be on varsity?" Halfway decent looking kid, coach. We're at a point in our program where we're on the cusp of becoming a three level program (Frosh, JV, Var). We've been two levels for half a decade now. We have about 40 kids on the Frosh/Soph and 35 on Var. The problem is that our Var coaches like to pull up younger players with any bit of talent because they like to have talent on reserve. A lot of the kids they pull up aren't mature enough to handle varsity ball and they don't start or even get many reps. This leads to two scenarios: 1) they get "relegated" to the JV and have terrible attitudes. 2) they stay on varsity and ride the pine for an entire season as a sophomore. I've always believed that sophomores should only be pulled up if they're going to start or play considerable time. It's to the point where we pulled up an incoming freshman the first week of summer practice to "teach a lesson" to the older guys. That kid got zero reps after the first week and then decided he just wasn't gonna come anymore. He would've been the best receiver on our JV team and a program boon by his sophomore/junior year. Oh well. Thanks for the details. I was just curious as to the situation. Does your program ever have sophs contribute on varsity? Do kids ever say "no " to coming up (freshman kid for example)?
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Post by coachbdud on Jul 30, 2014 22:55:30 GMT -6
1. there's only one ball... our skills our loaded, best overall skill group i have ever coached. We have 4 RBs who are all pretty good. 1 has 4 d-1 offers and will only be a sophomore, 2 are big, strong, fast... the one who looks like nothing, is just tough and scrappy and was our leading rusher. We have 2 WRs that I feel are legit in both speed and route running... D-1 talent but without the grades. and we have 3 other WRs who are good and possess a skill set that makes them valuable (1 is 6'4" and is a great jump ball kid, the other 2 are very quick/shifty)... our TE is probably our best overall football player... not amazing athlete but best overall player. i know it is a good problem to have but i am worried about egos when certain kids dont get the ball... saw it some from a WR at our camp when he didnt get the ball thrown his way a ton
2. Lower level coaching, a constant struggle...
3. OL depth... I have my starting 5 and they will be ok, with 2 kids who will be quality backups that I can trust in a game... but I dont have much after that... would love it if i could have another for depth
4. we are a little full of ourselves... we were terrible a year ago, but started almost exclusively under classmen... we have more returning starters than any other team in our league and our kids know they are talented... but at times they slip into a mindset that they've already accomplished something... we have to constantly remind them we are coming off a 1-9 year, we havent done anything yet
5. coming together as a team... it isnt that anyone dislikes eachother, but they just arent together yet, we still have some clicks... especially between returning var kids, and new ones up from last years JV... they basically stick with the kids they played last season with, i would like to see them be together as a whole
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Post by tothehouse on Jul 30, 2014 23:15:23 GMT -6
1. Depth 2. Depth 3. Depth 4. Monster schedule (several monsters) 5. Depth and playing monsters. 6. Not enough beer at the post game social
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Aug 1, 2014 9:28:59 GMT -6
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Post by blb on Aug 1, 2014 15:49:54 GMT -6
Sounds like a coaching problem.
Head coach 101 - assistants buy the beer.
My wife and I provide the food.
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Post by 33coach on Aug 1, 2014 15:52:45 GMT -6
It seems as if every season brings about a different problem to navigate through. Lack of coaches? Team Chemistry? Coaching chemistry? Summer injuries? Lack of weight room participation? Under matched in talent? Poor leadership? Money? Admin? I can honestly state that I dealt with one (or more) the above issues at one point or another during my career. There are many more that I simply didn't list, but... I was just curious to what others saw as a concern within their own programs, why it's a problem, and how you might deal with it. Low numbers Sent from my VS980 4G using proboards
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Post by powerfootball71 on Aug 1, 2014 16:35:31 GMT -6
Have a pretty soild group with high expectations that did very well at a recent team camp. My biggest concern is how they will handle adversity the first time they are faced with it. Feel we are at a turning point as a program but coming off a 1 win season could see them slipping fast if things don't start off fast.
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Post by jasper912 on Aug 1, 2014 17:21:30 GMT -6
My concern is honestly myself. This is my first year as OC. I have helped with this same school for a few years now and have always felt we had the talent. Our DC is great and is more than proven, defense is always good. For the last few years, I have felt like the only thing we were missing was an offense. If we even had a mediocre offense the last 2 seasons we would have been in playoffs, but instead went 5-5 both years.
For these reasons I have put a lot of pressure on myself. I have been busting my butt trying to learn, study, and watch game film from last season. So far this summer we have changed the culture for sure and the kids have really bought into what myself and the rest of the staff are trying to accomplish. If I can get the offensive side of the ball clicking then we will have a good year and have a chance come November.
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Post by groundchuck on Aug 1, 2014 17:57:07 GMT -6
Depth.
Commitment level of some players.
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Post by rsmith627 on Aug 1, 2014 18:22:07 GMT -6
We're a new staff.
My concerns are two new schemes for the kids:
Flexbone and 3-4 defense.
The other big one is keeping our guys healthy for a season. We have some absolute studs and talent to go the distance, but once we start getting kids injured, there is a huge drop off for a few of them.
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Post by coachfloyd on Aug 1, 2014 18:46:42 GMT -6
1) New scheme-switching to the 3-4. 2) Lack of coaches. 3) Whole new defensive staff-one of whom just got here today. 4) Lost 9 starters off of D last year. 5) Ability to stop the run. What am I not worried about is a better question. i might work with you. ha.
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Post by coachfloyd on Aug 1, 2014 18:51:14 GMT -6
1. there's only one ball... our skills our loaded, best overall skill group i have ever coached. We have 4 RBs who are all pretty good. 1 has 4 d-1 offers and will only be a sophomore, 2 are big, strong, fast... the one who looks like nothing, is just tough and scrappy and was our leading rusher. We have 2 WRs that I feel are legit in both speed and route running... D-1 talent but without the grades. and we have 3 other WRs who are good and possess a skill set that makes them valuable (1 is 6'4" and is a great jump ball kid, the other 2 are very quick/shifty)... our TE is probably our best overall football player... not amazing athlete but best overall player. i know it is a good problem to have but i am worried about egos when certain kids dont get the ball... saw it some from a WR at our camp when he didnt get the ball thrown his way a ton I know the feeling. I got 5 rbs that can play. Luckily we run SBV. But also want to keep the WR/TE happy enough to keep blocking enthusiastically.
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orion320
Sophomore Member
"Don't tell me about the labor just show me the baby!"
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Post by orion320 on Aug 1, 2014 18:53:32 GMT -6
1. Lack of experience - lost almost all starters from a talented group last year also have several new players this year who have never played football. 2. Depth - our skill guys are decent but if we lose a lineman we are in big trouble. 3. Leadership - something we have lacked for several years, there is no clear leader on the field. 4. Physicality - we aren't very physical team
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Post by Deleted on Aug 2, 2014 6:29:13 GMT -6
Sounds like a coaching problem.
Head coach 101 - assistants buy the beer.
My wife and I provide the food.
If you saw my original post you'd see why #6 concerns me! Duece
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Post by rbcrusaders on Aug 3, 2014 0:18:02 GMT -6
Our HC passed away 3 weeks ago. Our punter coach was hired by the administration to be the interim HC. He hired ten new coaches who were all alumni. He kept me and another coach, and fired the rest including our defensive coordinator. The new D coordinator changed the defense completely. The new OC brought in a completely new offense including hole numbering system.
Last-and in my opinion worst of all-many of the new coaches he hired had absolutely no prior experience. Well one guy is younger than me, just graduated college and was brought in to coach one position on defense. From the first day while doing stretches onward he began yelling, screaming, insulting players, telling our best players they were soft, telling our STUD d1 lineman that he didn't care he was there a few minutes late because his family was in town-this is a voluntary summer practice, keep in mind. Well, after only 2 or 3 weeks of this guy constantly ridiculing, insulting, putting down players, being totally in their face and overall, from what it seemed like to me, making it all about himself and how tough he is. His ego was out of hand and when it was all said and done, our top three best and most talented players had quit the team and changed schools completely, citing him in particular and the bad environment. Its been brought up by the HC, but a little too late.
So basically, this is my main goal-making sure I coach well and make it about the young men, and not about me. I want to try and do my best for the team to see what I can do to fix the team unity, etc. I want to let them know that everyone faces adversity, but how the react to it is what makes the man. I am going to teach, show what it takes to be men, and serve to the best of my ability. My coaching buddy put it in a way that I liked- Deny yourself, Carry your cross. Team first!
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Post by Wingtman on Aug 3, 2014 7:10:50 GMT -6
Havent seen my team since May. Yup, May. We are a private school with students all over the country. They don't come back till Wednesday. Practice in our state starts tomorrow. A summer behind, plus two days behind. Spending Wednesday with a meeting, Thursday testing. Friday we get going. Lots of skill talent, but how long will it take to get rolling? New offense, new defense. This has kept me up at night since I dont know, Memorial Day.
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Post by blb on Aug 3, 2014 8:09:28 GMT -6
After concluding camp:
We have only one TE.
We have only two Guards.
We have only one QB (back-up is our best RB).
Our QB may have to start at Safety. He is also our PK and Punter. If he gets injured (which he has each of last two years)...
We have already pulled up the only two Sophomores ready to contribute at Varsity level.
We may have to fight just to save the equipment this year. And then we'll be outnumbered.
Difference between me and Custer is he didn't have to watch the films.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Aug 3, 2014 20:50:29 GMT -6
Difference between me and Custer is he didn't have to watch the films. F@#king classing!!! Duece
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Post by s73 on Aug 4, 2014 12:28:21 GMT -6
Our team should be much improved from last season with a hard working SR class. We have good skill and are good enough to contend for a championship. However there is a lot of parity among the top teams. So what worries me? 1) Mental Toughness (This group when they were younger had lost some big games at the end of the regular season, snowballed into "choking" in the first round of playoffs). I feel a lot better because we've worked on it ALOT this off-season, but need to see it applied in games. 2) Position questions, specifically at center, ILB depth, and safety. Are you sure we don't coach at the same school? LOL About the first 5 sentences above matches my exact concerns. We have physical ability (maybe more than ever) but the mental toughness / FB savvy is very concerning to me. Sometimes I feel like I need a remote control to get these guys in correct position. But when they do it right it looks good. So MAJOR worry ? How often they gonna do it right? I know - I know, that's my job. Sometimes easier said then done when the FB IQ is a concern. My other concern in MONSTER SCHEDULE. But I can't do anything about that so I choose not to worry about it (much).
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Post by joker31 on Aug 5, 2014 22:35:59 GMT -6
Our team should be much improved from last season with a hard working SR class. We have good skill and are good enough to contend for a championship. However there is a lot of parity among the top teams. So what worries me? 1) Mental Toughness (This group when they were younger had lost some big games at the end of the regular season, snowballed into "choking" in the first round of playoffs). I feel a lot better because we've worked on it ALOT this off-season, but need to see it applied in games. 2) Position questions, specifically at center, ILB depth, and safety. Are you sure we don't coach at the same school? LOL About the first 5 sentences above matches my exact concerns. We have physical ability (maybe more than ever) but the mental toughness / FB savvy is very concerning to me. Sometimes I feel like I need a remote control to get these guys in correct position. But when they do it right it looks good. So MAJOR worry ? How often they gonna do it right? I know - I know, that's my job. Sometimes easier said then done when the FB IQ is a concern. My other concern in MONSTER SCHEDULE. But I can't do anything about that so I choose not to worry about it (much). Glad to know we're not the only one. Fortunately, our group is football savvy, but even then we were mentally weak. We've made progress, but you just never know with HS kids. Hopefully your group is athletic. Are your schemes simplistic? Might be the best way to put them in a position of success.
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Post by flyinghelmet on Aug 5, 2014 23:00:44 GMT -6
Well.
My line has ONE returning starter and he wont be playing that position. NO depth whatsoever.
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Post by coachklee on Aug 5, 2014 23:03:43 GMT -6
It seems as if every season brings about a different problem to navigate through. Lack of coaches? Team Chemistry? Coaching chemistry? Summer injuries? Lack of weight room participation? Under matched in talent? Poor leadership? Money? Admin? I can honestly state that I dealt with one (or more) the above issues at one point or another during my career. There are many more that I simply didn't list, but... I was just curious to what others saw as a concern within their own programs, why it's a problem, and how you might deal with it. Lack of weight room participation leading to under matched talent and indicating low numbers. The varsity is almost even in skill positions compared to teams we saw at 7-on-7, but pretty sure we are way under matched on the line (only saw 3 lineman regularly in the weight room). The schedule is quite brutal too with 6 out of the 9 teams as play-off qualifiers last year including 2 8-1 win teams and 1 9-0 team. Just hired in on July 16th to a new school and was given the JV HC/OC role coaching backs in a veer offense and linebackers in a 3-5 defense. Been an OL/DL guy for basically all of my 10 years coaching with 2 seasons of DC. Not worried too much about the coaching change, I'm just anxious to know whether or not I will actually have some JV responsibilities (very low numbers in the weight room all summer and not much better during this week of conditioning). Like some others, the biggest concern is much bigger than football. The Varsity HC had surgery last Tuesday to remove the cancerous parts of his colon that remained after radiation and chemo. While the surgery went well, the recovery time hasn't progressed quite as quick as the HC envisioned.
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Post by rbcrusaders on Aug 5, 2014 23:58:30 GMT -6
5. Selflessness. Have 3 quality backs that will need to put egos aside for us to be successful. Ever think of running the flex bone or wing-t to have the 3 backs on the field together?
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Post by realdawg on Aug 6, 2014 4:40:27 GMT -6
sneed-alot of the same concerns-you must be on our staff-really we may not be in the best conference in the state, but its pretty top heavy with 2 teams that played in the state championship last year and both bring alot of studs back.
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Post by gators1422 on Aug 6, 2014 7:00:55 GMT -6
Complacency!!!!! We have been to the state title game the last 2 years, winning last year. Most of our kids have played or been on the roster for both trips. They have worked really hard in the weight room but a couple of our really good kids have the idea that we'll win just because of who we are. We will be the favorite this year and our kids know we'll win our district pretty easy. We just have to have some leaders step up. Graduated 2 kids last year that our team would follow anywhere. We need that again if we are going to get where we want to go. I'm worried we'll run into a team like us last year that is hungrier than us.
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Post by s73 on Aug 6, 2014 8:08:33 GMT -6
Are you sure we don't coach at the same school? LOL About the first 5 sentences above matches my exact concerns. We have physical ability (maybe more than ever) but the mental toughness / FB savvy is very concerning to me. Sometimes I feel like I need a remote control to get these guys in correct position. But when they do it right it looks good. So MAJOR worry ? How often they gonna do it right? I know - I know, that's my job. Sometimes easier said then done when the FB IQ is a concern. My other concern in MONSTER SCHEDULE. But I can't do anything about that so I choose not to worry about it (much). Glad to know we're not the only one. Fortunately, our group is football savvy, but even then we were mentally weak. We've made progress, but you just never know with HS kids. Hopefully your group is athletic. Are your schemes simplistic? Might be the best way to put them in a position of success. Schematics are not really the issue. Our line for example, is very intelligent and actually pretty FB savvy (exception would be TE but our tackles can help him as they are pretty intelligent). My bigger concern is aligning correctly on defense. Seems like when we see something that varies at all from what we expected, guys look a little lost. Also, one of our ILBers drops are sporadic. Then we stop and talk to him & he's all good. Next day, same thing. My biggest concern is my QB. Awesome ability, just seems like he kinda "tunes out" for a series or two. Just kind of periodic ADHD. It's weird. He can be killin' it for an entire practice and then all of a sudden 3 plays in a row just go down the toilet. Weird. But....we're the idiots who put at least a partial part of our livelihoods in the hands of teenagers (LOL). Good luck.
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Post by rpetrie on Aug 6, 2014 8:47:48 GMT -6
6 less practice days & no game scrimmage heading into Game #1. Our Section had to work a bye-week into our schedules because a team dropped their varsity for a season. End result is we start games a week earlier...but not practices soooooo short time and we have a young team. Summer has been good but the short time is worrisome.
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