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Post by 50slantstrong on Aug 16, 2018 21:48:04 GMT -6
Don’t know if this is a vent or a “story of the present season”
First year head coach. Took over at a tough place. Didn’t think it was going to be easy. The consensus insight I’ve been given is that the seniors will be the hardest to sell to. Holy chit that wasn’t a joke.
Our attendance has been atrocious. Our parents, especially of the seniors, are enablers. If I had a nickle for every “little Johnny is sick he can’t come to practice” text I got at the 11th hour I’d be able to pay off my mortgage. Unfortunately we’re small and I can’t just tell kids to take a hike. It’s going to be a challenge to field two levels. At this rate, I wouldn’t be surprised if we’re only one level by season’s end.
Our first game is tomorrow. Our team captain, right guard and mike backer texted me today after school that he was quitting. Literally one of maybe 3 seniors I thought was reliable. Something about not feeling appreciated and blah blah but he wants to be our biggest fan. WTF? I’m going to call him and I think I can get him back but it’s still just a pain in the ass I have to do it.
In the last month:
-Another senior thought he didn’t have to go to practice because they had summer ASB stuff. When I told him he can do all the ASB stuff he wanted 22 other hours of the day, he went to the ASB teacher, who then went to the AD complaining “football is not in season but he’s making kids practice”. AD took my side, but ever since kid has just been a stick in the mud and won’t practice hard. Literally went from projected starter to a kid I don’t even want to put in a JV game.
-Two parents, of seniors, gave me the third degree about our dead period rules. They didn’t think it was legal to have kids lift. I pointed out that we can lift just not practice. They didn’t believe me and went to our governing body and tried to say I was running illegal practices, only to find out I was perfectly within the rules. God forbid they listen to a guy who does this for a living. Their kids are also cheerleaders (no that’s not a typo) who wanted to go to a cheer camp.
-A parent, of a senior, at a meeting continually told me my practice schedule doesn’t make sense because it wasn’t what the previous coach did. He literally yelled it out half a dozen times. I explained it in perfect English why I’m doing it the way I am every time. Luckily I kept my cool. Kid won’t practice hard and told me he doesn’t think he should have to be in 6th period athletics. Luckily his counselor thought otherwise. Shocking, he’s another stick in the mud at practice. Unfortunately he has to go in for about 15-20 snaps a game. There are no other options.
-One of the returning players, the starting FS and a potential college football player, might not be eligible because his parents forgot to resubmit his annual intradistrict transfer papers and was enrolled at another school for a day. I’ll likely find out tomorrow. He didn’t show back up until Wednesday. Knowing our parents, they’ve already informed the governing body. -Now that school has started I can’t get all the kids into the athletic period. Credit recovery and other BS reasons and I don’t believe the counselors are supporting athletics as much as they could. That means I’m going to have to start practice later, which means more kids missing
All this apprehension and reservation and we haven’t played a game. Seniors quitting, not buying in, coming up with excuse after excuse to miss. The silver lining is our underclassmen are pretty bought in, except they’re tiny. Literally 8 juniors and 8 sophomores, one of whom is out for the year. Our freshman class is somewhat deep (16) and talented but they’re raw. None of them could hold a candle in a varsity game.
It just seems like everyday the last few weeks it’s just been one ridiculous thing after another after another. I don’t know what I’ve done wrong. I’ve done what I felt is best at maintaining relationships throughout since I’ve been hired, sold a good message “we not me”, and done what I feel is fair.
I took this job knowing it wasn’t great but wow this is some movie type chit I’m dealing with. Haven’t even played a game and on my ride home today I was thinking about what I’m going to say in my resignation speech.
Sorry for the vent guys. I hope you guys all have great seasons
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Post by newt21 on Aug 17, 2018 6:00:36 GMT -6
Just remember, those guys and their parents will be gone in a few months. You may not do what the previous coach did, and that's probably a good thing. Keep working and building the right way and your foundation will be solid (especially after you recruit the halls a bit).
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Post by aceback76 on Aug 17, 2018 6:44:20 GMT -6
Don’t know if this is a vent or a “story of the present season” First year head coach. Took over at a tough place. Didn’t think it was going to be easy. The consensus insight I’ve been given is that the seniors will be the hardest to sell to. Holy chit that wasn’t a joke. Our attendance has been atrocious. Our parents, especially of the seniors, are enablers. If I had a nickle for every “little Johnny is sick he can’t come to practice” text I got at the 11th hour I’d be able to pay off my mortgage. Unfortunately we’re small and I can’t just tell kids to take a hike. It’s going to be a challenge to field two levels. At this rate, I wouldn’t be surprised if we’re only one level by season’s end. Our first game is tomorrow. Our team captain, right guard and mike backer texted me today after school that he was quitting. Literally one of maybe 3 seniors I thought was reliable. Something about not feeling appreciated and blah blah but he wants to be our biggest fan. WTF? I’m going to call him and I think I can get him back but it’s still just a pain in the ass I have to do it. In the last month: -Another senior thought he didn’t have to go to practice because they had summer ASB stuff. When I told him he can do all the ASB stuff he wanted 22 other hours of the day, he went to the ASB teacher, who then went to the AD complaining “football is not in season but he’s making kids practice”. AD took my side, but ever since kid has just been a stick in the mud and won’t practice hard. Literally went from projected starter to a kid I don’t even want to put in a JV game. -Two parents, of seniors, gave me the third degree about our dead period rules. They didn’t think it was legal to have kids lift. I pointed out that we can lift just not practice. They didn’t believe me and went to our governing body and tried to say I was running illegal practices, only to find out I was perfectly within the rules. God forbid they listen to a guy who does this for a living. Their kids are also cheerleaders (no that’s not a typo) who wanted to go to a cheer camp. -A parent, of a senior, at a meeting continually told me my practice schedule doesn’t make sense because it wasn’t what the previous coach did. He literally yelled it out half a dozen times. I explained it in perfect English why I’m doing it the way I am every time. Luckily I kept my cool. Kid won’t practice hard and told me he doesn’t think he should have to be in 6th period athletics. Luckily his counselor thought otherwise. Shocking, he’s another stick in the mud at practice. Unfortunately he has to go in for about 15-20 snaps a game. There are no other options. -One of the returning players, the starting FS and a potential college football player, might not be eligible because his parents forgot to resubmit his annual intradistrict transfer papers and was enrolled at another school for a day. I’ll likely find out tomorrow. He didn’t show back up until Wednesday. Knowing our parents, they’ve already informed the governing body. -Now that school has started I can’t get all the kids into the athletic period. Credit recovery and other BS reasons and I don’t believe the counselors are supporting athletics as much as they could. That means I’m going to have to start practice later, which means more kids missing All this apprehension and reservation and we haven’t played a game. Seniors quitting, not buying in, coming up with excuse after excuse to miss. The silver lining is our underclassmen are pretty bought in, except they’re tiny. Literally 8 juniors and 8 sophomores, one of whom is out for the year. Our freshman class is somewhat deep (16) and talented but they’re raw. None of them could hold a candle in a varsity game. It just seems like everyday the last few weeks it’s just been one ridiculous thing after another after another. I don’t know what I’ve done wrong. I’ve done what I felt is best at maintaining relationships throughout since I’ve been hired, sold a good message “we not me”, and done what I feel is fair. I took this job knowing it wasn’t great but wow this is some movie type chit I’m dealing with. Haven’t even played a game and on my ride home today I was thinking about what I’m going to say in my resignation speech. Sorry for the vent guys. I hope you guys all have great seasons "TOO SOON TO QUIT"!
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Post by blb on Aug 17, 2018 7:06:29 GMT -6
Why will not having some kids in "athletic period" cause you to have to start practice later?
The problems you are having with seniors are not atypical for first-year HCs.
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Post by bigmoot on Aug 17, 2018 7:41:59 GMT -6
lesson i learned 1st hand...you have to hold them accountable. you are probably not gonna win a game any way might as well lose them with the kids who are committed
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Post by bigmoot on Aug 17, 2018 8:24:58 GMT -6
continuing...
I justified some of my decisions to keep some of the guys because we "NEEDED" them. I was a 1st time HC, I wanted to win, i thought they gave me the best chance to win. They were stronger and more talented...of course they gave me a better chance "on paper." But...they didnt buy in, they were a constant headache. 4 years later i would have been better off now if I had cut those kinds of guys lose.
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Post by 50slantstrong on Aug 18, 2018 10:58:35 GMT -6
Follow up: senior captain who wants to quit never returned my calls, nor was he at school yesterday. In true 2018 fashion, his parents never returned my calls either. He’s got nine more weeks. I hate parents like that. Enabling quitting.
We lost last night 37-0. We had 5 first downs. We didn’t quit but it was one of those “reap what you sow” type games. Lots of learning that can come from it. Going to emphasize the crap out of the importance of work ethic stuff to the underclassmen. Almost every senior is a lost cause.
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Post by utchuckd on Aug 19, 2018 5:41:38 GMT -6
Good luck, Coach. In places like that it's easy for this year's hard working, bought in underclassmen to turn into entitled upper classes regardless of what you do.
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Post by blb on Aug 19, 2018 7:04:32 GMT -6
Be patient, positive but demanding ("Effort is NOT optional").
Strive for weekly improvement in fundamentals and execution.
Try to have them playing their best Football at end of season.
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Post by 50slantstrong on Aug 19, 2018 11:45:14 GMT -6
Good luck, Coach. In places like that it's easy for this year's hard working, bought in underclassmen to turn into entitled upper classes regardless of what you do. Yes and thank you. There are 8 juniors. Some of them are very bought in but there are a couple that are on the fence. I’ve got a few in my history class too so that’ll help our relationship. I’m seriously considering doing something like a weekly leadership class for them in the offseason. An hour a week where we learn about just being a leader, adult and a professional.
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Post by blb on Aug 19, 2018 13:33:36 GMT -6
Good luck, Coach. In places like that it's easy for this year's hard working, bought in underclassmen to turn into entitled upper classes regardless of what you do. Yes and thank you. There are 8 juniors. Some of them are very bought in but there are a couple that are on the fence. I’ve got a few in my history class too so that’ll help our relationship. I’m seriously considering doing something like a weekly leadership class for them in the offseason. An hour a week where we learn about just being a leader, adult and a professional.
First, an hour a week is too much.
Kids will look at this as "just another class."
Second of all, you're not teaching-coaching adults or professionals.
Far from it.
For some of them Football is just what they do in the fall. It may not even be their favorite sport.
Remember - Football is not as important to everyone (coaches or players) as it is to you as someone who wanted to be a HFC.
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Post by fkaboneyard on Aug 21, 2018 8:43:28 GMT -6
I feel for you coach, I really do as I was in a program that was alarmingly similar. The incoming head coach set the standard but it took a couple years until things completely turned around. The first year all the seniors acted as though it was their program, they and their parents thought they could do whatever they wanted. The next year, most of the seniors acted that way, the following year only a couple. The HC showed great respect and love for the kids that bought into the program. Not that he was a jerk to the kids that didn't buy in but he really encouraged the hard-workers year round. If they had an issue in the classroom or another sport, he went to bat for them. If they were in a music or drama performance, he showed up and watched them. He always maintained his position of authority over them - he didn't become buddies with them and play xbox with them - but he really got to know them off the football field. They knew he cared about them and really wanted to please him.
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Post by 50slantstrong on Aug 25, 2018 10:50:50 GMT -6
I guess I’ll do weekly updates for those that care:
This week was a good, bad and ugly week.
Good: we had a decent week of practice and won last night. 41-22 against a team that’s been down in the dumps as long as I can remember. There were a lot of mistakes but I’ll take it. Also worth noting as miserable as my tenure has been at times I’m very lucky to have great assistants. They keep the pace at practice and try to uphold the message of the program as best they can.
Bad: a sophomore tried to leave practice Wednesday saying they had to get changed for tae kwon do practice, even though it started 30 minutes after our practice gets out. I lost my cool pretty good, but kept it clean. Of course mom was waiting for me at the office Thursday morning to tell me her son is special and takes a while to get changed. We need the kid too. Selfish enabling moron parent.
Ugly: the kid of the parent who told me my practice schedule doesn’t make sense quit. Didn’t talk to me or anything. Just went straight to the counselor and switched out of the class. But that’s not the ugly part. Dad called the school and asked if he could be reimbursed for the $20 minute clinic sports physical his son got at the school last spring. He’s not playing sports now so he doesn’t need the physical. Our AD told him to kick rocks so he called me and asked if there was anything I could do. Nothing about why his kid quit. Just didn’t understand why he can’t get his $20 back and acted like I owe him a favor. LOL really? I was polite and told him I couldn’t do anything. His number is officially blocked now.
This next week is a tougher game. I’m sure something ridiculous will happen again before it’s played. Stay tuned
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Post by Deleted on Aug 25, 2018 12:10:07 GMT -6
Well, after all the headaches you've had, you're .500 right now when you knew you were going to struggle. Every win is something to build upon and proof that you're doing good things. What was the record there last year? Is there a lot of pressure on you to be a winner in year 1, because it doesn't sound like it.
Look at it this way: the kids who are loafing and making up BS reasons to skip or halfass aren't going to help you much, anyway, but as long as they're around they'll cause problems. They may be better athletes than what you've got right now, but they're doing you and the team a favor by cutting themselves and taking their baggage with them so you can focus on players who want to be there and doing things that are more productive.
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Post by blb on Aug 25, 2018 12:26:14 GMT -6
50slantstrongImagine how the HC you beat 41-22 is doing this weekend.
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Post by scarletandcream on Aug 26, 2018 10:00:17 GMT -6
50slantstrong, many of us have been in or are currently in your shoes. Here is part of a post I made from two years ago: “I am living this exact situation right now. The comment about mind numbing chit sums it up perfectly. Some of the stuff the kids do in a losing program will blow your mind. I kicked my best player off the team because he thought it was okay to skip practice to go fishing with his dad, twice. His parents to this day tell people he didn't quit, he was "let go." Amazing. I had 1/3 of the team in tears in the middle of a varsity game for blowing coverage, missing tackles, etc. Wow, you've got to be kidding me. You are 17 years old and we are going to cry in the middle of a varsity football game? What is this junior high girls soft ball? I had one kid tell me in front of the whole team he would rather play for the previous head coach and lose every game because at least he had fun. It was so bad before I came kids were getting depantsed at practice and the coach did nothing about it. In one of the only few games we had a chance to win this year my seniors quit on the team in the third quarter. Said we were losing so they quit. After half time when we were getting ready for kick off I couldn't find one of my seniors. He snuck off in full gear and was in his parents van crying. They were immediately stripped of their captain roles the rest of the guys had voted them into. I had a dad go from car to car several practices trying to get parents to go to the board to get me fired because we practiced past 6:30 a few nights. I had a senior and his younger cousin walk out of practice in conditioning and quit because it was too hard. I had several kids fake concussions so they didn't have to practice and get hit. Half my older kids who were starters were suspiciously all of a sudden hurt when we got into a stretch of tough games. I started 6 freshman both ways. After a game we lost, one kid said "its not the coaches fault we just don't want to get any better and we don't want to try." A kid purposely dropped three balls and fumbled twice in one game (every time he touched it) because he wasn't getting to play as much as he thought he should. I know this because his buddies told me he said he did it on purpose after the game. After having a terrible year, one of my juniors who thought he should have gotten all conference now won't talk to me much and is stand offish. He thinks he deserves it just for showing up everyday. A couple of kids told the cheerleaders after the game that they sucked and they wish they wouldn't have come to support us at our away game. One of our opponents who is bitter called a timeout with 12 seconds left in the game just so they could punch another score in. They were up by 50. They then got on their bus and drove away without saying a word. Our moms had cooked them supper for after the game because they came from a long ways away and they stood them up. Without exception, every kid that quit the team this year told their buddies they got kicked off the team because it's cooler to get kicked off than to quit. Some of the guys told me that I am too much about winning and they just want to participate and everyone should get to play equal time. I started several freshman over seniors this year to make a point because of bad attitudes. Those seniors proceeded to try to hurt the younger kids in practice by taking cheap shots (rolling into knees, blocks in the back after the play, etc.) I heard 1,000 comments this year that went like this "I can't do it, its too hard, I'm going to quit, we shouldn't have to do this, coach is an A hole, etc." Read more: coachhuey.proboards.com/thread/75314/over-losing-program#ixzz5PIfevYaQIt might seem like you are in an impossible situation, and some are no doubt so you need to decide that for yourself. Like you, I have asked for advice from older coaches on here many times. I will say that in year three all of my attitude, culture, and parent problems are pretty much gone. We have athletes now, but I can’t fix the part about the kids are just {censored} and don’t want to hit anyone. At the end of the day, you either have football players or you don’t, and I really don’t. Set your standards high and then get rid of the kids who don’t want to live up to them or don’t want to be there. The coach who said he would have been better off getting rid of the cancerous kids right away is exactly right. If you are committed to being there then keep pushing through the sludge. It will feel like a bad episode of jerry springer for probably two more years. Good luck!!
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Post by Deleted on Aug 27, 2018 15:01:10 GMT -6
50slantstrong ... If you want us to turn this into a thread of "dumb/annoying chit you deal with when coaching in a bad program," I could go on for days My favorites: 1.) Three year starter and the best athlete on the team quits right before the season starts because he got a GF and wants to spend his time banging her. He's not the only boy we lost to girls. You'd think they'd want to play football to impress women, but not at that school. 2.) The basketball program was moderately successful at this school, due mostly to a D2 PG and a 6'8" 3rd tier D1 kid they'd had a couple of years before. He forbid his kids from lifting because "it'll make you too big to get off the floor," told parents that he wanted kids to play football "but you should be worried they'll get hurt because football is so dangerous, and CTE was real" and told his players that open gym was mandatory and that football players should skip practice in season to attend his open gyms. When basketball practice started in October, we lost about 1/4 of the team. 3.) Had a kid who "broke his shoulder" over the weekend being a dumbass with a friend who'd quit the team and was declared out for the year. Shows up to practice with a sling in. During practice he takes the sling off and swings his shoulder around on the sideline to show the other kids that he wasn't actually hurt. 4.) Literally 2/3 of the team skipped practice the day the new Madden came out so they could stay home and play it. No, 2/3 is not an exaggeration. 5.) Had a senior leader and starter quit football because his chiropractor told him it had given him CTE and permanent brain damage (kid had 3 concussions in under 2 months). When he quit, his mom got up in church on Sunday and tearfully praised Jesus for ending her son's football career. 6.) We won the homecoming game for the first time in a decade. It was a great win for the kids and put them at 1-4 with 5 games to go. As soon as they won their 1 game, they felt like their job was done for the season and stopped putting forth any effort at all. 7.) Had a "rival" in the conference that the kids were flat out terrified to play. It was a running joke in the community that players came down with "the (School Name) Flu." Prior to the last game of the season my second year, 1/2 the team (including all but 2 seniors) quit rather than play them. We had some starters complaining about being on the field and refused to go into the game. By halftime, their 8th graders were in and scored 28 points on us because our kids were scared sh*tless of this team.
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Post by Defcord on Aug 27, 2018 19:21:58 GMT -6
i hated being a head coach and I didn’t have a fraction of the issues some of you guys are talking about.
This game can eat you up. The constant input into your life can add up pretty quickly. Even with the many positive aspects it seems like there is always an issue to address.
My current team is 2-0 and we beat a team ranked #2 in the state in the division below us first week and beat anothers pretty well coached and talented team in week 2. Our head coach said when he went to get lunch the day after the game a random townie told him throw it more and the parent of a school student fussed at him because the concession stands selection was too limited.
So even if you clean up the issues and challenges you are facing now there will probably just be more around the corner.
That doesn’t mean don’t give it your best shot. Keep working hard and setting the example. Good luck!
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Post by coachfares on Aug 28, 2018 10:05:50 GMT -6
lesson i learned 1st hand...you have to hold them accountable. you are probably not gonna win a game any way might as well lose them with the kids who are committed Year 1 is so important for establishing your culture, standards, and expectations. I was in a similar situation, my first year as a head coach and had 30 kids quit on me. we went 0-10 that year but I had 43 kids that were laying the foundation of our new culture and that was what we hung our hat on. We talked about laying bricks and that those 43 were very important in laying the foundation. A brick a day is what we said!! Is the program a little bit better when we left at night than when we arrived in the morning! We as a staff decided that our situation was not an X and O job (At first) but a culture job so we put all we had into building the right culture. If you have vision, a plan to execute your vision, and the discipline enough to follow through on it day in and day out, the process will eventually take over. Your situation isn't a microwave job its more of a slow cooker but it will make you a better coach!!
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Post by coachfares on Aug 30, 2018 9:34:49 GMT -6
i hated being a head coach and I didn’t have a fraction of the issues some of you guys are talking about. This game can eat you up. The constant input into your life can add up pretty quickly. Even with the many positive aspects it seems like there is always an issue to address. My current team is 2-0 and we beat a team ranked #2 in the state in the division below us first week and beat anothers pretty well coached and talented team in week 2. Our head coach said when he went to get lunch the day after the game a random townie told him throw it more and the parent of a school student fussed at him because the concession stands selection was too limited. So even if you clean up the issues and challenges you are facing now there will probably just be more around the corner. That doesn’t mean don’t give it your best shot. Keep working hard and setting the example. Good luck! "The Coaches" The coach has no place to hide, He can not just let the job go for a while or do a bad job and assume no one will notice as most of us can. He can not satisfy everyone seldom does he satisfy very many and rarely does he even satisfy him self. If he wins now he must win the next time too. They plot victories, suffer defeats, endure criticism, from with in and from with out, they neglect their families, travel endlessly & live alone in a spotlight surrounded by others. Theirs may be the worse profession. Unreasonably demanding, insecure, and full of unrelenting pressures. Why do they do it? Why do they put up with it? Having seen them hailed as geniuses in Gordy party like press conferences. And having seen them fired with such pat phrases like "fool" and "incompetent" I have wondered about them. Haveing seen them exalt in victory and depressed by defeat I've sympathize with them. Having seen some broking by the job and others die from it one is moved to admire them and hope that someday the world will learn to understand them. -Unknown-
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Post by 50slantstrong on Sept 1, 2018 11:26:39 GMT -6
Update: we lost last night 38-16 to a pretty good team with returning starters all over. They won a championship three years ago. We were actually winning 9-0 after the 1st quarter and only down 16-24 at the end of 3. Ran for about 250 yards and forced three turnovers. Sophomore free safety picked off a pass in cover 3 against 4 verts to the far side of the field. Incredible play. We actually had to start a freshman at right tackle too. That was slightly less encouraging to watch.
Last year they lost to the same school and same exact team sans a few players 42-0.
Lots of reason to be encouraged. I think most of our kids are starting to get it. Energy in the weight room and kids asking to come to my class at lunch to watch film. Other kids tried sneaking into the weight room after practice to “get a pump” LOL. They’re just so green and not capable of holding up physically for 4 quarters of a varsity football game. It’s amazing to think what could happen if we actually have a good offseason. Just got to uphold the positive vibes because there are about three more teams we play arguably better than the one we played last night.
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Post by 50slantstrong on Sept 8, 2018 15:52:01 GMT -6
Update: lost last night 49-7. Should’ve been closer but I’m not going to try to rationalize the game.
We were only losing 21-7 at the half. We stopped them on a 4th and goal at the end of the half. But then in the second half we reaped what we sowed in the offseason. They took the ball down and drove their first drive and on 4th and 15 our ASB-obsessed corner (mentioned above) got out of his C3 backpedal and went after the scrambling QB before he crossed the line. Predictably ensued. The very next kickoff one of our non-bought in seniors who used every excuse (work, vacation, family illness) to get out of weight lifting allowed the kick to go over his head and when he picked it up he fumbled it around and they recovered it in the end zone for a TD. And then the next possession he caught a pass, and got stripped for a scoop and score.
One of the bright spots I thought was our junior sam linebacker telling our ASB corner to get out of the defensive huddle and off the field after he made a smart ass comment about the call I made. Im severely hoping he doesn’t show up this week.
Currently 1-3. Might be 2 winnable games left on the schedule.
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Post by coachcb on Sept 10, 2018 10:19:05 GMT -6
i hated being a head coach and I didn’t have a fraction of the issues some of you guys are talking about. This game can eat you up. The constant input into your life can add up pretty quickly. Even with the many positive aspects it seems like there is always an issue to address. My current team is 2-0 and we beat a team ranked #2 in the state in the division below us first week and beat anothers pretty well coached and talented team in week 2. Our head coach said when he went to get lunch the day after the game a random townie told him throw it more and the parent of a school student fussed at him because the concession stands selection was too limited. So even if you clean up the issues and challenges you are facing now there will probably just be more around the corner. That doesn’t mean don’t give it your best shot. Keep working hard and setting the example. Good luck! Good point.. We beat the hell out of the third ranked team in the semi-finals (40+ point win) one year and were 10-1 on the season with the one loss coming by one point. We pulled up the comments for the local paper online the next morning (for chits and giggles) and people were calling for our heads. Our schemes sucked... We were awful coaches... We needed "new blood" in the staff.. "Why weren't we running "spread"?? We've got so many good wide receivers..!!"... "Why weren't we running split backs!? We've got two stud running backs, get them both the ball!"... I could go on and on. It was a riot.
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Post by olcoach53 on Sept 12, 2018 7:31:38 GMT -6
Update: lost last night 49-7. Should’ve been closer but I’m not going to try to rationalize the game. We were only losing 21-7 at the half. We stopped them on a 4th and goal at the end of the half. But then in the second half we reaped what we sowed in the offseason. They took the ball down and drove their first drive and on 4th and 15 our ASB-obsessed corner (mentioned above) got out of his C3 backpedal and went after the scrambling QB before he crossed the line. Predictably ensued. The very next kickoff one of our non-bought in seniors who used every excuse (work, vacation, family illness) to get out of weight lifting allowed the kick to go over his head and when he picked it up he fumbled it around and they recovered it in the end zone for a TD. And then the next possession he caught a pass, and got stripped for a scoop and score. One of the bright spots I thought was our junior sam linebacker telling our ASB corner to get out of the defensive huddle and off the field after he made a smart ass comment about the call I made. Im severely hoping he doesn’t show up this week. Currently 1-3. Might be 2 winnable games left on the schedule. That means your kids are starting to take ownership and accountability for the program and their actions. It gets better. First year for us last year and we had horrible seniors. With them gone in year 2 the kids are night and day from last year.
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Post by 50slantstrong on Sept 15, 2018 1:42:58 GMT -6
Ridiculous week but an incredible game. Somehow we won 28-14 against a team we wouldn’t have beaten based on scores leading up.
Our ASB jackoff is just a bad human. He left practice early on Wednesday with another senior to allegedly work on a project. When I contacted their teacher, not only did he say they didn’t have a project, he said they even went to him and asked him to lie to me about it. These are two potential valedictorians too. I kid you not. Neither even showed up for Thursday walk through or the game. Good riddance. I’ve got everything written up and documented for when they inevitably try to go to admin saying they should stay on the team.
I cleared out both of their lockers and erased them from the team Remind and when word got around a parent of a different senior sent me a 5 paragraph text telling me what I did was childish and stuff like that is why the kids don’t respect me. I didn’t respond. Then he has the audacity to text me two hours before the game asking if there is any left over food from the pregame meal. No joke. Again, I didn’t respond.
Found out another group of seniors is deliberately showing up late to their 5th period class (right after lunch) and blaming me, saying I kept them in lunch film too long after the bell. Luckily their teacher didn’t buy it and contacted me. I told them I whole heartedly support her writing them up and would be happy to document every day when I let them out the second the bell rings.
A parent of a sophomore emailed the AD saying I was a bad hire, I don’t run a “moral” program and I don’t teach the kids life skills. Luckily the AD wrote back saying he and the administration wholeheartedly support me and what I teach the kids outside of football and they believe I was the perfect hire. Stinks that I like the kid. He’s not very good but we’re going to need him the next two years.
Moral of the three above stories: good relationships with other teachers at school is HUGE!
Enough of me venting the unnecessary aggravation of my first HC experience, let’s get to the part most people here are more interested in - our victory.
We basically started a JV secondary. Two really green juniors, one of whom didn’t even get the majority of the first team reps until Wednesday, at CB and a soph at FS. We played a spread team who beat us last year. They’re usually 5-5ish but their coach has done a great job the last few years. Before he got there they were a laughing stock.
We were down 7-14 at the half. Offense gift wrapped a score for them by fumbling inside our 20 and the other score was a legit 15 play drive. They were a spread team running power read and playing games with the back alignment. They had their little tendencies and it felt invigorating actually coaching to their tendencies and not feeling like I’m just patching holes on a breaking dam. Even though we were losing it felt like real football was transpiring - problem met with solution, problem met with solution problem met with solution. The kids actually looked like they thought they had a chance at halftime. A different vibe and look on their faces. It was such a bizarre feeling, especially considering how terrible this experience has been at times.
Screw it - we started the second half with an onside kick. We didn’t recover but the kid on the other team tried to pick it up and got decked. It was such an indescribable energy when he got hit. We failed to recover but we were going wild because 6 or 7 hats almost beheaded their unknowing kid trying to pick it up. They went three and out and their punter shanked the kick and we went down and scored. We’re a wing t and it was belly and sweep 5 yards every time. I focus on the D and haven’t watched the entire film yet so I’m not going to sit here and say our blocking was vicious and great but there was a noteicable pep in the step of the offense.
That’s pretty much how the whole second half went. Again can’t comment on the O entirely yet. The defense gave up 3 first downs the second half and even when there was a stupid penalty you just got the feeling we were still going to make a stop.
We were up 21-14 with about 2 to go and they got the ball at midfield after a shanked punt but one of our junior corners, who probably wouldn’t start at 90% of the schools in Southern California, jumped a slant, picked it off and took it down inside the 5. Offense scored two plays later.
We got a bye next then we start league with a team very similar to the one we just played in terms of beatabilty and type of school. I look forward to it. Unfortunately if my time as a HC has taught me anything, the 14 days between now and then will have more unnecessary aggravation.
Cheers!
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Post by 50slantstrong on Sept 20, 2018 23:06:52 GMT -6
I’m about 90% decided I’m going to resign at season’s end.
A group of seniors went to admin and told them they didn’t like the way I ran the program and said they’re considering quitting. Admin deflected it to the AD who sat down today with me at lunch and told me I can’t let these seniors quit because there are only five weeks left, and there are multi-year lettermen who deserve better and he doesn’t want to go through the embarrassment of starting all underclassmen for the rest of the season. In reality only one senior has contributed, and the rest are JV caliber at best. Not to mention entitled narcissists.
Here’s how I know my AD is a soyboy. We can still make the playoffs. It’s a long shot given the competition but I’m not looking at it from the perspective of “there are only five weeks left”. If we can pull off three wins somehow we’re in for the first time in school history. I shared this sentiment with him and he told me that it looks bad on the program when we can’t field a JV, the past coach never had these problems, so many seniors are complaining and blah blah blah. Like f? WTF did you hire me for? To coach or to babysit?
It was also brought to my attention the things the seniors shared. A lot of it was the more abrasive style of coaching they’re not used to, and I told the AD if that’s the case if the shoe fits I’ll wear it. But what I felt was worrisome were the false allegations about saying things like “quit your job”, “you suck you should quit”, “f homework”, “f your family vacation” and telling other players I said so and so was a shitbird behind his back. None of that is true. And im planning on meeting with my principal and telling her that if we’re going to cater to the kids who make this stuff up without fact checking them, there’s no stopping any of them from making up more heinous allegations. And I’m going to mention the idea of resigning if I have to walk on eggshells to make a vocal minority of liars happy and it’s a joke considering 8 months ago I sat in her office and listened to her drone on and on about how she wants to start beating all of our district schools and she hired me to do it. The ultimate irony is I used to work with the guy who coaches the crosstown, perennial favorite rival. He’s the most verbally abusive human I’ve ever known LOL and gloats about the things he says and gets away with.
As an assistant I always took for granted stuff like this. I was naive obviously and felt any school with ability could win and if they didn’t their coach was a slappy. The school I work at has a gold mine of talent. Multiple guys that can ease into college football if they’d apply themselves. I’d coached against them for years and always thought “dang, the right guy there could turn them into a force”. And when the job opened up and they were looking for a guy with my credential, all of my former head coaches said that job’s got your name written all over it.
But wow I’ve seen full circle now why this place sucks in almost every sport despite having athletes all over. It’s one thing for there to be a culture of entitlement and whining. I can deal with that. What kills me and kills the possibility of success is that kids know they can simply threaten their participation in exchange for getting the coach to change the way he does things and every adult in the front office will fold like a cheap lawn chair. I’ve heard other coaches on campus tell me horror stories about admin telling them about executive decisions they can’t make as head coach. Rather they get pushed to take the path of least resistance.
At this point I don’t know or care what I do next year. Maybe I’ll coach DL for our rivals or my principal will have a set of ovaries and tell me “f those kids they’re gone” and I’ll be the HC again next year. Maybe I’ll get laid off and teach middle school PE in the freaking desert. My wife is getting her admin credential. Maybe she can hire me to teach history? Who knows?
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Post by gpcoach on Sept 21, 2018 9:34:00 GMT -6
Where are you located, Coach?
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Post by 50slantstrong on Sept 29, 2018 17:18:00 GMT -6
Lost a game we were winning at the half. 2-4 now and we need to go 3-1 to make the playoffs. Started 9 underclassmen on D and 8 on O.
It’s amazing how vulnerable to criticism these kids are. I’ve made a commitment not to criticize my predecessor but it’s obvious he never really coached the kids hard. We have a talented junior but he is a head case extraordinare. We played a veer option team and he was the pitch man. When he did his job he’d make the tackle for a short gain and when he got sucked in and went after the QB it turned into a huge gain. Literally no change in coverage or responsibility. He was the pitch man when they were in flex bone, which they were 95% of their snaps. He’s talented enough to make that open field tackle almost every time. But the freaking kid refused to believe his reads or do his job. Just him and him alone must have given up 150 yards rushing in the first half. And it wasn’t even an issue of him not understanding the reads. It was him demonstrating a poor attitude and not even trying to honor his coaching during the practice week. We literally have nobody else who could do it. Somehow we were up.
I tore into him at halftime. “Don’t pout. There’s 10 guys out there doing their jobs. You’re the odd man out.” Then he rolled his eyes and I snapped back “take a seat if you can’t handle being coached. I’m not your babysitter”. We played a freshman at his position the second half. Johnny Mental Midget literally sat on the bench with his arms crossed the entire second half. I was going to talk to him after and try to build him back up but he literally b-lined straight for the door after I talked to the team. Literally the first guy out of the door between about 50 players, half a dozen trainers, coaches, pastor, etc
We had our chances but we just don’t have the lead in the pencil. We’re talented enough to hang with teams like this and beat them. It’s just 4 years of weight room and good practice culture away from happening. It would also help if our AD didn’t try telling me whom I can and can’t start. I’m sure I’ll hear something from him because some of his guys didn’t play.
Of course I got a text from a parent (of a different kid) about 11:00 PM telling me the kid who took himself out is really upset, I did him dirty, I don’t know what he’s been through, wah wah wah. I was about 3 Coors Banquets in at that point but still sober enough to not respond and just turn my phone off. It never ceases to blow my mind how much this generation of parents baby their kids. You would think I was coaching a middle school volleyball team the way some respond to assertive coaching. I benched a kid who wasnt trying and rolled his eyes at me when it was pointed it out. There was a point and time when a kid who did that was lucky only to get benched.
Positive note: I ran down to the school early this morning to get my backpack and I ran into a freshman parent (who has another kid at the school who was practicing for band) and he basically told me he feels bad because these parents and older kids are being “professional malcontents” and said they couldn’t pay him enough to do my job. He gave me the rundown on what parents are saying in the stands. Fabricated ideas about me not being fair, playing kids at the wrong position, and not knowing anything about the game. It really helps me out in my opinion if a parent can be honest with me about that and understands how difficult the job really is. At least one parent gets it. LOL.
Next week we play the school’s oldest rival who’s 5-1 and averaging over 200 on the ground a game. Their HC and I go back. Once upon a time him and I sat in my parents’ garage watching film, chewing Grizzly and drinking Coors Light until the sun came up. Young, dumb position coaches thinking we knew more than everybody else. Probably going to ask what my role would be if I were on his staff. Could you blame me?
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Post by johnson2133 on Sept 29, 2018 22:27:48 GMT -6
Lost a game we were winning at the half. 2-4 now and we need to go 3-1 to make the playoffs. Started 9 underclassmen on D and 8 on O. It’s amazing how vulnerable to criticism these kids are. I’ve made a commitment not to criticize my predecessor but it’s obvious he never really coached the kids hard. We have a talented junior but he is a head case extraordinare. We played a veer option team and he was the pitch man. When he did his job he’d make the tackle for a short gain and when he got sucked in and went after the QB it turned into a huge gain. Literally no change in coverage or responsibility. He was the pitch man when they were in flex bone, which they were 95% of their snaps. He’s talented enough to make that open field tackle almost every time. But the freaking kid refused to believe his reads or do his job. Just him and him alone must have given up 150 yards rushing in the first half. And it wasn’t even an issue of him not understanding the reads. It was him demonstrating a poor attitude and not even trying to honor his coaching during the practice week. We literally have nobody else who could do it. Somehow we were up. I tore into him at halftime. “Don’t pout. There’s 10 guys out there doing their jobs. You’re the odd man out.” Then he rolled his eyes and I snapped back “take a seat if you can’t handle being coached. I’m not your babysitter”. We played a freshman at his position the second half. Johnny Mental Midget literally sat on the bench with his arms crossed the entire second half. I was going to talk to him after and try to build him back up but he literally b-lined straight for the door after I talked to the team. Literally the first guy out of the door between about 50 players, half a dozen trainers, coaches, pastor, etc We had our chances but we just don’t have the lead in the pencil. We’re talented enough to hang with teams like this and beat them. It’s just 4 years of weight room and good practice culture away from happening. It would also help if our AD didn’t try telling me whom I can and can’t start. I’m sure I’ll hear something from him because some of his guys didn’t play. Of course I got a text from a parent (of a different kid) about 11:00 PM telling me the kid who took himself out is really upset, I did him dirty, I don’t know what he’s been through, wah wah wah. I was about 3 Coors Banquets in at that point but still sober enough to not respond and just turn my phone off. It never ceases to blow my mind how much this generation of parents baby their kids. You would think I was coaching a middle school volleyball team the way some respond to assertive coaching. I benched a kid who wasnt trying and rolled his eyes at me when it was pointed it out. There was a point and time when a kid who did that was lucky only to get benched. Positive note: I ran down to the school early this morning to get my backpack and I ran into a freshman parent (who has another kid at the school who was practicing for band) and he basically told me he feels bad because these parents and older kids are being “professional malcontents” and said they couldn’t pay him enough to do my job. He gave me the rundown on what parents are saying in the stands. Fabricated ideas about me not being fair, playing kids at the wrong position, and not knowing anything about the game. It really helps me out in my opinion if a parent can be honest with me about that and understands how difficult the job really is. At least one parent gets it. LOL. Next week we play the school’s oldest rival who’s 5-1 and averaging over 200 on the ground a game. Their HC and I go back. Once upon a time him and I sat in my parents’ garage watching film, chewing Grizzly and drinking Coors Light until the sun came up. Young, dumb position coaches thinking we knew more than everybody else. Probably going to ask what my role would be if I were on his staff. Could you blame me? Hang in there Coach. Most of us have been there before. Hold your standard and dont apologize to anyone.
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Post by coachwoodall on Sept 30, 2018 20:41:32 GMT -6
At least you have the opportunity
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